UN laments US withdrawal from educational and cultural agency

UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay said she “deeply regrets” the decision by President Donald Trump to withdraw the US from the organisation, warning that the step runs counter to the spirit of international cooperation.

“I deeply regret President Donald Trump’s decision to once again withdraw the United States of America from UNESCO,” Azoulay said in a statement, adding that the decision contradicts “the fundamental principles of multilateralism.”

At the United Nations headquarters in New York, UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said Secretary-General António Guterres shares that view. “The Secretary-General joins Ms. Azoulay in deeply regretting the decision by the United States,” Dujarric told reporters.

A long history of US exits

The US relationship with UNESCO has been turbulent for decades. Washington first withdrew from the agency in 1984 under President Ronald Reagan, citing concerns about management and ideological bias.

After remaining outside the organisation for nearly 20 years, the US rejoined in 2003. However, during Trump’s first presidency the country again exited the agency in 2017, accusing it of anti-Israel bias and institutional problems.

The decision was reversed in 2023 when President Joe Biden restored US membership and resumed financial contributions to the agency.

Dispute over policies and Palestine

A statement from the White House said the latest withdrawal was intended to protect American interests from what it described as UNESCO’s promotion of “divisive social and cultural causes.”

It also criticised the organisation’s alignment with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, describing them as a “globalist ideological agenda” incompatible with Washington’s “America First” foreign policy.

The statement further pointed to UNESCO’s decision to admit the State of Palestine as a member state, a step that US officials say runs counter to American policy and encourages anti-Israel rhetoric within the UN system.

Azoulay rejected accusations that the organisation is hostile to Israel. She pointed to UNESCO’s work in Holocaust education and efforts to combat antisemitism, noting that these initiatives have been widely supported by international partners, including the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

UNESCO says it prepared for the move

Azoulay said the agency had anticipated the possibility of another US withdrawal and had already adjusted its financial structure.

Although the United States currently accounts for around eight percent of UNESCO’s budget, she said funding from other member states and private partners has expanded significantly in recent years. Donations from private contributors, she noted, have doubled since 2018.

“The organisation is now better protected financially,” Azoulay said, adding that UNESCO will continue collaborating with American universities, private institutions and non-profit groups.

She stressed that the agency remains open to future engagement with Washington. “UNESCO’s purpose is to welcome all the nations of the world, and the United States of America is and will always be welcome,” she said.