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Russia contributes $75 million to UN budget

On December 24, the UN General Assembly adopted a $5.397 billion budget for the United Nations

UN, February 2. /TASS/. Russia transferred $75 million to the United Nations as its contribution to the international organization’s regular budget, the UN secretary general’s spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, told reporters on Thursday.

"Today we say thank you to our friends in Belgium, Estonia, Qatar and the Russian Federation as they have all paid their regular budget dues in full," he said.

According to the UN website, the contribution of $75 million was made on January 31. So far, it is the biggest contribution from a member state received by the UN this year. To date, 36 states have already paid their regular budget dues.

Earlier this year, Russia announced that it would also make a voluntary contribution of $2 million to the budget of the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism, headed by Russian diplomat Vladimir Voronkov.

On December 24, the UN General Assembly adopted a $5.397 billion budget for the United Nations for the 2018-2019 biennium and switched the Organization, on a trial basis, to a year-by-year budget cycle. The budget is five percent less than the one approved for the 2016-2017 biennium.

The UN is funded by its member states, and each country’s contribution is determined according to a nation’s gross national project (GNP), per capita income and external debt. The United States is the UN budget’s biggest contributor, covering more than 20% of the organization’s needs. Russia accounts for less than 2.5%

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