Biden's departing UN envoy says US rivals will fill the vacuum if Trump abandons global leadership
Source: AP
Updated 12:03 AM EST, January 19, 2025
WASHINGTON (AP) — The outgoing U.S. ambassador to the United Nations says she watched America’s leadership diminish in the world during Donald Trump’s first presidency and China fill the vacuum. Linda Thomas-Greenfield is warning that if it happens again during Trump’s second term, adversaries will move in anew.
In a wide-ranging interview with The Associated Press, Thomas-Greenfield said during Joe Biden’s presidency, the United States again engaged with the world, rebuilt alliances and reestablished America’s leadership. “That is the gift that we hand over to the next administration,” she said, “and I hope that they will accept that gift in the spirit in which it is being given to them.”
Advice to Trump’s choice for UN ambassador
In a brief meeting with Trump’s nominee, Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, Thomas-Greenfield told her “that the U.N. is important, and that it is important that we not cede any space to our adversaries.” Those rivals “will change the rules of the road,” she warned. “And so, U.S. leadership is extraordinarily important.”
In his first term, Trump called the United Nations “just a club for people to get together, talk and have a good time.” He suspended funding to its health and family planning agencies and withdrew from its cultural and education organization UNESCO and top human rights body. That’s raised uncertainty about what’s ahead, especially because the United States is the U.N.'s biggest single donor.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/us-ambassador-un-trump-china-gaza-ukraine-15b53ae18bfefb5329054d889c0a5a75
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