Trump administration cancels dozens of grants to support democracy in post-Soviet countries
The administration of US President Donald Trump has stopped funding a number of grant programs aimed at supporting democracy, media freedom and countering disinformation in several countries of the former USSR. This involves the cancellation of projects worth a total of more than USD 214 million. This is reported by The Washington Free Beacon and the page of the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) on the social network X.
According to official information, the US Department of State has stopped 139 foreign aid programs funded by American taxpayers. An additional audit by DOGE found that many of these grants “do not correspond to the administration’s policy”, in particular those aimed at supporting “media propaganda abroad”.
Among the canceled programs:
- USD 750,000 to strengthen civil society in Kyrgyzstan;
- USD 2 million to promote democratic practices in Armenia;
- USD 2.5 million to develop civic activism in Uzbekistan;
- USD 2 million to support independent journalism in Moldova;
- USD 2.4 million to combat disinformation in Belarus through the creation of “creative content.”
The decree to cancel these grants was reportedly signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio on April 14. The decision began to be implemented on April 15.
This decision continued the Trump administration’s policy of sharply reducing foreign funding. On the first day of his new presidential term, Donald Trump signed an executive order suspending all foreign aid for 90 days. This effectively paralyzed USAID’s work around the world.
Some of the functions of the Agency for International Development were transferred to the Department of State, which is currently undergoing a large-scale reorganization. According to the plan, this process should be completed by July 2025.
The Trump administration is also continuing its policy of reducing funding for a number of international organizations, including the UN and NATO.
As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, on April 11, the Ukrainian editorial office of Radio Liberty announced that it was forced to reduce broadcasting due to financial problems caused by a reduction in funding for media activities by the US government.