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China says US' withdrawal from UNESCO ‘irresponsible’ behaviour
Beijing added that it “regretted” the US' announcement to withdraw from the UN cultural and education agency (UNESCO).
Following the United States' announcement of its withdrawal from UNESCO, China has targeted the Donald Trump administration and criticised the “irresponsible” decision.
During a press briefing on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry stated that Beijing “regretted” Washington's announcement to withdraw from the UN cultural and education agency (UNESCO).
"This is not the action that a responsible major country should take," foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told reporters, adding that China has always “firmly supported the work of UNESCO.”
After WHO, US to withdraw from UNESCO
On Tuesday, the US State Department announced the federal government's decision to withdrawn from UNESCO, stating that the country's involvement with the UN agency is no longer in its national interest.
The official statement adds that the UNESCO policy and its alignment with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals sit "at odds with our America first foreign policy."
Furthermore, the State Department added that UNESCO's decision to admit Palestine as a member state is "problematic" and contradictory to US foreign policy.
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"Pursuant to Article II(6) of the UNESCO Constitution, U.S. withdrawal will take effect on December 31, 2026. The United States will remain a full member of UNESCO until that time," the statement said.
The US' withdrawal from UNESCO comes after US President Donald Trump announced that the country will also be withdrawing from the World Health Organisation. The decision to leave the UN health agency was among the first few executive orders signed by Trump as he began his second term at the White House.
UNESCO was prepared for US' exit
In response to the US' announcement, Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO, stated that they "deeply regret President Donald Trump's decision to once again withdraw the United States of America from UNESCO."
She added that while the US' decision contradicts the principle of multilateralism in UNESCO, the agency had been anticipating a US exit and was prepared for it.
"Thanks to the efforts made by the Organization since 2018, the decreasing trend in the financial contribution of the US has been offset, so that it now represents 8% of the Organization's total budget compared to 40% for some United Nations entities; while at the same time, UNESCO’s overall budget has steadily increased. Today, the Organization is better protected in financial terms, with the steady support of a large number of Member States and private contributors. These voluntary contributions have doubled since 2018," the organisation added.
