In recent weeks, government officials and media that support them have been spreading a series of disinformation regarding non-governmental organizations and their funding from USAID.
Party leaders, MPs, “analysts,“ tabloids, and regime-affiliated portals have attempted to convince the public that NGOs in Montenegro have received $77 million from USAID over the past four years—without providing a shred of evidence, while deliberately propagating falsehoods with the clear intent of silencing critics.
The wave of disinformation and attacks on NGOs began when Richard Grenell, U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy for special missions, quoted a tweet from the Kos data page on his X account. The tweet falsely claimed that USAID had spent approximately $1.7 billion on projects in the Western Balkans, with $77 million allocated to Montenegro alone. Grenell’s statement aligned with the Trump administration’s broader policy of scaling back USAID operations.
The figures cited by Kos data and relayed by Grenell originate from the Balkan Insight portal, edited by BIRN, though in a different form than how the U.S. envoy presented them. The title of the original article is “Trump’s Suspension of US Foreign Aid Hits Hundreds of Balkan Projects.” The article includes an infographic detailing U.S. foreign aid spending in the Western Balkans between 2020 and 2024. The numbers shown in the infographic match those disseminated by Kos data.
The key difference, however, is that the Balkan Insight article does not claim this money was funneled directly into these countries through USAID. Instead, it explicitly states: “How much did the US spend on aid to each of the Western Balkan Six.” USAID is just one of many channels through which the U.S. funds projects abroad. Thus, Grenell repeated the Kos data page’s disinformation, falsely suggesting that USAID alone had poured $1.7 billion into the Western Balkans. In reality, this figure represents the total foreign aid provided by all U.S. agencies and donors.
Untruths uttered by Knezevic, Djokovic, and portals close to the ruling parties
Following Grenell’s tweet, an orchestrated attack on the civil sector in Montenegro—and the wider region—was set in motion. Pro-government media, whose reports are frequently flagged as disinformation by Raskrinkavanje and other regional fact-checkers, launched a coordinated campaign against non-governmental organizations.
However, the charge was led by government officials such as Milan Knezevic, who echoed the false claims about the alleged 77 million and added his own fabrications to the narrative.
The DNP leader in Parliament claimed that certain Montenegrin NGOs had received 77 million euros in American aid in the past year alone.
“Since you have close ties with the NGO sector and are well aware of the U.S. administration’s move to cut off funding for Savo Kentera, CDT, Daliborka Uljarevic, and others, you saw that last year they received 77 million dollars from the USA,” Knezevic stated in the Parliament, further asserting that some NGOs were financed by “CIA subsidiaries.” In doing so, he not only repeated the original disinformation but also escalated it—falsely claiming that NGOs had received 77 million euros in a single year.
His coalition partner, Nova Srpska Demokratija MP Velimir Djokovic, quickly joined him in spreading falsehoods. Speaking to Borba, Djokovic accused NGOs of using USAID funds to interfere in Montenegro’s elections, adding that he was “glad it has now been revealed how many so-called independent and impartial NGOs were actually on the payroll of this organization.”
He went on to say that “the public deserves to know how these NGOs are funded, which is obviously done through various mechanisms, as proven by the presentation of USAID’s payrolls.” In response, we encourage Djokovic to visit NGO websites and review their publicly available financial reports to understand their sources of funding.
While government officials in Montenegro led the disinformation campaign, they were heavily supported by pro-regime portals such as Borba, Alo online, IN4S, and Pogled, which published headlines such as:
“77 Million Reasons to Oppose the Law on Foreign Agents”
“Grenell Reveals How Much USAID Invested in Left-Wing NGOs in the Region: 77 Million Dollars Given to Mercenaries from Montenegro in Four Years”
“Koprivica from CDT Justifies the Last USAID Dollars”
“NGOs’ Tears Flowing Upwards, Their ‘Fuel’ Running Out: Make Montenegro Free Again!”
“USAID ‘Grant Eaters’—Time for a Triple Somersault and to Become Trumpists!”
“The Crying Begins: Trump Closes Financial Taps for Foreign Agents in Montenegro”
These are just a few of the headlines the Montenegrin public has been exposed to over the past two weeks—each crafted with the clear intention of discrediting NGOs and undermining their credibility.
