US does a temper tantrum

UNESCO decided, overwhelmingly, to admit Palestine as a full member of the UN body. 14 nations voted against the proposal, notably, but not surprisingly, the USA, Israel, Canada and Australia.

So now we have the US withdrawing its funding for UNESCO. Bottom line the USA would seemingly prefer no UNESCO - that is, fundless - than a UNESCO with Palestine as a member!

"The United States said Monday it is stopping financial contributions to UNESCO after the Palestinians were admitted to the organization as a full member.

The United States also acknowledged that it could lose international influence as it would lose its right to vote in the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization if it makes no payments over the next two years.

"We were to have made a 60 million dollar payment to UNESCO in November and we will not be making that payment," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters.
Nuland said the Palestinian admission "triggers longstanding (US) legislative restrictions which will compel the United States to refrain from making contributions to UNESCO."

The United States, Israel's top ally, in the 1990s banned the financing of any UN organization that accepts Palestine as a full member. The United States provides about 22 percent of the UNESCO annual budget."

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