The burden on the United States (4)
I believe the answer is:
onus
'the burden' is the definition.
('onus' can be a synonym of 'burden')
'on the united states' is the wordplay.
'the united states' becomes 'U.S.' (abbreviation for the United States).
'on'+'us'='ONUS'
(Other definitions for onus that I've seen before include "Weight of responsibility" , "Responsibilty" , "albatross?" , "Burden, duty" , "Obligation - charge" .)