US President Donald Trump has decided to withdraw the United States from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), citing its anti-American and anti-Israeli sentiment, as well as its progressive stance.

Source: The New York Post, as reported by European Pravda

Details: In February, Trump reportedly ordered a 90-day review of the US presence in UNESCO, with a particular focus on investigating any “anti-Semitism or anti-Israel sentiment within the organisation”.

A White House official told The Post that, following the review, US officials expressed objections to UNESCO’s policies on diversity, equity and inclusion, as well as its pro-Palestinian and pro-Chinese bias.

“President Trump has decided to withdraw the United States from UNESCO – which supports woke, divisive cultural and social causes that are totally out-of-step with the commonsense policies that Americans voted for in November,” said White House deputy spokesperson Anna Kelly.

Among the cited concerns were UNESCO’s publication of an “anti-racism toolkit” in 2023 and the launch of the Transforming MEN’talities initiative in 2024.

The former urged member states to adopt “anti-racist” policies and engage in a “race to the top” in fighting for social justice by confronting their histories of racism and working to ensure equality.

As part of last year’s gender programme, a report on video games was also published, examining how games could “promote gender equality”.

The White House official also said that UNESCO used its Executive Board to advance anti-Israel and antisemitic actions, including the designation of Jewish holy sites as “Palestinian World Heritage”.

In addition, Beijing is the second-largest financial contributor to UNESCO, and Chinese nationals hold key leadership positions.

“China has leveraged its influence over UNESCO to advance global standards that are favourable to Beijing’s interests,” the administration official stated.

Background:

In February, Trump signed an executive order to withdraw the US from the UN Human Rights Council and to prohibit future funding for the UN agency providing aid to the Gaza Strip.Back in 2018, during Trump’s first presidency, the US had already withdrawn from the Council, accusing the body of being anti-Israel and in need of reform.In 2025, the US accused the UN Human Rights Council of bias against Israel and of shielding governments that violate human rights.This followed the decision by former president Joe Biden’s administration to suspend funding to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees and regional operations in the Middle East after reports emerged that some of its staff were involved in the 7 October Hamas attack on Israel.

Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!

From Ukrainska Pravda via this RSS feed