The U.S. bought $12 million in aid for poor nations. Under Trump, it may be destroyed.

An analysis reveals over $12 million worth of contraceptives and HIV-prevention medications purchased by the U.S. government are at risk of destruction due to halted aid programs. Following President Trump's suspensions of U.S. foreign aid, these supplies have been stored in distribution centers in Belgium and the UAE since January. Talks with humanitarian organizations to distribute these products have stalled as USAID demands payment for the materials and removal of U.S. labeling. This situation highlights the negative implications of the sudden foreign aid cuts on international humanitarian efforts.

'The mandate that [the USAID negotiator] has been given is 'get us money for it,' said one person with knowledge of the talks. 'And if you can't do that, we're just going to trash it.'

Government records obtained by The Post reveal that virtually all of the supplies have been sitting in distribution centers since January, when President Trump halted spending by the U.S. Agency for International Development, saying it was 'not aligned with American interests.'

International humanitarian groups and other organizations have been in talks with government representatives about taking control of the products and distributing them, but negotiations have stalled amid shifting directives from the agency's political leadership.

The stalled supplies illustrate the chaotic impact of Trump's abrupt suspension of foreign aid on his first day back in office, which stunned U.S. diplomats and humanitarian groups worldwide.

Read at The Washington Post