The Trump administration announced a sweeping withdrawal from dozens of international organizations on Wednesday, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the U.N. Population Fund, marking a significant retreat from global cooperation frameworks.

President Trump signed an executive order suspending U.S. support for 66 organizations, agencies, and commissions following his administration’s comprehensive review of America’s participation in international bodies. The targets include numerous U.N.-related entities focused on climate, labor, migration, and other issues that the administration has characterized as promoting “woke” initiatives.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended the decision in a statement, saying, “The Trump Administration has found these institutions to be redundant in their scope, mismanaged, unnecessary, wasteful, poorly run, captured by the interests of actors advancing their own agendas contrary to our own, or a threat to our nation’s sovereignty, freedoms, and general prosperity.”

This latest move builds upon previous withdrawals from organizations like the World Health Organization, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), the U.N. Human Rights Council, and UNESCO. The administration has adopted what analysts describe as an à la carte approach to international engagement, selectively supporting operations and agencies that align with Trump’s agenda while defunding those deemed contrary to U.S. interests.

“I think what we’re seeing is the crystallization of the U.S. approach to multilateralism, which is ‘my way or the highway,'” observed Daniel Forti, head of U.N. affairs at the International Crisis Group. “It’s a very clear vision of wanting international cooperation on Washington’s own terms.”

The withdrawal from the UNFCCC represents a significant blow to global climate cooperation. Established in 1992 with 198 member countries, the treaty underpins the Paris climate agreement, which Trump previously abandoned shortly after returning to office. The UNFCCC provides financial support for climate change activities in developing countries.

Gina McCarthy, former White House National Climate Adviser, criticized the decision as “shortsighted, embarrassing, and foolish,” noting that it leaves the United States as the only nation in the world not part of the treaty. “This Administration is forfeiting our country’s ability to influence trillions of dollars in investments, policies, and decisions that would have advanced our economy and protected us from costly disasters wreaking havoc on our country,” she said in a statement.

Climate scientists warn that the U.S. withdrawal could impede global efforts to address climate change, which is linked to increasing instances of extreme weather events including flooding, droughts, wildfires, and dangerous heat waves. Stanford University climate scientist Rob Jackson, who chairs the Global Carbon Project, cautioned that the move “gives other nations the excuse to delay their own actions and commitments.”

The U.N. Population Fund, which provides sexual and reproductive health services worldwide, has long been controversial among Republicans. Trump previously cut funding for the agency during his first term, accusing it of supporting “coercive abortion practices” in countries like China. When President Biden took office in January 2021, he restored funding, and a subsequent State Department review found no evidence to support the GOP claims.

The extensive list of organizations from which the U.S. will withdraw includes the Carbon Free Energy Compact, United Nations University, International Cotton Advisory Committee, International Tropical Timber Organization, Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation, Pan-American Institute for Geography and History, International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies, and the International Lead and Zinc Study Group.

Despite the massive shift in U.S. international engagement, administration officials claim they still see value in the United Nations. They say they want to redirect taxpayer money toward expanding American influence in standard-setting U.N. initiatives where there is competition with China, such as the International Telecommunications Union, International Maritime Organization, and International Labor Organization.

The withdrawal comes at a time when the United Nations is already undergoing its own internal restructuring, forcing the world body to implement staffing and program cuts in response to the changing funding landscape.