The United States will withdraw from UNESCO, the U.N.’s cultural and educational agency, the State Department announced Tuesday, the latest move by the Trump administration to distance the U.S. from international organizations.
The decision, which takes effect in December 2026, deals another blow to the Paris-based agency, founded after World War II to promote global cooperation in education, science and culture.
A State Department spokesperson said the agency had pursued “divisive” social causes and overly focused on the U.N.’s sustainable development goals, which clash with the Trump administration’s “America First” foreign policy.
The withdrawal is part of President Donald Trump’s broader push to exit global institutions, including leaving the World Health Organization, cutting funding to the U.N. relief agency for Palestinians and withdrawing from the U.N. Human Rights Council.
The U.S. provides about 8% of UNESCO’s budget, but officials said the agency had prepared for the possibility of a U.S. exit. The financial impact is expected to be less severe than in other organizations, such as the WHO, where the U.S. is the largest donor.
White House deputy spokesperson Anna Kelly told the New York Post that UNESCO supports “woke, divisive” causes out of step with American voters’ priorities.
The U.S. was a founding member of UNESCO in 1945 but has withdrawn twice before—first in 1984 under President Ronald Reagan, citing anti-Western bias, and again in 2017 under Trump over concerns about anti-Israel bias and financial mismanagement. It rejoined in 2023 under President Joe Biden, who sought to counter China’s growing influence in the agency.
UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay called the decision “regrettable” but said the agency had anticipated it. She disputed U.S. claims about the organization, pointing to its work on Holocaust education and fighting antisemitism.
The U.S. departure follows longstanding tensions, including a 2011 vote to admit Palestine as a member, which led the Obama administration to cut funding.
UNESCO, best known for designating World Heritage sites like the Grand Canyon, said it has diversified funding and won’t cut jobs due to the U.S. exit.