US funding for the ICRC is being maintained for the time being
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United States funding of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is not under immediate threat, according to its director Pierre Krähenbühl.
However, the ICRC has taken preventive measures, including a hiring freeze.
The ICRC obtains US funding not through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which has been hit hard by US President Donald Trump’s cost-cutting measures, but through the US State Department, Krähenbühl told Le Temps. “Historically, we have always enjoyed bipartisan support, Democrat and Republican”.
“But we don’t yet know what the current administration’s intentions are for the future,” added the ICRC director. “The impact on our organisation of the loss of the American contribution would be significant”, as it represents 25% of the NGO’s budget.
CHF50 million frozen
Even though no funding has been cut, the ICRC has taken “preventive measures to the tune of CHF50 million”, in particular by freezing new recruitments planned in the budget, said Krähenbühl. The organisation is also conducting a dialogue with the US authorities “focused on the real added value” of the organisation in armed conflicts.
The ICRC has also responded to the US government’s questionnaire aimed at defining the relevance of its activities and the continuity of its funding. “Our primary objective is to protect civilians in war and the defence of humanitarian law”, said Krähenbühl.
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The ICRC has already suffered a “very severe crisis” over the past two years, says Krähenbühl, pointing out that the budget has been cut by CHF700 million to CHF2.1 billion.
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