United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has issued a blunt warning to member states, saying the organisation could face a serious cash shortfall within months unless countries pay what they owe.
Speaking on Friday, Guterres said the UN’s finances are under severe strain and could be exhausted by July, putting essential operations and programmes at risk.
Late Payments Push UN to the Edge
Guterres said the UN’s financial troubles stem from a long-running problem: some countries fail to pay their mandatory contributions in full, while others delay payments for months. As a result, the organisation has been forced to impose hiring freezes and make spending cuts just to stay afloat.
“Either all member states honour their obligations to pay in full and on time, or member states must fundamentally overhaul our financial rules to prevent an imminent financial collapse,” Guterres wrote in a letter to governments.
By the end of 2025, unpaid contributions had climbed to roughly $1.6 billion — more than double the figure recorded a year earlier — despite more than 150 countries having already paid their dues.
US Funding Cuts Add to Pressure
The warning comes at a time when the Trump administration has scaled back funding to several UN agencies and delayed or rejected some required payments. President Donald Trump has repeatedly questioned the relevance of the UN and criticised its priorities.
Political tensions have also taken a toll. Disagreements between the United States, Russia and China — all permanent members of the Security Council — have increasingly paralysed the UN’s most powerful body. Earlier this month, Trump unveiled his own “Board of Peace,” a move critics see as an attempt to sideline or rival the UN.
“An Untenable Path,” Says Guterres
Guterres described the UN’s current financial trajectory as unsustainable, warning it leaves the organisation exposed to serious structural risk. Compounding the problem, the UN is required to reimburse member states for unspent funds, even when the money is no longer available.
“We are trapped in a Kafkaesque cycle, expected to give back cash that does not exist,” Guterres wrote.
Unless collections improve significantly, he warned, the UN will not be able to fully carry out its 2026 budget, approved only months ago. Based on past trends, regular operating funds could be depleted by July.
In what will be one of his final annual addresses before stepping down in 2026, Guterres painted a grim picture of a world marked by deep geopolitical divisions, violations of international law and sweeping cuts to development and humanitarian aid — a clear reference to recent reductions tied to the Trump administration’s “America First” policies.
