The American and Russian delegations at the United Nations, along with six others, recently voted against the new Political Declaration on AIDS. The United States complained about the inclusion of “divisive” political topics “not related to the fight against AIDS.”

Russia opposed the previous Political Declaration in 2021 on similar grounds, but this represented a seismic change in the American approach to the issue.

As a political scientist studying the diplomacy of HIV/AIDS, I am not surprised by the U.S. but it does alarm me. Even as it reduced foreign assistance and dismantled USAID, the U.S. had maintained a veneer of support for the global AIDS response.

Breaking consensus on the AIDS declaration clearly signals that American political priorities now completely override their participation. This decision can only further politicize debates around the HIV-AIDS response and weaken its reach.

Organizing a global response to the epidemic of HIV/AIDS has been a complex endeavour. When the disease was first detected in the 1980s, it was immediately associated with certain groups, like gay men and intravenous drug users. Their marginalization made it a politically controversial disease to tackle.

Activists succeeded in raising the profile of HIV/AIDS in the 1990s, but it often required focusing on more “palatable” victims, such as children. By the early 2000s, the world was paying attention, and international........

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