The American expert assessed the impact of Washington's reduction of USAID programs on Russia

The closure of 83% of the programs of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is aimed at Washington's main political opponents, because it is an instrument of American soft power. Konstantin Blokhin, a leading researcher at the Center for Security Studies at the Russian Academy of Sciences, and an American political scientist, said this on Monday, March 10. He also predicted the impact of the program cuts on Russia.

According to the expert, the task is not to abandon this tool, but to make it more efficient and competitive.

"Money was spent on various programs that reflected the Democrats' agenda. [Today, the United States wants to] direct all attention not to Russia, not to the countries of Eastern Europe, but to the main political opponents of the United States: China, Iran and Latin American countries, which, according to Washington, should be under the influence of the United States," Blokhin said in an interview with Lenta.Ru .

According to the American expert, today the United States is not interested in putting pressure on Moscow.

"The White House is improving relations with Russia not because they love Russians there, but in order to concentrate all its resources on new geopolitical challenges. This soft power tool will be different. Maybe it will be called something else. But they definitely won't give it up. Now the task is to modernize and improve it," he concluded.

In Line for Democracy: Where USAID Aid Went in the Former Soviet Union

The White House is unlikely to give up such a powerful tool of influence entirely

Earlier, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Washington was officially closing 83% of USAID programs, RT reports.

According to him, tens of billions of dollars were spent within the framework of 5,200 canceled contracts in ways that do not meet the basic national interests of the United States.

Rubio added that the American side, in coordination with Congress, intends to ensure "more efficient" administration of the remaining approximately 1,000 programs by the State Department, according to the website. kp.ru .

On February 3, American billionaire and head of the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Elon Musk, announced the launch of the USAID liquidation process. According to him, the agency cannot be restored and it needs to be closed. At the same time, US President Donald Trump called the agency's leaders radical lunatics.

Federation Council Chairman Valentina Matvienko said on February 19 that USAID had purposefully funded the overthrow of an undesirable government and color revolutions around the world. She also noted that Russia has repeatedly warned on major international platforms about the agency's malicious activities and support for terrorist organizations.