The United States in and out of UNESCO: the turbulent relationship between the country and the organisation from its creation until today

The relationship between the United States and UNESCO has always been a complex and turbulent one. On the 28th of December 1983 Secretary of State George Schultz sent a letter to the Director General Amadou M’Bow declaring the intention of his country to withdraw from the organisation. The country re-joined UNESCO in 2003, then under the administration of President Trump announced a second withdrawal in 2017 to return back eventually in 2023. This dissertation aims to analyse the relation of the country with the organisation and the motivations that brought the United States to withdraw from UNESCO. Based on the literature present on this theme, and after an introductory chapter in which the establishment and the structure of the organisation are explained, I then proceed to thoroughly investigate the criticism moved by the United States towards UNESCO and the reasons behind both its withdrawals, taking into consideration the early as well as the more recent stages of contention between the country and the specialised agency. The principal aim is thus that of carefully examine the factors that caused one of the countries that helped to create UNESCO and its major contributor to reach the point of withdrawal, not once but twice from such an international organisation.