Guterres: US cuts will make the world "less healthy and also less safe"

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UNITED NATIONS - UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned Friday that deep cuts in humanitarian and development funding from the United States will have devastating consequences for millions of vulnerable people around the world.

"These cuts impact a wide range of critical programs," told reporters at UN headquarters in New York, highlighting the potential disruption to vital humanitarian work, development projects, counter-terrorism efforts and initiatives to combat drug trafficking.

He expressed gratitude to the UN "for the leadership role" the United States has played for decades in providing foreign aid, and stressed that thanks to US taxpayer dollars and other donors, more than 100 million people receive humanitarian support through UN programmes each year.

But the cuts come at a time when the global crisis is deepening and millions of people are at risk of hunger, disease and displacement, he said.

"The consequences will be devastating, especially for vulnerable people around the world," Guterres said.

un.org / gnews.cz-jav