State Department Tells Congress It Will Pay the U.N. $725 Million - Under a Fifth of What Washington Owes

The administration has told Congress it intends to pay $725 million toward the United Nations regular budget, according to an Aug. 4 State Department notification letter to lawmakers seen by Reuters and first reported Aug. 21. A U.S. official said any payments would be contingent on continued reforms at the organization and that no funds had been transferred as of that Friday. The notification comes before Trump's expected address to the General Assembly next month.

The sum is less than a fifth of the more than $4 billion the U.N. said in May that Washington owed, a figure the United States disputes. A State Department official told Reuters the U.S. had driven "historic reforms," including the first real budget cut in U.N. history. Under Article 19 of the U.N. Charter, a member state whose arrears exceed two years of dues can lose its General Assembly vote.

Reuters reported that about $153.4 million remains withheld on policy grounds, including funds for the Human Rights Council.