By Olivia Le Poidevin and Andrea Shalal
WASHINGTON/GENEVA April 22 (Reuters) – The International Labour Organization on Wednesday appointed a U.S. official as its deputy head after months of delays.
Sheng Li, the current principal deputy assistant secretary for policy at the U.S. Department of Labor, will become the deputy director general.
• Li worked at the Labor Department during Trump’s first term, then at the New Civil Liberties Alliance.
• Former nominee Nels Nordquist withdrew due to lengthy delays, two diplomats told Reuters. Nordquist was traveling and unreachable for comment.
• The U.S. traditionally holds the deputy role as the biggest donor, paying 22% of the ILO budget.
• Washington owes the 257 million Swiss francs ($328 million) as of April 17, according to the organization’s website.
• The ILO faces 295 job cuts due to financial difficulties from U.S. arrears, Reuters reported in October.
• A draft State Department budget shows the U.S. proposing $50 million for the ILO in 2026, a fraction of total arrears. The State Department did not reply when asked if and when it expected to pay U.S. arrears.
($1 = 0.7844 Swiss francs)
(Reporting by Olivia Le Poidevin in Geneva and Andrea Shalal in Washington; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
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