Newly confirmed U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Michael Waltz will work to ‘Make the U.N. great again,’ while working to root out antisemitism, eliminate ‘woke’ programs and become more aggressive in telecommunications, aviation, space and more, sources familiar with his priorities told Fox News Digital.
Waltz, a retired Army National Guard colonel and former Green Beret, previously served as a House Republican from Florida before being tapped to serve as Trump’s national security advisor.
Waltz was confirmed as U.N. ambassador Friday, ending a nearly nine-month gap during which the U.S. was without a representative at the U.N. His confirmation also came just before the U.N. General Assembly began in New York City.
A source familiar with Waltz’s plans told Fox News Digital that he will reform the U.N. by working to ‘clean up the woke nonsense that’s infected the U.N., like so many other government institutions.’
The source told Fox News Digital that Waltz plans to reform U.N. agencies focused on climate and ‘woke’ programs.
The source stressed that Waltz will also reform the way the United States is represented at the U.N.
‘President Trump is the president for peace,’ another source familiar with Waltz’s plans told Fox News Digital. ‘The U.N.’s original mandate was to bring everybody together and prevent wars or stop wars.’
The source added: ‘We need to get back to basics.’
That source also told Fox News Digital that Waltz will work to root out antisemitism at the U.N.
Waltz also has signaled that he plans to be more aggressive in international standard-setting bodies which affect U.S. businesses and the economy. For example, China has been ‘very aggressive’ in agencies that govern how aviation, telecommunications, space and international shipping work,’ a source said.
‘We need to be more aggressive,’ the source said.
Waltz also plans to support Trump’s agenda and priorities set by Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
During his confirmation hearing, Waltz advocated for reforms at the U.N. and argued that ‘we should have one place in the world where everyone can talk.’
‘Where China, Russia, Europe, the developing world, can come together and resolve conflicts,’ he said. ‘But after 80 years, it’s drifted from its core mission of peacemaking.’
Meanwhile, on his first day at the U.N., Waltz warned Monday that the U.S. and its allies will defend ‘every inch’ of NATO territory after Russian fighter jets violated Estonian airspace.
‘The United States stands by our NATO allies in the face of these airspace violations, and I want to take this first opportunity to repeat and to emphasize the United States and our allies will defend every inch of NATO territory,’ Waltz said during opening remarks of the U.N. General Assembly high-level week. ‘Russia must urgently stop dangerous behavior.’
The warning marked one of Waltz’s first public statements since his Senate confirmation. It came days after three Russian MiG-31 jets flew deep into Estonian airspace — the closest such incursion to the Baltic nation’s Parliament building in years — raising fears Moscow is testing NATO’s resolve.
Fox News’ Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.