USAID gave Montenegro nine, not 77 million
By searching the website of the American administration, ForeignAssistance.gov, where it is possible to check how much U.S. funding is allocated to aid other countries, one can find data showing that between 2020 and December 2024, the total financial assistance provided to Montenegro by all U.S. government agencies—not just USAID—amounted to $70.4 million, out of an approved $76.79 million. This data is current as of December 19, 2024.
Of that amount, the money was not directed exclusively to non-governmental organizations, as Knezevic and media close to his coalition claim. Instead, the funds were allocated to projects related to COVID-19 response, tourism, technology, start-ups, science, healthcare, and media. To reiterate—all of this data is publicly available on the U.S. government website ForeignAssistance.gov.
From the total sum, only $8.9 million was disbursed through USAID in Montenegro and not exclusively to non-governmental organizations focused on democratization. Part of the funding was directed to media outlets, as well as various social, scientific, educational, healthcare, and similar initiatives. For example, USAID allocated funding for tourism-related activities to the Regional Development Agency for Bjelasica, Komovi, and Prokletije. The Montenegrin government also received direct aid from USAID during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, USAID provided $800,000 to the World Health Organization (WHO) for Montenegro.
USAID funds were also awarded to organizations supporting people living with HIV/AIDS, strengthening Roma rights, and other initiatives aimed at social welfare.
When it comes to the Center for Democratic Transition (CDT)—the founder of Raskrinkavanje—this organization received $139,792 from USAID over five years for two fact-checking projects.
It is worth noting that USAID officially ended its mission in Montenegro in 2013, after 12 years, when it was assessed that the country no longer required this type of assistance. At that time, it was announced that the U.S. government had invested a total of $281 million in Montenegro, of which $243 million was allocated through USAID. Until its closure, USAID had supported a broad range of projects, including the Information Center in Mojkovac, the Mountain Rescue Service in Niksic, the Agricultural Cooperative “Vrbica” in Berane, the development of the dairy sector in Danilovgrad, the “Pirella” juice factory in Danilovgrad, business regulation reforms such as simplifying administrative procedures in Cetinje, the renovation of the Basic Court in Podgorica, and initiatives supporting organizations working with people with disabilities. Although the USAID office in Montenegro closed, U.S. assistance has continued, with funding being provided through regional projects, programs run by American organizations, and funds managed directly by the U.S. State Department.
USAID shutdown?
The entire saga began as soon as Donald Trump returned to the White House. In line with his “America First” doctrine, Trump allegedly seeks stricter oversight of U.S. spending, and one of the first executive orders he signed was a 90-day suspension of foreign aid, along with a directive to shut down USAID. At present, the USAID website is offline, and several thousand employees were set to be placed on paid leave. However, this move is currently blocked by the courts. The reported plan involves sending nearly all USAID staff home and subsequently merging the agency with the State Department.
USAID was established in 1961 through the Foreign Aid Act, passed by the U.S. Congress. This legislation mandated the creation of a government agency responsible for managing international aid. President John F. Kennedy founded USAID via executive order, and its status as an executive agency was later reaffirmed by law in 1998. According to the BBC, this legal framework likely prevents Trump from dismantling USAID by executive order alone, as such an action would face legal and congressional challenges.
The White House website justifies the move by citing alleged waste and corruption within USAID, claiming:
“For decades, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has been unaccountable to taxpayers as it funnels massive sums of money to the ridiculous — and, in many cases, malicious — pet projects of entrenched bureaucrats, with next-to-no oversight.“
Trump’s appointee for “government efficiency,” Elon Musk, one of the world’s richest individuals, has also targeted USAID. Musk has openly called the agency a “criminal organization” and insisted that it should be shut down.
In doing so, Musk also shared false claims that Hollywood stars were paid with USAID funds to visit Ukraine.
USAID was originally founded in the 1960s to oversee humanitarian aid programs on behalf of the U.S. government. Today, it employs approximately 10,000 people and operates in over 100 countries, with an annual budget of around $50 billion (as of 2023).
The agency’s work spans a wide range of activities, from delivering food to the world’s poorest regions to health initiatives, such as polio vaccination programs and efforts to prevent the spread of viruses with pandemic potential.
Darvin Muric, Editor-in-Chief of Raskrinkavanje.me