The United States has again declined to participate in its scheduled human rights review before the United Nations Human Rights Council, prompting the international body to postpone the assessment until January 2027.
The review was scheduled for November 10 in Geneva under the Council's Universal Periodic Review (UPR) mechanism. The US delegation did not attend the session, marking the second time the country has failed to participate in the assessment.
Editorial Insight
Key Highlights
Important points readers should notice.
The United States did not attend its scheduled UN human rights review on November 10, 2026.
The review had originally been scheduled for November 7, 2025.
The November 2026 session was the rescheduled appointment.
The 47-member UN Human Rights Council adopted a decision without a vote.
The Council expressed regret over US non-cooperation.
The new assessment dates are January 18–29, 2027.
The review was initially scheduled for November 7, 2025. After the United States did not attend that appointment, the assessment was postponed to November 10, 2026, in the hope that Washington would reconsider its position. The US government did not participate in the rescheduled session either.
Following the latest absence, the 47-member Human Rights Council adopted a decision without a vote, expressing regret over what it described as the United States' continued non-cooperation with the review mechanism. The Council urged Washington to resume participation in the UPR process.
The Council also decided to reschedule the US assessment for January 18–29, 2027, during the 54th session of the UPR Working Group. It requested its president to continue efforts to encourage US cooperation and report on those efforts during future Council sessions.
Editorial Analysis
Why This Matters
The development raises questions about the participation of major powers in international human rights monitoring. The Universal Periodic Review is designed to examine the human rights records of all UN member states, regardless of their political or economic influence. The US decision not to participate has drawn attention to the challenges facing the international review system. The January postponement also gives the Council more time to seek Washington's cooperation while keeping the country's human rights record within the review process.
The Trump administration announced in 2025 that the United States would no longer engage with or support the UN Human Rights Council. Washington cited what it described as anti-American and anti-Israel bias within the organisation.
A US State Department spokesperson said participation in the review would imply endorsement of the Council's work. The spokesperson also criticised the organisation's record on human rights and its treatment of the United States.
The review was expected to provide an opportunity for other countries to question the United States about its human rights policies and make recommendations. Issues identified in submissions from governments and civil society organisations included migration, deportations, racial discrimination, abortion, the death penalty and civil liberties.
Human rights organisations criticised the US decision not to participate, arguing that the review mechanism should apply equally to all UN member states. Human Rights Watch and other advocacy groups called for continued international scrutiny of the US human rights record despite Washington's absence.
The January postponement gives the US administration another opportunity to participate in the assessment. However, the new schedule does not confirm whether Washington will attend.
