GENEVA, NOV 10: The United States is set to become the first country to completely skip a regular review of its human rights record by the United Nations’ top human rights body since the process was established two decades ago.
The Trump administration withdrew the US from the UN Human Rights Council last year, accusing the Geneva-based body of anti-American and anti-Israel bias and alleging that it had failed to uphold the values it seeks to promote.
The council’s supporters maintain that its mandate is to monitor human rights conditions in all 193 UN member states, including the United States. Washington has faced criticism over several policies, including forceful deportations and targeted killings of alleged drug runners in the Caribbean and Pacific. The administration has defended these actions, saying they are intended to protect American workers and ensure national security.
The Human Rights Council conducts periodic assessments of the human rights records of all UN member states, generally once every four to five years. The process is known as the Universal Periodic Review (UPR).
The United States had already skipped its scheduled review last year under President Donald Trump. The review, originally planned for November 2025, was postponed until Tuesday in the hope that Washington might reconsider its decision. However, the US government did not change its position.
A State Department spokesperson told The Associated Press in an email that the administration gave “no credibility” to the agency.
The spokesperson described the council as an “irredeemable body” that makes a mockery of human rights through what it called consistent failures to uphold its own values while promoting anti-American rhetoric. The spokesperson also alleged that the council had repeatedly failed to condemn serious human rights violations.
According to the council, participation by the country under review is necessary for the process to take place. In the absence of national representatives, the review cannot proceed.
During these assessments, national delegations, sometimes comprising a dozen or more officials, present their country’s position, respond to questions and receive recommendations from representatives of other nations. The process is intended to provide a comprehensive and constructive assessment, encouraging governments to improve their human rights policies.
Critics of the US decision have warned that its refusal to participate could encourage other countries, particularly those uncomfortable with scrutiny from international human rights monitors, to follow the same approach.
Jamil Dakwar, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s Human Rights Program, said the administration’s decision sent a message that it was unconcerned about international scrutiny and would continue violating human rights.
Dakwar made the remarks while speaking to reporters in Geneva on Monday during a civil society campaign aimed at drawing attention to the US human rights record.
He said the ACLU and its partner organisations had urged the UN human rights chief to respond by presenting an assessment of the human rights situation in the United States early next year.
Eric Tistounet, a visiting professor at the Geneva Graduate Institute and the council’s first secretary, said the US decision could undermine the credibility of the review mechanism.
He warned that the absence of the world’s leading power, which has traditionally claimed to support international human rights standards, could create serious difficulties for the council’s review system.
