US expresses interest in rejoining UNESCO and plans to repay debt after nearly six years of withdrawal

Overseas Network, June 12. According to a report by the US “Capitol Hill” on June 11, nearly six years after withdrawing from UNESCO, the United States recently expressed to the organization that the United States is interested in rejoining and has listed repayments. Debt and timeline for rejoining.

The spokesperson of the US State Department confirmed to the US Axios news network that US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Verma had recently sent a letter to the Director-General of UNESCO, proposing a plan for the United States to rejoin UNESCO. The plan negotiated by the U.S. State Department and Unesco detailed a timetable for the U.S. to repay its debt and rejoin the agency’s executive board, one of the sources said. The U.S. approved a bill in 2022 allocating more than $500 million to pay off debts owed by the U.S. to allow it to return to membership.

In October 2017, the U.S. State Department issued a statement stating that the U.S. announced its withdrawal from UNESCO due to increasing arrears, the need for fundamental reform of UNESCO, and concerns about the organization’s “continuing bias against Israel.” This is the second time the United States has withdrawn from the UN agency since 1984.