Trump Threat to Cut Funding Raises Stakes in UN Jerusalem Vote

President Donald Trump threatened to cut off U.S. funding to countries that oppose his decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, which caused numerous reactions and critics on Thursday’s UN vote, with a Muslim group even saying that his tactics were bullying or blackmail.

Previously, U.S. Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley emphasized that the U.S. would retaliate against countries that vote in favor of a General Assembly resolution calling on the president to rescind his decision. According to Haley, Trump told her to report back on countries who voted against his decision and she said that Washington would be taking names.

At the beginning of a Cabinet meeting in Washington, Trump praised Haley for sending the right message before the vote, Associated Press reports.

“For all these nations, they take our money and then vote against us. They take hundreds of millions of dollars, even billions of dollars and then they vote against us. We’re watching those votes. Let them vote against us. We’ll save a lot. We don’t care,” Trump told reporters at the Cabinet meeting.

National executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Nihad Awad, tweeted that the United States should not use the leadership at the UN to bully other nations.

“Our government should not use its leadership at the UN to bully/blackmail other nations that stand for religious liberty and justice in Jerusalem. Justice is a core value of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam,” he wrote on Twitter.

The United States previously vetoed a resolution that would have required Trump to rescind his declaration on Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and not move the Embassy in that city. Afterwards, the Palestinians and their Arab and Islamic supporters sought the General Assembly vote.

The Foreign Ministers of Palestine, Riyad al-Maliki and Turkey, Mevlut Cavusoglu accused the U.S. of intimidation and said that they believed the UN member countries would ignore pressure from Haley. Some diplomats predict the resolution will be supported by at least 150 countries, and possibly 180 nations. The resolution which is expected to be voted on Thursday is co-sponsored by Turkey and Yemen.