Senate Republicans want to stop US funding for UN if Israel’s status is downgraded

A group of 27 Senate Republicans plan to introduce a bill that would cut off U.S. funding for the United Nations (UN) if Israel’s status within the international body is downgraded. The Senators said the legislation is necessary due to reports that the Palestinian Authority will try to downgrade Israel’s status. 

The group, led by members of the Foreign Relations Committee, said they will introduce the bill when Congress reconvenes after the election. The bill would cut off U.S. funding to UN agencies that expel, downgrade, suspend or otherwise restrict the participation of the State of Israel. 

“Any attempt to alter Israel’s status at the UN is clearly anti-Semitic,” Foreign Relations ranking member Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, said in a statement. “That said, if the UN member states allow the Palestinian Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization to downgrade Israel’s status at the UN, the U.S. must stop supporting the UN system, as it would clearly be beyond repair. I am disgusted that this outrageous idea has even been discussed.” 

There is a bipartisan companion bill in the House introduced by Reps. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., and Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla.

Currently, the Palestinian Authority is considered a non-member observer state at the UN. 

In May, the UN General Assembly approved a resolution that urged the Security Council to favorably consider granting the Palestinian Authority full membership. The resolution also granted the PA the right to introduce and co-sponsor proposals and amendments. Those new privileges would allow their representatives to introduce a resolution to downgrade Israel’s status as a full member state. 

Palestinian representatives cannot vote at the UN. The Palestinian Authority is working to gain full membership from the Security Council. The United States is the single largest financial contributor to the UN. 

The General Assembly performs an assessment every three years on how much each country should pay based on their financial capacity. For the general UN budget, the U.S. provides 22%, followed by China at 15.25% and Japan at 8%. The U.S. also provides billions more to UN Specialized Agencies and UN Peacekeeping. In total, the US provided the UN with approximately $18 billion dollars in 2022.