ISLAMABAD: The Trump administration has released $5.3 billion in previously frozen foreign aid, primarily allocated for security and counternarcotics programs, with limited humanitarian relief, according to a list of exemptions reviewed by Reuters.
Shortly after taking office on January 20, President Donald Trump ordered a 90-day freeze on foreign aid, halting funding for initiatives ranging from combating starvation and deadly diseases to providing shelter for displaced populations worldwide.
The aid suspension triggered an urgent push by U.S. officials and humanitarian organizations to secure exemptions. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, emphasizing that all foreign assistance must align with Trump’s “America First” agenda, issued waivers in late January for military aid to Israel and Egypt—two key U.S. allies in the Middle East—as well as for critical humanitarian aid, including food. These waivers were intended to ensure the release of those funds.
Despite the exemptions, current and former U.S. officials, along with aid organizations, report that only a limited number of humanitarian aid waivers have been approved.
Reuters obtained a list of 243 additional exemptions granted as of February 13, amounting to $5.3 billion. This list offers the most detailed breakdown of exempted funds since Trump initiated the aid freeze, underscoring the administration’s intent to limit funding to programs it does not deem essential to U.S. national security.
The list outlines the funded programs and the respective U.S. government offices managing them.
A significant portion—over $4.1 billion—was allocated to programs overseen by the State Department’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, responsible for arms sales and military aid to foreign nations and groups. Other exemptions aligned with Trump’s immigration policies and efforts to curb illicit drug trafficking into the U.S., particularly the spread of the opioid fentanyl.
More than half of the approved programs fall under the jurisdiction of the State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), which focuses on combating drug trafficking and unauthorized migration to the U.S.
These exemptions totaled $293 million, including funds for systems designed to track migrants, identify potential terrorists, and facilitate biometric data sharing.
A total of $397 million was also allocated to a U.S.-backed program in Pakistan, which, according to a congressional aide, monitors Islamabad’s use of U.S.-supplied F-16 fighter jets to ensure they are deployed for counterterrorism efforts rather than against India.
A spokesperson for the State Department did not respond to a request for comment. It remains unclear whether additional exemptions were granted but not included in the released list.
Trump has consistently criticized foreign aid, which has accounted for less than 2% of total federal spending over the past two decades, according to the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. He has described the U.S. “foreign aid industry” as being, in many cases, contrary to American values.
Billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency has spearheaded efforts to significantly reduce the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the primary channel for American foreign aid and a key tool of U.S. “soft power” abroad.
Compared to security-related programs, USAID initiatives received significantly less funding, with exemptions totaling under $100 million. This figure is starkly lower than the roughly $40 billion in USAID-administered programs before the freeze.
Among the exempted USAID programs, $78 million was allocated for non-food humanitarian assistance in Gaza, which has suffered extensive war-related devastation. An additional $56 million was released to the International Committee of the Red Cross in relation to a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.
Notably, the exemption list did not include specific allocations for several of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises, including those in Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, Myanmar, and Afghanistan, indicating that aid to these regions remains blocked.
Security-related exemptions included $870 million for programs in Taiwan, $336 million for modernizing the Philippine security forces, and more than $21.5 million for body armor and armored vehicles for Ukraine’s national police and border guards.
The largest non-security exemption was $500 million in funding for PEPFAR, the flagship U.S. program dedicated to combating HIV/AIDS, primarily by supporting healthcare services in Africa. PEPFAR, credited with saving millions of lives, had an annual budget of $6.5 billion in 2024 and is managed by the State Department’s global health bureau.
