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Welcome back to the penultimate 2025 edition of Foreign Policy<\/em>\u2019s Situation Report, as we approach the holiday break and start looking ahead to a likely even busier 2026.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what\u2019s on tap for the day: Humanitarian aid workers<\/strong> are struggling to do their jobs, U.S. President Donald<\/strong> Trump <\/strong>and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi <\/strong>hold a phone call, and European leaders <\/strong>weigh in on Ukraine peace negotiations.<\/strong><\/p>\n Aid agencies and humanitarian workers operating in conflict zones are facing historic challenges that are making it harder to safely and adequately provide assistance to some of the world\u2019s most vulnerable people.<\/p>\n Working in the humanitarian sector has become increasingly dangerous in recent years\u20142024 was the deadliest year on record<\/a> for aid workers, with 383 killed, and 2025 may be worse. With a few weeks left in the year, there have already been 326 aid workers killed, according to the Aid Worker Security Database<\/a>.<\/p>\n The dangers are particularly pronounced in Gaza. Nearly half of the aid workers killed in 2024 were in the coastal enclave, and this trend has continued into 2025. In just one incident back in March, 15 emergency workers<\/a> were killed by Israeli forces in southern Gaza.<\/p>\n \u201cI really worry a lot about the safety and security of my teams,\u201d Tjada D\u2019Oyen McKenna, the CEO of Mercy Corps who leads a team of more than 4,300 humanitarian workers, said during an interview at the Doha Forum.<\/p>\n McKenna expressed concern about the \u201cdemonization of aid,\u201d saying there\u2019s been an evident erosion of space and respect for \u201chumanitarian law and norms\u201d across the globe as well as \u201ca lot more open, flagrant atrocities\u201d committed by a variety of players in conflict zones worldwide.<\/p>\n Hostile governments.<\/strong> From Gaza to Sudan and beyond, barriers to the movement of both personnel and aid also continue to make delivering assistance difficult. Though a cease-fire has been declared in Gaza, aid agencies operating there are still struggling to do their jobs. \u201cThe humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire as a result of the two years conflict, the restrictions on the aid access, the access of food, [and] the famine that was declared,\u201d Tamara Alrifai, UNRWA\u2019s director of communications, said during an interview at the Doha Forum.<\/p>\n \u201cThe cease-fire comes with a condition for around 600 trucks of food and other supplies per day. We\u2019re very far away from that figure for a variety of reasons. While the quantity and the quality of what\u2019s going into the strip have increased and improved, they\u2019re still very far away from the minimum requirement,\u201d Alrifai added.<\/p>\n UNRWA, which has been banned in Israel<\/a> and recently had its East Jerusalem headquarters raided by Israeli authorities, continues to operate in Gaza, the occupied West Bank, and other places in the Middle East, providing aid, schooling, health care, and other services to millions of Palestinians. Israel has accused the United Nations agency of being \u201cinfiltrated by Hamas,\u201d a claim that UNRWA rejects. The Trump administration is also now reportedly<\/a> considering putting terrorism-related sanctions on the agency.<\/p>\n The \u201cyellow line\u201d that Israeli forces pulled back to in Gaza, dividing the territory, as part of the cease-fire adds yet another complication to doing humanitarian work there. \u201cUNRWA is operating in the red zone while acknowledging that the situation is very fluid, and the lines keep moving every day,\u201d Alrifai said.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s aid cuts.<\/strong> Aid organizations are also facing serious challenges brought on by major cuts to U.S. foreign aid under Trump.<\/p>\n As a result of those cuts, as well as reduced aid from Europe, the U.N., which heavily relies on donations from member states to fund humanitarian assistance, has cut its fundraising goal for 2026 in half. \u201cWe are overstretched, underfunded, and under attack,\u201d Tom Fletcher, the United Nations under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, said in a press briefing<\/a> on Dec. 3.<\/p>\n It\u2019s estimated that millions could die<\/a> as a result of the U.S. foreign aid cuts. The Trump administration\u2019s dismantling of United States Agency for International Development has already resulted in hundreds of thousands<\/a> of deaths, according to one estimate.<\/p>\n The problems tied to U.S. funding cuts are especially apparent in Sudan, aid groups say, where a civil war has fomented one of the world\u2019s worst humanitarian crises.<\/p>\n Mercy Corps has \u201calways been underfunded\u201d for the response in Sudan, McKenna said, but aid is needed there now more than ever. \u201cPeople need the funding. They need to be able to buy food, and medicine, and supplies for their families,\u201d McKenna said. \u201cThe global funding situation just continues to be a strain on that.\u201d<\/p>\n Kirsten Hillman, Canada\u2019s ambassador to the United States and its top bilateral trade negotiator, announced this week that she will be stepping down in 2026 after more than eight years in Washington. \u201cIt has been the greatest privilege of my professional life to have served and represented Canada and Canadians during this critical period in Canada-U.S. relations,\u201d she wrote in a letter<\/a> announcing her decision.<\/p>\n Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna hosted Alexander Darchiev, the Russian ambassador to Washington, at her Christmas reception on Capitol Hill. \u201cContinue working to make Russian-American relations great again!\u201d the Russian embassy posted<\/a> on X with a photo of Luna and Darchiev together.<\/p>\n The Trump administration plans to appoint a U.S. two-star general to command the international stabilization force dedicated to peacekeeping in Gaza, Axios<\/em> reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n What should be high on your radar, if it isn\u2019t already.<\/em><\/p>\n Trump-Modi call. <\/strong>The gradual thaw between Washington and New Delhi appears to be gradually progressing, with Modi speaking with Trump on the phone Thursday. Modi described the conversation as \u201cwarm and engaging\u201d in a post<\/a> on X, adding that the two countries would \u201ccontinue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity.\u201d Trump, as of this writing, has not publicly acknowledged the call.<\/p>\n It remains to be seen whether the conversation will be enough to clinch an India-U.S. trade deal that has remained out of reach, with Indian exports to the United States still subject to the 50 percent tariffs that Trump imposed over New Delhi\u2019s purchases of Russian oil. A U.S. State Department team, led by Undersecretary of State Allison Hooker, visited New Delhi earlier this week to discuss \u201ckey bilateral issues,\u201d including trade, defense, and energy cooperation, the Indian Embassy in Washington said in a statement.<\/p>\n