Washington, DC -- Representative Gregory W. Meeks, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today issued the following statement on reports that the Trump administration is conditioning U.S. health assistance on access to Zambia’s critical minerals:
“As the Trump administration continues to remake U.S. global health assistance, negotiations with Zambia highlight a very troubling trend: the use of lifesaving aid as leverage to exploit African countries’ natural resources.
“For more than two decades, U.S. global health programs have saved more than 26 million lives while fostering stability and economic growth abroad, which ultimately makes Americans safer. In Zambia, these programs have helped slow the HIV epidemic and mitigate the spread of COVID-19, malaria, and other infectious diseases. Because of these efforts, life expectancies have increased by 20 years.
“Instead of building on that success, President Trump is pursuing an approach that mirrors the worst practices of China and Russia, treating African countries as sources of commodities rather than as partners. Tying future global health funding for Zambia to the extraction of critical minerals evokes a colonial mindset in which we value African countries only for what can be extracted from them. These actions are shortsighted and do not align with our principles. Lifesaving aid should not be conditioned on opaque business deals benefiting the president’s allies.”
“As the Trump administration continues to remake U.S. global health assistance, negotiations with Zambia highlight a very troubling trend: the use of lifesaving aid as leverage to exploit African countries’ natural resources.
“For more than two decades, U.S. global health programs have saved more than 26 million lives while fostering stability and economic growth abroad, which ultimately makes Americans safer. In Zambia, these programs have helped slow the HIV epidemic and mitigate the spread of COVID-19, malaria, and other infectious diseases. Because of these efforts, life expectancies have increased by 20 years.
“Instead of building on that success, President Trump is pursuing an approach that mirrors the worst practices of China and Russia, treating African countries as sources of commodities rather than as partners. Tying future global health funding for Zambia to the extraction of critical minerals evokes a colonial mindset in which we value African countries only for what can be extracted from them. These actions are shortsighted and do not align with our principles. Lifesaving aid should not be conditioned on opaque business deals benefiting the president’s allies.”