Trump's UN envoy pick Waltz says US needs strong voice to counter China

WASHINGTON/UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) -The United Nations needs reform and the United States must have a strong voice to counter China, Mike Waltz, U.S. President Donald Trump's pick to be his U.N. envoy, said on Tuesday, adding that he is "confident we can make the U.N. great again."

Waltz - a retired Army Green Beret and former Republican lawmaker from Florida - is one of the last major Trump nominees awaiting likely confirmation by the U.S. Senate. He appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday as part of that process. A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the U.N. post would not be cabinet-level.

"We should have one place in the world where everyone can talk, where China, Russia, Europe, the developing world can come together and resolve conflicts" Waltz told the committee. "But after 80 years, it's drifted from its core mission of peacemaking. We must return to the U.N.'s charter and first principles."

His remarks largely echoed what Trump has said about the world body. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced in March that he was seeking ways to improve efficiency and cut costs as the U.N. turns 80 this year amid a cash crisis.

"The U.N. has ballooned to over 80 agencies with overlapping missions that waste resources and, if confirmed, I'll push for transparency, like what we're seeing in the Secretary-General's UN80 reform plan calling for a 20% staff cut," Waltz said. 

He said U.N. peacekeeping plays an important role, but also needs reform.

Washington is the U.N.'s largest contributor - followed by China - accounting for 22% of the core U.N. budget and 27% of the peacekeeping budget. The U.N. has said the U.S. currently owes a total of $2.8 billion, of which $1.5 billion is for the regular budget. These payments are not voluntary.

The United States was also one of the world's largest humanitarian aid donors, but the Trump administration has slashed billions of dollars in foreign assistance, including to U.N. agencies. 

'BLOCK AND TACKLE'

Waltz was Trump's national security adviser until he was ousted on May 1 after he was caught up in a March scandal involving a Signal chat among top Trump national security aides. Trump then promptly nominated Waltz as his U.N. ambassador.

"The use of Signal was not only authorized, it's still authorized, and highly recommended," Waltz said on Tuesday. He later clarified it was not authorized for sharing classified information and that no classified information had been shared in the March Signal chat. 

Waltz repeated long-held U.S. criticisms of the U.N. - that Washington pays too much at the 193-member world body, that it is anti-Israel and that China is building too much influence. 

"We have to block and tackle Chinese influence," Waltz said. "America must have a strong voice and, if confirmed, I'll work with Secretary (of State Marco) Rubio to challenge this influence."

Since beginning his second term in January, Trump has maintained the wary stance on multilateralism that was a hallmark of his first term between 2017 and 2021. 

So far, Trump has stopped U.S. engagement with the U.N. Human Rights Council, extended a halt to funding for the Palestinian relief agency UNRWA and ordered a review of the U.N. cultural agency UNESCO. He has also announced plans to quit the Paris climate deal and the World Health Organization.

When asked about Waltz's confirmation hearing, U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday: "Our message to all member states is: if you're not fully pleased with what's going on in this organization, engage with the other member states in this organization." 

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle in Washington and Michelle Nichols at United Nations, additional reporting by Steve HollandWriting by Michelle NicholsEditing by Matthew Lewis)