On Tuesday, July 22, the U.S. State Department announced that the United States is withdrawing from UNESCO, the UN agency for culture and education. The Guardian reported this."UNESCO works to advance divisive social and cultural causes and maintains an outsized focus on the UN’s sustainable development goals, a globalist, ideological agenda for international development at odds with our America First foreign policy," a state department spokesperson, Tammy Bruce, said.The decision is part of the president’s second-term initiative to withdraw the United States from several global organizations, including exiting the World Health Organization (WHO), halting funding for the Palestinian humanitarian agency UNRWA, and leaving the UN Human Rights Council, as part of a broader review of U.S. involvement in UN agencies.The U.S. withdrawal from UNESCO will take effect in December 2026.The article notes that this will be the third time in history the U.S. leaves UNESCO. The first withdrawal occurred in 1983 under President Ronald Reagan, citing "anti-Western bias" and "excessive politicization" of UNESCO’s activities. The U.S. rejoined the organization in 2003 under George W. Bush.The second withdrawal took place in 2017 during Donald Trump’s first term. His administration cited "demonstrated failure to reform itself, has continually demonstrated anti-Israel sentiment over the past decade, and has failed to address concerns over mounting arrears." The U.S. rejoined UNESCO in 2023 under President Joe Biden.UNESCO’s reactionUNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay expressed regret over the U.S. decision, calling it "expected."She noted that the reasons cited by the U.S. for leaving were the same as during Trump’s first term, and she disputed them."These claims contradict the reality of UNESCO’s efforts, particularly in the field of Holocaust education and the fight against antisemitism," Azoulay added.According to her, UNESCO has carried out structural reforms and diversified its sources of funding, so "the decreasing trend in the financial contribution of the U.S. has been offset." She emphasized that UNESCO does not plan to cut jobs as a result of the U.S. withdrawal.In March, the United States announced its withdrawal from the board of the UN fund created to support poor and vulnerable countries facing the effects of climate change.