US Foreign Aid Was Always About Furthering US Interests

The announcement by the new Donald Trump administration to suspend foreign aid spending — approximately $68 billion annually — has sent shock waves across the world. This decision will not only affect military aid, which makes up a large percentage of the total, but also threatens funding for development aid, human rights campaigns, and initiatives that support democratic institutions — even as US foreign policy tends to undermine the stated goals of its aid. The executive order immediately raised concerns in the mainstream press about the United States neglecting its duty to Ukraine in its war with Russia and the abandonment of numerous humanitarian missions across the underdeveloped world.