Secretary of State Marco Rubio and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced the United States will serve as secretariat of the Geneva Consensus Declaration, a multilateral document affirming that abortion is not an international human right, on Aug. 12.
Serving as secretariat means the United States will host and administer the declaration’s coordination function among signatory nations, according to the State Department. The joint announcement by two Cabinet secretaries signals a high level of administration priority for the initiative.
The Geneva Consensus Declaration was first signed in 2020 during the first Trump administration. The Obama and Biden administrations opposed or withdrew from the declaration; the current administration’s decision to assume the secretariat role significantly elevates U.S. involvement.
The declaration’s signatories include nations across Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and Eastern Europe. The document affirms national sovereignty on abortion policy and states that international organizations should not promote abortion as a form of family planning.
For Americans, the U.S. role as secretariat has implications for foreign assistance policy and diplomatic engagement at multilateral institutions. Previous iterations of anti-abortion U.S. foreign policy have included restrictions on international family planning funding, known as the Mexico City Policy.
The decision formally positions the United States as the lead convening authority for a global coalition that rejects international abortion rights frameworks advanced by some United Nations agencies and international health organizations.
Reproductive rights organizations have criticized the declaration as undermining women’s health services in developing countries. Supporters argue it protects national sovereignty and the rights of unborn children.