The United States has announced its decision to withdraw from UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) for the third time in history.
With a December 2026 departure date, the action highlights a renewed shift towards isolation under Donald Trump's second-term foreign policy.
This approach cuts to the heart of international collaboration in education, culture, and research. For decades, UNESCO has served as a focal point for establishing global learning objectives, safeguarding cultural assets, and promoting inclusive classrooms in conflict-torn, impoverished, and unequal places, The Times of India reports.
The withdrawal is a clear message: the US no longer desires to shape or share the global community's educational agenda.
UNESCO has significant influence in shaping global education and plays a crucial role in strengthening systems worldwide.
The scope of its work ranges from coordinating curriculum frameworks and teacher development to leading international responses on learning equity, digital access, and media literacy.
The United States, which was previously a prominent funder and policy voice, will now lose ground in an area where global cooperation is essential.
Beyond symbolic politics, the decision may stymie joint education projects, impede academic exchange, and reduce US influence in setting the direction of initiatives such as Education for Sustainable Development, Futures of Education, and global citizenship programmes.
Under President Ronald Reagan, the United States first withdrew from UNESCO in 1983, citing anti-Western bias. It rejoined in 2003 under President George W Bush, but left again in 2017 during Trump's first term.
In 2023, the Biden administration overturned the decision, citing the need to offset China's growing influence, settle unpaid dues, and resume Holocaust memory and education projects in vulnerable countries.
Now, with Trump pressing down on a nationalist agenda, UNESCO has once again become a victim of ideological struggle.
While the government portrays the exit as a defence of national interests, the consequences will be felt by educators, researchers, and students both in the United States and overseas.
