US Pulls Out of Global Compact on Migration

US President Donald Trump. AFP file photo
US President Donald Trump. AFP file photo
TT
20

US Pulls Out of Global Compact on Migration

US President Donald Trump. AFP file photo
US President Donald Trump. AFP file photo

The United States has withdrawn from a United Nations pact to improve the handling of migrant and refugee situations, deeming it "inconsistent" with President Donald Trump’s policies.

"The US Mission to the United Nations informed the UN Secretary-General that the United States is ending its participation in the Global Compact on Migration," the US said in its statement on Saturday.

In September 2016, the 193 members of the UN General Assembly unanimously adopted a non-binding political declaration called the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants, which pledged to uphold the rights of refugees, help them resettle and ensure they have access to education and jobs.

"The New York Declaration contains numerous provisions that are inconsistent with US immigration and refugee policies and the Trump Administration's immigration principles. As a result, President Trump determined that the United States would end its participation in the Compact process that aims to reach international consensus at the UN in 2018," the US statement read.

US Ambassador Nikki Haley said Washington would continue its "generosity" in supporting migrants and refugees around the world, but added: "Our decisions on immigration policies must always be made by Americans and Americans alone."

The United States "will decide how best to control our borders and who will be allowed to enter our country. The global approach in the New York Declaration is simply not compatible with US sovereignty," Haley said.

Miroslav Lajcak of Slovakia, the current UN General Assembly president, regretted the decision.

Lajcak "stresses that migration is a global phenomenon that demands a global response and that multilateralism remains the best way to address global challenges," a statement from his office read Sunday.

Farhan Aziz Haq, a spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, added: "We regret the decision but there is still plenty of time for US re-engagement. This should not disrupt the clear, unanimous outcome of the New York Declaration for such a global compact."



Belgium Says Will Take Part in Gaza Aid-drop Plan

Palestinians gather as they seek aid that entered Gaza through Israel, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, July 27, 2025. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Palestinians gather as they seek aid that entered Gaza through Israel, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, July 27, 2025. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
TT
20

Belgium Says Will Take Part in Gaza Aid-drop Plan

Palestinians gather as they seek aid that entered Gaza through Israel, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, July 27, 2025. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Palestinians gather as they seek aid that entered Gaza through Israel, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, July 27, 2025. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa

Belgium will take part in a multi-country operation coordinated by Jordan to airdrop aid to Gaza, the government announced Wednesday, as UN agencies warn the Palestinian territory is slipping into famine.

A Belgian plane carrying medical supplies and food worth some 600,000 euros ($690,000) will fly "soon" to Jordan, and will remain on stand-by to conduct air drops in coordination with Amman, the defense and foreign ministries said in a statement, AFP reported.

Belgium joins a string of Western nations including France, Spain and Britain looking to send aid into Gaza by air as fears mount of mass starvation in the territory.

"These airdrops are a first step, but they can in no way be a cover for the urgent need to facilitate access by land," Belgian foreign minister Maxime Prevot said.

"I will continue to plead with the Israeli authorities to allow these deliveries to enter Gaza by road as quickly as possible."

The World Food Program, UNICEF and the Food and Agriculture Organisation warned Tuesday that time was running out and that Gaza was "on the brink of a full-scale famine".

Israel imposed a total blockade on Gaza on March 2 after ceasefire talks broke down. In late May, it began allowing a small trickle of aid to resume, amid rising fears of a wave of starvation.

Then on Sunday, faced with mounting international criticism, Israel began a series of "tactical pauses" while allowing aid trucks to pass through two border crossings into Gaza, and Jordanian and Emirati planes to conduct airdrops.

Deliveries have been ramped up, but the experts advising the UN said this effort would not prove enough unless aid agencies were granted "immediate, unimpeded" humanitarian access.