United States Skips UN Review of Its Human Rights Record, Drawing International Condemnation

In an unprecedented move that has drawn sharp criticism from allies and adversaries alike, the United States failed to appear for a mandatory United Nations review of its human rights record on Friday. This decision places the world’s superpower in the company of only one other nation: Israel, its closest ally, which skipped its own review in 2013.

The meeting was part of the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR), a peer-driven process established in 2006 where all 193 UN member states have their human rights records scrutinized every four to five years. The absence of the U.S. delegation left a conspicuous void in the chamber.

“We were supposed to meet today in order to proceed with the review of the United States,” said Jurg Lauber, president of the UN Human Rights Council, formally noting the empty seats. “Nevertheless, I note that the delegation of the United States is not present in this room.”

A Stance of Defiance and Its Rationale

The Biden administration had signaled its intention to boycott the review in August, arguing that the UN Human Rights Council itself is flawed and biased. The agenda for the session included pressing domestic issues such as systemic racism, police brutality, LGBTQ+ rights, the treatment of migrants and asylum seekers, and the continued use of the death penalty.

In a statement defending the decision, the U.S. Department of State articulated a position of moral exceptionalism. “As a founding member of the United Nations and primary champion of individual liberties, we will not be lectured about our human rights record by the likes of HRC members such as Venezuela, China, or Sudan,” the statement read. This stance reflects a long-standing bipartisan skepticism in Washington towards international bodies perceived as infringing on U.S. sovereignty.

International Reaction: Criticism and Accusations of Hypocrisy

The absence was met with immediate rebuke from other nations. China’s representative accused Washington of showing a “lack of respect for the UPR mechanism,” a pointed critique given the frequent U.S. criticisms of China’s own human rights record. Cuba went further, asserting that the U.S. was “afraid of what greater oversight might bring.”

Human rights organizations also condemned the move. “By skipping this review, the U.S. government is turning its back on victims of human rights abuses at home and sending a dangerous message to authoritarian regimes around the world that they can ignore international scrutiny with impunity,” said a spokesperson for Human Rights Watch.

A Deepening Pattern of Withdrawal Under Trump

While the U.S. has a history of chafing at international oversight, the administration of President Donald Trump has pursued a notably more hostile and unilateralist foreign policy. This administration has systematically withdrawn from or undermined international frameworks—from the Paris Climate Agreement to the Iran nuclear deal—that it views as placing constraints on American power.

This approach has extended to aggressively shielding allies from accountability. The U.S. has sanctioned officials from the International Criminal Court (ICC) in response to its investigations into alleged war crimes by U.S. personnel and allied forces, including Israel. This confrontational stance aligns with the administration’s “America First” doctrine, which depicts multilateral cooperation as a costly endeavor that offers few benefits while unfairly binding U.S. hands.

The Broader Implications

The decision to skip the UPR represents more than a diplomatic snub; it signifies a fundamental rejection of a core principle of the modern human rights system: that all nations, regardless of their power, must submit to the same universal standards. For critics, the move undermines Washington’s credibility to advocate for human rights abroad and creates a vacuum in global leadership that adversaries are eager to fill. For the United States, the empty chair in Geneva speaks volumes about its current vision of its role in the world.

  Donate Here