The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on March 5 the Trump administration must adhere to a lower court ruling that the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) restart payments worth nearly $2 billion for the remaining USAID projects.
The split 5-4 decision did not explain the reasoning for its decision, nor did it provide a timeline as to when the payments must restart, but did note that "feasibility of any compliance timelines" must be considered. U.S. District Judge Amir Ali, who ordered the initial payments, must now provide clarity on the foreign aid's release.
The ruling does not apply to the Trump administration's decision to terminate over 90% of the USAID foreign aid contracts that cuts $60 billion in foreign assistance.
The cuts will include 5,800 of 6,200 USAID contracts, purportedly saving $54 billion, and 4,100 of 9,100 State Department grants, for a cut of $4.4 billion, Politico reported.
Multiple global health groups challenged the Trump administration's cuts to foreign aid for work already completed until Feb. 13. The White House initially appeared as though they would not comply with the court order but eventually appealed the decision.
U.S. President Donald Trump's administration initally halted almost all foreign aid for 90 days for a review amid efforts to shutter the aid agency and merge it under the State Department.
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, USAID has provided $2.6 billion in humanitarian aid, $5 billion in development assistance, and more than $30 billion in direct budget support to Kyiv. The agency has funded school reconstruction, bomb shelters, critical energy repairs, and civil society initiatives.
The White House has accused the agency of pushing a "liberal agenda" and widespread waste, despite foreign aid making up just 1% of the federal budget.
USAID cuts not only marked a significant realignment of U.S. foreign policy but also threatened various Ukrainian organizations and projects across multiple sectors reliant on U.S. funding.
Ukraine is in talks with private and EU partners to replace funding sources for key projects in energy infrastructure, veterans' affairs, and more.
Martin Fornusek
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