I’ve seen the UN at its best. As it turns 80, with a world in crisis, it must recover its courage | Martin Griffiths
GuardianAUG 15
UN Seeks $23 Billion Following 2025 Funding Shortfall
Is the U.N. a bloated bureaucracy wasting resources, or an indispensable institution facing a moral funding crisis?
Above: The UN logo at the General Debate of the UN General Assembly in New York on Sept. 27, 2025. Image credit: Kay Nietfeld/picture alliance/Getty Images
The Spin
Right narrative
The U.N. has become a bloated, ineffective bureaucracy that wastes resources while failing to deliver results. Multilateral organizations have drifted from their core missions, acting contrary to American interests and requiring urgent reform or defunding. The system is overhead-heavy and accountability-light, turning into yesterday's white elephant that prioritizes career ambitions over stakeholder value.
Left narrative
The U.N. remains indispensable despite funding crises, with dedicated staff doing vital humanitarian work that no other institution can replicate. Slashing aid budgets represents a moral failure that could kill millions, particularly children, while undermining decades of progress against disease and hunger. The organization needs courage and reform, not abandonment, to reclaim its peacemaking role.
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© 2025 Improve the News Foundation. All rights reserved.Version 6.18.1
© 2025 Improve the News Foundation.
All rights reserved.
Version 6.18.1