Geneva: The abrupt halt of US foreign aid funding has had a “devastating” impact, risking millions of lives and potentially causing a resurgence of the global AIDS pandemic, warned UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima on Monday.

Byanyima expressed deep concern over the situation, emphasizing that without urgent financial support, an estimated 6.3 million additional AIDS-related deaths could occur over the next four years. This would represent a tenfold increase from the 600,000 AIDS-related deaths recorded globally in 2023.

“The sudden withdrawal of life-saving support is having a devastating impact,” she told reporters in Geneva, urging the United States to reconsider its decision and restore funding to critical health programs.

The United States has historically been the largest donor of humanitarian assistance, but since returning to office two months ago, President Donald Trump has significantly cut international aid, impacting global health initiatives.

Byanyima warned that in addition to the surge in deaths, UNAIDS expects to see an additional 8.7 million new infections in the coming years. She stressed that the progress made in the fight against HIV/AIDS over the last 25 years is at serious risk of being undone.

“If funding is not restored, the AIDS pandemic will resurge globally,” she cautioned, explaining that the crisis would not only affect low-income African nations but also vulnerable populations in Eastern Europe and Latin America.

“If this continues, we will see people dying the way we saw them in the 1990s and 2000s,” Byanyima warned, calling for immediate international intervention to prevent a major global health crisis.