U.S. Skips UN Rights Review for Second Year, Prompting January Delay

The United States has again boycotted a United Nations examination of its human rights record, drawing sharp criticism from advocacy groups who argue that violations under President Donald Trump have escalated to levels unseen in decades.

U.S. representatives failed to appear at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Tuesday for the Universal Periodic Review, a process undergone by all 193 UN member states every four to five years.

“The delegation of the United States is not present in the room,” Council President Sidharto Reza Suryodipuro of Indonesia announced as the session was set to begin.

The absence prompted the 47-member body to postpone the U.S. review until January. This marks the second consecutive year Washington has declined to participate in its own assessment.

The U.S. withdrew from the council in February 2025, shortly after Trump began his second term, alleging anti-Israel bias. Since then, the administration has been a fierce critic of the UN, withdrawing from key agencies, slashing funding, and bypassing the organization in its approach to Iran.

A State Department spokesperson stated that participation would imply endorsement of the council’s work. “We give no credibility to the agency,” the spokesperson said. “This irredeemable body makes a mockery of human rights through consistent failures to uphold its own ‘values’ as it pushes anti-American rhetoric,” the official added, without addressing specific allegations regarding the U.S. record.

While the council itself has not directly criticized Washington’s record, independent experts have expressed alarm over issues such as mass migrant deportations, which the administration maintains are conducted in accordance with U.S. immigration law. UN documents indicate that member states planned to raise concerns regarding abortion access and the death penalty.

Nearly 200 submissions from U.S. and international non-governmental organizations were sent to the council covering topics ranging from migration to racial discrimination.

“Enough is enough,” said Jamil Dakwar of the American Civil Liberties Union, speaking to reporters in Geneva. “We’ve seen attacks on fundamental human rights and civil liberties unprecedented in generations.”

Fourteen countries are scheduled to undergo review in Geneva this month. During Trump’s first term, the U.S. submitted its UPR report as standard procedure.

Eric Tistounet, a visiting professor at the Geneva Graduate Institute and the council’s first secretary, warned that the U.S. walkout risks undermining the credibility of the entire review system. “If the predominant global power, which has always claimed to adhere to human rights norms, doesn’t show up and doesn’t even justify why, then you are in big trouble,” he said.

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