MILAN (AP) — The World Anti-Doping Agency called on the United States to pay its overdue membership fees Thursday and rejected Washington's bipartisan demand to submit to an independent audit.
The U.S. has long sought more transparency from WADA, which has been criticized for its handling of politically sensitive doping cases. A government funding bill signed into law this week restricts payment of the $3.7 million in dues until there's an independent audit.
WADA President Witold Banka, speaking at a news conference at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, named a list of audits that his watchdog organization is already subject to and said that's good enough.
“I don’t know any other international organization with such strong auditing mechanisms, so I think there are no obstacles for our friends from U.S. to fulfill their duties and pay the contributions,” he said.
He added: “I think it fulfills the expectations or the wishes from the U.S. side, and the most important thing in principle, the contribution is not conditional. That is the thing which is extremely important for us.”
Sara Carter, the director of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, sent a statement to The Associated Press reiterating U.S. President Donald Trump's strong belief in “supporting U.S. athletes and ensuring fair competition in sports," along with the drug office's insistence on the external audit.
“The United States will not be bullied or manipulated into paying dues to WADA until such is achieved,” Carter said.
The U.S. has already withheld dues under Biden in 2024, then again under Trump in 2025 — a rare point of virtually unanimous bipartisan agreement between the U.S. major political parties. The funding spat accelerated after questions emerged about transparency regarding WADA's clearing of 23 Chinese swimmers after they tested positive for performance enhancers before the Olympics in 2021.
“They should be really careful to go up against the United States Congress,” Rahul Gupta, Carter's predecessor as drug czar, told AP. “It's never a good idea to go up against a bipartisan Congress where both sides of the aisle definitely want this to happen.”
The U.S. law restricts the release of the $3.7 million until there's an audit “by external anti-doping experts and experienced independent auditors” showing that WADA's Executive Committee and Foundation "are operating consistent with their duties.”
WADA statutes say representatives of countries that don’t pay are not eligible to sit on the agency’s top decision-making panels. Gupta was removed from WADA's executive committee when the U.S. first refused to pay.
“I hope very soon they’re going to pay the contribution and come back to the executive committee as a member,” Banka said.
Banka said WADA's budget has grown from $36 million when he started in 2020 to approximately $57 million.
“I wish we could have this money, (these) contributions,” he said of the U.S. fees, “but WADA is financially very stable, so this is not the biggest problem.”
The growing impasse comes at a critical juncture as the United States is set to host major international events, including the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.
“All of us around the Olympic Movement are trying to work together to come to a resolution of the dispute between WADA and USADA, and we’ve made good progress on that,” said Gene Sykes, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee president and IOC member.
Sykes had a breakfast meeting with WADA leaders this week but declined to give details.
“We understand the disagreements and the issues," Sykes said.
AP Sports Writers Graham Dunbar and Eddie Pells contributed to this report.
AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
United States' Mia Manganello has her fingernails painted in the colors of the United States flag during a speedskating training session at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
An athlete skis past Olympic rings during a cross country training session at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Tesero, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
HELSINGBORG, Sweden (AP) — NATO allies and defense officials expressed bewilderment Friday at U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement that he would send 5,000 U.S. troops to Poland just weeks after ordering the same number of forces pulled out of Europe.
The apparent change of mind came after weeks of statements from Trump and his administration about reducing — not increasing — the U.S. military footprint in Europe. Trump's initial order set off a flurry of action among military commanders and left allies already doubtful about America's commitment to Europe's security to ponder what forces they might have to backfill on NATO's eastern flank with Russia and Ukraine.
Earlier this month, the Trump administration said it was reducing levels in Europe by about 5,000 troops, and U.S. officials confirmed about 4,000 service members were no longer rotating into Poland from Germany. The dispatch to Germany of U.S. personnel trained to fire long-range missiles was also halted.
But in a post on Truth Social on Thursday, Trump said he would now send "an additional 5,000 Troops to Poland,” citing his strong ties with Polish President Karol Nawrocki, whom Trump endorsed in elections last year.
“It is confusing indeed, and not always easy to navigate,” Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard told reporters Friday at a meeting she was hosting of her NATO counterparts, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Ministers from the Netherlands and Norway were sanguine about Trump’s latest move, as was Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže, who said allies knew the U.S. troop “posture was being reconsidered, and now there is no change of posture. For now.”
U.S. defense officials also expressed confusion. “We just spent the better part of two weeks reacting to the first announcement. We don’t know what this means either,” said one of two officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military matters.
But Rubio said Washington’s allies understand that changes in the U.S. troop presence in Europe will come as the Trump administration reevaluates its force needs. “I think there’s a broad recognition that there are going to be eventually less U.S. troops in Europe than there has historically been for a variety of reasons,” he said.
The latest surprise came despite a U.S. pledge to coordinate troop deployments, including one from NATO’s top military officer, U.S. Lt. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, on Wednesday.
Trump's initial announcement that he would withdraw troops came as he fumed over remarks by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said that the U.S. was being “humiliated” by the Iranian leadership and criticized what he called a lack of strategy in that war.
Trump told reporters that the U.S. would be cutting even more than 5,000 and also announced new tariffs on European cars. Germany is the continent’s biggest auto producer.
Rubio insisted that Trump’s decision “is not a punitive thing. It’s just something that’s ongoing.”
About 80,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Europe. The Pentagon is required to keep at least 76,000 troops and major equipment on the continent unless NATO allies are consulted and there is a determination that such a withdrawal is in U.S. interests.
The withdrawal of 5,000 troops might drop numbers below that limit.
But Trump's latest post suggests that troop numbers in Europe would not change. Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski welcomed the decision to send more forces to his country, saying it ensures that “the presence of American troops in Poland will be maintained more or less at previous levels.”
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte also welcomed the move. On Thursday, before Trump took to Truth Social again, Rutte had underlined that it was important for Europe to take care of its own security. “We have a process in place. This is normal business,” he told reporters.
At NATO headquarters in Brussels, meanwhile, U.S. officials briefed the allies on the Pentagon's aims for its commitments to the NATO Force Model, which involves contingency planning for Europe’s defense in the event of serious security concerns. It was widely expected that a further reduction of U.S. forces would be coming.
Asked whether any cuts were announced, Rutte said: “I’m afraid it’s much more complicated than that.” He said the procedure “is highly classified” and declined to give details.
Rubio played down concerns about a shift in U.S. force levels in Europe, saying: "Every country has to constantly reevaluate what their needs are, what their commitments are around the world, and how to properly structure that.”
Cook reported from Brussels. Associated Press writer Emma Burrows in London contributed.
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with journalists during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, front second left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, front left, speak with each other during a group photo at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte look at each other as they deliver a statement during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže speaks at the doorstep of the NATO foreign ministers' meeting at Sea U in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte deliver a statement during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte speaks to media at the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives with his wife Jeanette at Malmo Airport, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Malmo-Sturup, Sweden, ahead of a NATO foreign ministers meeting. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, second from left, shakes hands with Prime Minister of Sweden Ulf Kristersson, as he is greeted by King Carl Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Silvia of Sweden and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden Maria Malmer Stenergard, right, before a dinner at Sofiero Castle in Helsingborg, Sweden, Thursday May 21 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard speaks to media at the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
