In an unexpected move Friday, the Trump administration issued a series of amendments to the UNICEF executive board that would have effectively rooted out transgender ideology and so-called diversity, equity, and inclusion programs from the United Nations’ children’s agency. 

Though the amendments failed to pass, they demonstrated that even at the U.N., the Trump administration intends to fight on all fronts. They also represented a sea change; only a few weeks ago when Joe Biden was still president of the United States, U.S. diplomats took the opposite position to the one they now take on behalf of the Trump administration.

The U.S. representative told the board, “These country program documents contain terms and concepts that promote immoral discrimination and advance harmful gender ideology in defiance of biological reality, both of which conflict with U.S. policies.” 

“The United States objects to any UNICEF efforts to advance such programming in countries,” he added.

“It is U.S. policy to recognize two sexes, male and female, and not to promote gender ideology,” the representative said. “It is particularly disturbing that this language is being used in UNICEF programming documents. Children should be protected from this dangerous ideology and its possible results.”

The U.S. representative explained that DEI programs violated United States federal law prohibiting discrimination of any kind. “Diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility programs violate the text and spirit of our laws by replacing hard work, merit, and equality with a divisive and dangerous preferential hierarchy.” Quoting U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, he added, “We must eliminate our focus on political and cultural causes that are divisive at home and deeply unpopular abroad.”

Given the quick turnaround under the new U.S. administration and lack of diplomatic preparation, the U.S. had only the support of Nigeria and Oman. Twenty-one countries voted against the U.S. amendments. The remaining countries abstained or did not cast a vote. 

When the amendments failed, the U.S. diplomat called for a vote against approving all the UNICEF country programs that had been discussed. “The United States cannot agree to country program documents that contain terms and concepts that conflict with U.S. policies as set out in President Trump’s recent executive orders, especially when those concepts endanger the very mission of the organization.”

European countries reacted in shock and lashed out against U.S. diplomats. Germany, speaking on behalf of several EU countries, along with the United Kingdom, Canada, and most other Western countries, called on UNICEF to ignore the U.S. government’s requests and continue promoting transgender ideology and DEI. Switzerland said this was the first time the UNICEF board did not approve country programs unanimously. Norway, speaking on behalf of Nordic countries, criticized the U.S. for introducing the amendments because they contained “terms and concepts that are not defined and not previously used in U.N. language, such as ‘gender ideology’ and ‘biological reality.’”

What is shocking and satisfying to conservative observers of the multilateral negotiations is how rapidly the Trump administration acted at what is an obscure meeting. While UNICEF is one of the major U.N. agencies and the U.S. is the agency’s No. 1 funder, such executive board meetings usually go unobserved and unremarked upon.

That Trump acted so rapidly underscores how prepared his transition team has been. This was no less than a highly surgical strike, which portends an aggressive administration at the United Nations. The new administration clearly has a detailed playbook and people who know how to use it. 

The United Nations is moving into its annual commission season, including the Commission on the Status of Women starting in a few weeks. It will be interesting to see what the Trump administration does at what will be one of the most heated negotiations of the year. 

Stefano Gennarini is vice president for legal studies at C-Fam (Center for Family & Human Rights), a New York and Washington, D.C.-based research institute in Special Consultative Status with the U.N. Economic and Social Committee. Iulia-Elena Cazan is C-Fam’s associate director of U.N. government relations.