14ymedio, Havana, 25 January 2025 — The United States Department of State froze almost all funds for aid programs abroad, with immediate effect and as a result of an executive order signed by President Donald Trump. According to several US media, the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, sent a memorandum to all embassies and diplomatic offices ordering the suspension of the delivery of funds and the granting of new aid.
In Cuba, many independent organizations that benefited from these funds could suddenly be deprived of the aid granted by the US government in favor of human rights, free enterprise and freedom of expression.
In principle, the order puts the brakes on all projects financed by the Office of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL); the Office of International Affairs for Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL); the International Development Agency (USAID) and the Office of Humanitarian Aid (BHA), as confirmed to 14ymedio by a European employee of an organization that supports several groups in Cuba.
The US Embassy on the Island organizes several programs and scholarships to train Cubans in human rights, diplomacy and languages, which could also stop.
The measure puts at risk the projects that depend on the millions of dollars given by the State Department and USAID
The measure also puts at risk international projects that depend on the millions of dollars given by the State Department and USAID, although it makes an exception for emergency food assistance and military financing in favor of Israel and Egypt.
The memo was sent after Trump signed an executive order on Monday that freezes those contributions for a period of 90 days, because the “foreign aid and bureaucracy of the United States are not aligned with US interests and, in many cases, are the antithesis” of US values.
CNN quotes statements from an unidentified government official who acknowledged that, although they foresaw some cuts, they did not expect such a “wide and immediate” pause. The official said that humanitarian needs around the world are acute, and freezing assistance from the United States, which is the world’s largest humanitarian donor, “could be harmful.”
“The Trump Administration is threatening the lives and future of communities in crisis and abandoning the United States’ long-standing bipartisan approach to foreign assistance, which supports people according to their needs, regardless of politics,” said Abby Maxman, president of Oxfam, an organization that fights against inequality and poverty.
According to the news source Politico, the suspension of foreign aid could also deprive Ukraine of military and financial aid
According to the news source Politico, the suspension of foreign aid could also deprive Ukraine of military and financial aid. However, among the exceptions provided for in the order are military assistance for Egypt and Israel, which allows emergency food aid, and “legitimate expenses incurred before the date of this” guidance” in accordance with existing awards.”
Another State Department official, in addition to two former officials of the Biden Administration, said that the pause also seems to affect Jordan and Taiwan.
In addition, Politico adds, “the guide could expose the United States government to civil liability, since lawsuits could be filed for unfulfilled contracts if it is considered that the terms have been violated.”
Translated by Regina Anavy
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