US secretary of state Marco Rubio has ordered an immediate halt to work on virtually all existing foreign aid programmes pending a review into whether they are consistent with President Donald Trump’s policies, according to an internal cable seen by the Financial Times.

Exemptions include humanitarian assistance such as core life-saving medicine, medical services, food, shelter and subsistence assistance

Health and humanitarian groups around the world were still uncertain on January 29 if and how they could resume work after the United States issued a waiver for “life-saving” assistance in President Donald Trump’s freeze on U.S. foreign aid.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced exemptions in the freeze on foreign assistance, continuing funding for humanitarian items like shelter and medicine. President Trump had ordered a 90-day pause on assistance.

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. The Senate quickly confirmed Marco Rubio as secretary of state Monday, voting unanimously to give President ...

U.S. diplomats have neglected the Western Hemisphere for too long.

Conflict tracking in Myanmar. Investigations of Chinese human trafficking. Refugee healthcare in Thailand. Strengthening independent media in Mongolia. Environmental conservation in Tibet. These are just a few of the Asia-focused programmes operating with US government funds that risk permanent closure after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order last week suspending all foreign aid,

In a follow-up memo after an outcry from aid groups, Rubio clarified that other “humanitarian assistance” besides food would also be exempt during the review period. Humanitarian assistance was defined as “core life-saving medicine, medical services, food, shelter and subsistence assistance”.

Those who support the freeze of US aid programmes, worth around $70bn per year, say they are vastly bloated, with Washington carrying too much of the weight compared to other Western nations. And they argue the government sends far too much money abroad that would be better spent on Americans at home.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio was right to grant a waiver to PEPFAR on Tuesday. This program should be subject to a review, but funding is critical for it

Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a waiver on Tuesday exempting “life-saving humanitarian assistance” from President Trump’s executive order pausing nearly all foreign aid during a period of

Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday issued a waiver that allows the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief and other “life-saving humanitarian assistance” programs to continue to operate during the freeze on nearly all U.S. foreign aid spending.