The Trump administration said it would restore funds for Radio Free Europe amid a court battle over drastic funding cuts. But that might not be the end of the story.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), the storied US-backed broadcaster best known for transmitting news across the Iron Curtain, faced a dire future after the Trump administration abruptly pulled the plug on its funding earlier this month.
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US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on 15 March drastically reducing the size of RFE/RL’s supervisor body, the United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM), which also oversees other US publicly funded media outlets like Voice of America.
The agency immediately cut off RFE/RL’s funding despite the US Congress having already approved a $140 million budget that runs through September.
Trump’s efforts to dismantle RFE/RL ran into legal trouble, however, after a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order earlier this week to block attempts to switch off the media. The Trump administration subsequently said on Thursday that it would restore the funding.
That likely postpones RFE/RL’s closure until September.
But the future beyond then remains in doubt.
RFE/RL’s president and CEO, Steven Capus, said in a statement the step was “an encouraging sign that RFE/RL’s operations will be able to continue, as Congress intended.” But he added that actions would have to follow the announcement.
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“We await official confirmation from USAGM that grant funding will promptly resume based on the intention expressed in last night’s letter,” Capus said.
However, RFE/RL will not be able to rest easy. It remains to be seen whether actual funding flows again – and whether the Trump team will try to pull the plug again.
The Trump administration noted in the same letter to RFE/RL that it would preserve the right to terminate funding for the broadcaster “at a later date” if they “were to determine that such termination was appropriate.”
Normally, RFE/RL receives a portion of the grant each month.
A court hearing was initially scheduled for April on RFE/RL’s request to unlock the whole grant, but it’s unclear whether the legal case will move ahead now that the Trump administration has backed down, at least for the moment.
Between now and September, the Trump administration might potentially look into other ways to shut down RFE/RL, along with other US-funded foreign broadcasters.
Czech minister urges EU response in wake of Trump cuts to Radio Free Europe
After Trump moved to pull the plug on Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the Czech foreign minister hopes the EU can keep the broadcaster ‘at least partially’ on air.
With US funding still uncertain, there has also been an increased push to mobilize EU funds to keep RFE/RL operating on the initiative of Czechia, which hosts the media’s headquarters.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said earlier this week she would “work with partners including” Czechia, Austria, Belgium, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden and Slovenia “to support RFE/RL‘s award-winning journalism”.
Euractiv understands the EU executive is currently working to find ways to keep RFE/RL operational in the long run should there be more hiccups with the media’s funding.
It for now remains unclear whether Brussels would be willing to replace it fully.
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