The United Nations, which has been around for nearly 80 years, is on the verge of an “imminent financial collapse,” according to United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
In a letter sent to member states dated this week, Guterres cited a mountain of unpaid fees and a budget rule that forces the global body to return unspent money that could lead to its closure.
“The crisis is deepening, threatening program delivery and risking financial collapse. And the situation will deteriorate further in the near future,” Guterres stated in his letter.
Under U.N. rules, contributions depend on the size of the economy of each member state. The U.S. accounts for 22% of the core budget followed by China with 20%.
But by the end of 2025 there was a record $1.57 billion in outstanding dues, Guterres said, without naming them.
“Either all Member States honour their obligations to pay in full and on time – or Member States must fundamentally overhaul our financial rules to prevent an imminent financial collapse,” he said in the letter.
Guterres warned in the letter that the U.N. could run out of cash as soon as this July.
According to Guterres, one of the problems the U.N. faces is a rule now seen as antiquated whereby the global body has to credit back hundreds of millions of dollars in unspent dues to states each year.
“In other words, we are trapped in a Kafkaesque cycle expected to give back cash that does not exist,” said Guterres.
Guterres has repeatedly spoken about the organization’s worsening financial crisis but this is his starkest warning yet, and it comes as the United States is retreating from being a focal presence in the organization.
President Donald Trump has described the U.N. as having “great potential” but said it is not fulfilling that, and he has launched a Board of Peace which some fear could undermine the older international body, according to Reuters.
The U.S. has slashed voluntary funding to U.N. agencies and refused to make payments to its regular and peacekeeping budgets.
Founded in 1945, the U.N. has 193 member states and works to maintain international peace and security, promote human rights, foster social and economic development, and coordinate humanitarian aid.
A U.N. spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the media at the time of publication.