The US has canceled 83% of its foreign aid programs under the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) worth billions of dollars as President Donald Trump focuses on the domestic economy.
The decision affects approximately 5,200 contracts globally, with the remaining 18% set to be transferred to the State Department.
"After a six-week review, we are officially canceling 83% of the programs at USAID," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a post on X.
"The 5,200 contracts that are now canceled spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, and in some cases even harmed, the core national interests of the United States."
Trump signed an executive order on January 20, his first day in office, suspending foreign development assistance for 90 days to allow for a review of its efficiency and alignment with his America First policy stance.
Over the years, in addition to direct aid provided in the likes of the 2002 earthquake disaster, USAID has been a donor to Iranians in the diaspora to strengthen freedom of speech and free flow of information.
Rubio did not specify whether Iran-related programs were included in the cuts but among USAID's grantees are Persian media outlets that publish uncensored news for Iranian citizens, as well as human rights organizations that document abuses in Iran, instrumental in keeping the Islamic Republic accountable.
A part of the US funds also covers the expenses of Virtual Private Network (VPN) services which ordinary Iranians used to circumvent the Islamic Republic’s censorship.
Official government figures show Washington is the world's biggest donor of international aid, spending $39 billion in the 2024 fiscal year, out of which $65 million was allocated to funding State Department-administered Near East Regional Democracy (NERD).
The body is the main foreign assistance channel through which the United States has supported civil society and human rights in Iran since 2009, according to the Congressional Research Service.
