US Administration Hopes to Restore Funding to UNESCO - Kerry

The US Administration hopes that the US Congress will allow it to restore funding to the United Nations Organization for Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO), following the United States recent reelection to the UNESCO Executive Board, US Secretary of State John Kerry said Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The United States stopped funding UNESCO, after it accepted Palestine membership in 2011, thus depriving the organization of 22 percent of its budget.

"I am determined to restore US funding to UNESCO, and hopeful that Congress will act to provide the Administration the authority needed to waive the current legislative restrictions that prohibit US contributions to the organization," Kerry said in a statement.

Kerry also assured the UNESCO partners that "the United States pledges to continue to work closely with you [partners] to address the urgent challenges."