The United Nations peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon is bracing for potential disruptions following a UN-wide decision to reduce peacekeeping personnel by 25 percent.

A senior UN official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters last week that thousands of peacekeepers could be withdrawn from remote hotspots in the coming months as the United States, the UN’s largest financial backer, scales back funding. Unifil, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, confirmed the report.

“Unifil is still studying what the peacekeeping budget shortfalls will mean for our mission in south Lebanon, but we know we have some hard decisions ahead of us,” spokeswoman Kandice Ardiel told The National on Tuesday. “We are currently in the process of finalising our plans but we already know this will directly impact our ability to fully implement the tasks we have.”

The United States accounts for more than 26 percent of the UN’s peacekeeping budget, followed by China with nearly 24 percent. These payments are mandatory, not voluntary. Washington had been expected to contribute $1.3 billion to the $5.4 billion budget for 2025–2026 operations, but now plans to pay only $680 million.

“We will work closely with Lebanese authorities and our troop-contributing countries to implement any required changes in the least disruptive way possible,” Ardiel said. “We will also do all that we can to ensure we continue to accomplish our most important tasks under Resolution 1701.” How many peacekeepers will ultimately be affected by the reductions remains unclear.

Unifil currently has 10,800 personnel, both military and civilian, from nearly 50 countries. The Security Council extended the mission’s mandate through December 2026 in August.