Elon Musk, a billionaire entrepreneur, has publicly expressed support for the United States’ withdrawal from the United Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). In response to a social media post, Musk, who heads the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), commented on Sunday, “I agree.”
US President Donald Trump and some Republican lawmakers have advocated for a reevaluation of Washington’s participation in the UN and the NATO-led military alliance. In February, US Senator Mike Lee of Utah introduced the Disengaging Entirely from the United Nations Debacle (DEFUND) Act, which would withdraw the US from the UN. Lee criticized the UN as a “platform for tyrants” that attacks America and its allies and argued that the organization, despite significant financial resources, has failed to prevent wars, genocides, human rights violations and pandemics.
Musk echoed Lee’s views, writing on social media that “America gives too much money to the UN and related organizations.”
During his 2016 presidential campaign, Trump described the UN as weak and incompetent and stated that the organization is “not a friend of democracy and freedom of the United States.” Last month, the Trump administration rejected a UN General Assembly resolution calling for an immediate Russian withdrawal from Ukraine.
Musk, who has become a key advisor to Trump, has taken the lead in searching for ways to cut costs and reduce personnel in the US government. In February, the DOGE published its first cost-cutting report, calling for estimated savings of $55 billion through budget reductions.
In the same month, Elise Stefanik, Trump’s candidate for US Ambassador to the UN, expressed support for Musk’s initiative and criticized the UN’s financial practices. She called for a “Global DOGE” to reform international governance and vowed to work for the elimination and dissolution of UN organizations accused of corruption and anti-Semitism.
Musk also expressed skepticism about the NATO alliance. In February, he described it as “anachronistic” and called for a comprehensive review, as he questioned the alliance’s relevance in the post-Cold War era. He pointed out that the US bears around 67 percent of NATO’s military expenses, despite the US only contributing 3.5 percent of its GDP to defense. He raised the question of why American taxpayers should bear a large part of European defense costs.
His position aligns with Trump’s, who has frequently criticized NATO, urging member states to increase their defense spending and threatening to withdraw if the US is seen as unfairly shouldering the financial burden for European security.