Rubio issues humanitarian waiver for Trump's foreign aid freeze

Editor's Note: This story has been updated to include the White House press statement and published waiver.

U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio has backtracked on a near-total freeze of U.S. foreign aid, issuing a waiver for "life-saving humanitarian assistance," according to a White House press statement published Jan. 29.

U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on his inauguration day suspending foreign aid programs for 90 days so they can be reviewed to ensure they align with "American interests" and "American values."

In the waiver, Rubio issues an exemption to the pause for work he defined as "core life-saving medicine, medical services, food, shelter, and subsistence assistance, as well as supplies and reasonable administrative costs as necessary to deliver such assistance."

Programs and services not covered by the waiver include "abortions, family planning conferences… transgender surgeries, or other non-life-saving assistance."

Rubio directed organizations providing the exempt assistance to continue their work.

"Implementers of existing life-saving humanitarian assistance programs should continue or resume work if they have stopped," the waiver read.

The Washington Post (WP) first reported on the waiver on Jan. 28, citing memos sent to aid organizations. WP reported that many programs funded by the U.S.'s roughly $60 billion foreign aid budget were left confused as to whether or not they qualified for the waiver.

In Ukraine, the organizations affected by the Trump aid freeze provide a huge range of humanitarian services, including counseling, organizing cultural events, and providing basic services, often to some of the most vulnerable segments of society.

Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky ordered a report on U.S.-funded projects in Ukraine affected the freeze on foreign assistance.

"I instructed government officials to provide a report on those American support programmes that are currently suspended," Zelensky said.

"We can provide part of this funding through our state finances, and we will discuss some of them with Europeans and Americans," he added, saying that programs concerning Ukrainian children, veterans, and protecting infrastructure would be prioritized.

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