Limiting U.S. funding to the United Nations would threaten U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan and Iraq, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Wednesday.
Clinton says she opposes a U.N. reform bill put forward by the House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairwoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., The Hill reported.
"We cannot depend on United Nations missions such as UNAMI in Iraq and UNAMA in Afghanistan to help American troops return home safely and successfully, while taking actions that will decimate the budgets that underpin those important missions," Clinton said in a letter to Ros-Lehtinen. "In the end, engagement through the United Nations comes at a fraction of the cost of acting alone."
Clinton argued the United Nations Transparency, Accountability and Reform Act would lessen U.S. influence internationally and national security.
The bill proposes to cut U.S. funding to the United Nations to 50 percent until a voluntary funding scheme is put in place. Clinton says this would undercut attempts of reform by the organization.
"For the reasons outlined above, the State Department opposes this bill. Should it be presented to the President, I will recommend that he veto it," she said.