The Geneva Consensus Declaration gathered on Capitol Hill this week to sign the sixth annual declaration on the sanctity of life and the importance of putting families first.
As the United States serves as this year’s secretariat, Congress, and the Institute for Women’s Health, hosted 43 member countries standing for the right to life, family, women’s health, and national sovereignty.
“As the Secretariat, the United States will work closely with our allies and partners to advance the Declaration’s vital mission,” read a letter from President Donald Trump, presented by Vince Haley, director of the White House Domestic Policy Council.
“My Administration will always stand for the dignity of human life, the health and well-being of women, the strength of the family, and the right to defend these values and traditions. I commend the work of the Institute for Women’s Health to strengthen this growing coalition. Together, we will carry these principles forward and build a stronger, healthier, and more prosperous future for generations to come,” it continued.
In 2020, 32 nations signed the Geneva Consensus Declaration. Its main objectives are to secure meaningful health and development gains for women; to protect life at all stages; to defend the family as the fundamental unit of society; and to work together across the U.N. system to realize these values.
In 2021, President Joe Biden removed the United States from the declaration, encouraging others to do the same. Rejoining the declaration was one of Trump’s first moves when he came back to office in 2025.
Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., retiring from Congress in January, announced he is passing the torch to Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., to lead the Geneva Consensus Declaration in Congress.
“He’s one of our strongest and most thoughtful Senators that we have in this institution,” Daines told the Daily Signal.
“It’s an elevation of what I did. It’s now taken up to the next level. It was really a promotion for the movement to have Lankford leading this effort,” he continued. “He is so respected in the U.S. Senate. He’s part of Leader Thune’s leadership team, and he’ll be just a strong, unwavering voice on behalf of the unborn and families.”
Daines told the Daily Signal it’s important for the United States to be back in the Geneva Consensus Declaration because “the world looks to the U.S.” Daines, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he sees this when he travels the world.
“Everywhere I go, the U.S. is looked up to as the leader in so many areas, economically, militarily, but in this case, fighting and leading on behalf of the pro-life and pro-family movement. So, we are the world’s leader. It’s important that we continue to project that leadership, beyond just the economy, beyond just the military, but on behalf of the pro-life and pro-family unit.”
[Editor’s note: This story originally was published by The Daily Signal.]
