U.S. re-entry into UNESCO could serve as a 'Trojan horse' of division

The United States officially rejoined the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) after several years of absenting itself from this institution. While on the surface it seems that there is nothing unusual about this decision, one might question the motivation of the Joe Biden administration making such a decision amid the great power competition.

UNESCO was formed in 1945, as an agency of the United Nations for the purpose of promoting science, education, and the preservation and diversity of cultures in what might today be characterized as a precursor of the "dialogue of civilizations." With the end of World War II, it was clear that an institution was needed to bring about a greater understanding among nations of their cultures, of their social norms, and of their aspirations.

Science and education are, of course, fundamental values for all nations regardless of their political ideology, and UNESCO was intended to bring countries together to share in what was considered a universal endeavor.

The U.S., however, has been in and out of the organization several times, largely because of political or ideological decisions made by UNESCO. Most recently in 2017, while former U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. was pulling out of the organization, Barack Obama had already stopped funding the organization when it made decisions that the U.S. regarded as too sympathetic with the Palestinians.

While First Lady Jill Biden, a teacher at a community college, visited Paris to officially inaugurate the U.S. re-entry, the decision involved a number of key considerations, none of which involved a commitment to any "dialogue of civilizations," but was openly viewed as another flank of the Biden administration's attempt to prevent the growing influence of China in international organizations. The United States, as the "leader" of the Western world wants to make sure that it is Anglo-American style "Western values" that are expressed in the cultural and educational work of UNESCO.

The motivation was clearly expressed by Under Secretary for Management, John Bass, in March, when he said that if the U.S. chose to rejoin, it would "help us address a key opportunity cost that our absence is creating in our global competition with China."

This was elaborated on later by Richard Gowan, UN Director for the International Crisis Group, who told CBS News that "The Biden administration has always made it clear that it is suspicious of China's rising influence in the UN. The decision to rejoin UNESCO is just the latest example of the U.S. deciding it can do more to counter China by actively engaging in UN institutions than sitting on the sidelines."

UNESCO, under Director-General Audrey Azoulay, a former French Minister of Culture, has also set its goal of formulating the global rules for the use of AI. The U.S., which considers itself the primary "rules-maker," did not want to be absent from that discussion.

Nevertheless, with its stress on cooperation, China has won support in the world community. Moreover, as a civilization which dates back 5,000 years, the country has the second-most UNESCO-designated World Heritage Sites in the world.

While the United States remains a powerful force because of its military and economic might, it has effectively abandoned the tradition of a republic, as was expressed by the Abraham Lincoln and Franklin D. Roosevelt administrations, to become more like the old British Empire, which still has many admirers among U.S. policymakers.

Nevertheless, China, with its expansive Belt and Road Initiative, which helps other developing countries eliminate poverty, has really won "the hearts and minds" in the Global South, which has raised the ire of the United States.

One can only expect under these circumstances that the U.S. will use its membership as a geopolitical tool against its self-styled rivals, China and Russia, a danger about which the Chinese representative at UNESCO, Yang Jin, warned.

After the governing board voted to readmit the U.S., Yang said, China hopes the U.S. "will promote the unity and cooperation of the organization, rather than engage in confrontation and division." Also, the U.S. is expected to "pay membership dues in full and on time, and pay all dues in arrears for years in full as soon as possible."

(CGTN)