US Freezes All Foreign Aid – Including Ukraine Funding – in Sweeping ‘America First’ Shift

The US – the world’s largest foreign aid provider – abruptly froze nearly all overseas assistance on Friday, with exceptions only for emergency food relief and military funding to Israel and Egypt.

The sweeping order, issued just days after President Donald Trump’s inauguration, appears to halt military assistance to Ukraine.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued an internal memo instructing all agencies to immediately suspend foreign aid programs unless explicitly approved by the new administration. 

“No new funds shall be obligated for new awards or extensions of existing awards until each proposed new award or extension has been reviewed and approved,” said the memo, per AFP. The directive signals the administration’s aggressive pivot toward Trump’s “America First” foreign policy, which prioritizes domestic interests over international commitments.

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Humanitarian aid to Ukraine likely to be hit by the Trump executive order

The newly inaugurated president issued an executive order shortly after taking office on Monday instructing departments to pause the issuance of foreign aid grants for 90 days pending a review by the incoming secretary.

But Rubio’s guidance today goes further, directing agency heads to stop dispersing aid even to programs already approved by the US government. 

The order caught some department officials off guard, according to Politico. “State just totally went nuclear on foreign assistance,” a State Department official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told the publication.

“Decisions whether to continue, modify or terminate programs will be made following the review” from the secretary,” the memo states.

One current State Department official and two former Biden administration officials confirmed to Politico that the freeze appears to impact key allies, including Ukraine, Jordan, and Taiwan.

The US has been one of Ukraine’s largest backers since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, making the suspension of aid particularly dangerous for Kyiv’s ability to continue defending its sovereign land.

While the freeze affects most US foreign aid, the memo explicitly carved out exceptions for military assistance to Israel and Egypt.

The US has long provided Israel with extensive security aid, a commitment that has only expanded amid the ongoing war in Gaza. Egypt, which has received substantial US defense funding since signing its 1979 peace treaty with Israel, also remains unaffected by the restrictions. 

Rubio, who previously supported humanitarian aid, also maintained an exemption for US contributions to emergency food assistance. 

The in-depth assessment and aid suspension are necessary, according to Rubio, to assure that federal programs “are not duplicated, are effective, and are consistent with President Trump’s foreign policy.”