The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization approved a request by the United States to rejoin the UNESCO this July after former president Donald Trump's decusuib to quit in 2017.

At the end of its two-day extraordinary session in Paris, UNESCO General Conference voted by "a very large majority" to approve the US request, UNESCO said in a press release on Friday.

Director-General of UNESCO Audrey Azoulay warmly welcomed the return of the US, a founding member of the Organization, saying it will make the Organization better able to deliver its mandate.

Today is a great day for UNESCO and its multilateralism, she said, noting that the US return will add momentum to the UNESCO status as a global organization.

On June 12, Azoulay gathered representatives of the Organization's 193 Member States to inform them that the United States of America had officially notified her of its decision to rejoin UNESCO in July 2023, on the basis of "a concrete financing plan." Accordingly, 65 Member States requested on the following day that the General Conference convene to consider the item of "Financial matters related to the return of the United States of America to the Organization as a Member State." The return of the United States was made possible by the agreement reached by Congress in last December authorizing financial contributions to UNESCO. The US had suspended its contributions in 2011 due to domestic legislation, before notifying UNESCO of its decision to legally withdraw on October 12, 2017

Source: Kuwait News Agency