The United States officially returns to theUnesco. The director general of the UN agency for education, science and culture announced on Monday June 12 that the country had asked to rejoin the organization, left under Donald Trump, welcoming “a strong act”.
“I wish to inform you, on behalf of the State Department, that the United States has the honor to propose a plan for its return to Unesco,” wrote Richard Verma, an assistant to the Secretary of State, in a letter to Audrey Azoulay, which she read to a meeting of representatives of the 193 member countries in Paris, the organization’s headquarters.
“I am delighted with this strong act”, “the result of five years of work” by Unesco to “ease tensions, particularly in the Middle East”, then commented the director general in a press release.
The acceptance of the American return can only be done after a majority vote of the other States, expected in July, in accordance with UNESCO regulations.
This American decision is part of the general context of the increasingly strong rivalry between Washington and Beijing and while China wishes to transform the international multilateral order put in place after the Second World War, of which Unesco is an emanation. .
Under the presidency of Donald Trump, the United States announced in October 2017 to leave Unesco, of which they had denounced in particular the “persistent anti-Israeli bias”. This withdrawal, accompanied by that of Israel, had been effective since December 2018.
Last March, the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, had however estimated that the American absence allowed China to weigh more than the United States on the rules of artificial intelligence, when Unesco produced a recommendation on the ethics of AI in 2021.
“I really believe that we should come back to Unesco, not to make a gift to Unesco, but because the things that happen at Unesco are important”, he had declared before a committee of the US Senate.
“They are working on the rules, norms and standards of artificial intelligence. We want to be part of it,” he added.
US debt
Since 2011, and the admission of Palestine into UNESCO, the United States, then led by Barack Obama, had stopped all funding for the UN organization for culture, education and science, a huge halt for it, while American contributions represented 22% of its budget.
The American debt to Unesco, contracted between 2011 and 2018, is today 619 million dollars, more than the annual budget of Unesco, estimated at 534 million dollars.
“New American money will do a lot of good for Unesco,” said a diplomat from this agency, remembering that the interruption of contributions from Washington “had caused great difficulties. We had to tighten the screws in full of functions.”
And this diplomat to underline “the rather extraordinary relations” with the Biden administration, the American president “and the First lady” having according to him been “involved” in the return to Unesco.
The United States said it had asked the United States Congress to disburse $150 million for the 2024 fiscal year, with an equivalent amount to be disbursed in subsequent years “until our arrears are cleared”, according to the letter signed by Richard Verma , given Thursday to Audrey Azoulay by an American delegation, according to Unesco.
The United States had already left Unesco in 1984, under Ronald Reagan, citing the supposed uselessness and budgetary overflows of this organization which the United States had then reinstated in October 2003.
Russia, China and Iran, countries with which the United States maintains complex relations, are among the 193 member states of Unesco which have experienced heated debates since the invasion of Ukraine. by Moscow troops in February 2022.
The scenario of a rejection of the American candidacy during the July vote is however considered unlikely within UNESCO.
With AFP
2023-06-12 07:00:00
#United #States #rejoin #UNESCO #years #absence #Trump
