WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump is considering pulling the United States out of the UN Human Rights Council, which his administration accuses of being biased against Israel, according to a report.
A final decision on whether the US would leave the Geneva-based Council is expected to be made by the president himself, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, as well as the new US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, POLITICO reported, citing informed sources.
"There’s been a series of requests coming from the secretary of state's office that suggests that he is questioning the value of the US belonging to the Human Rights Council," a former State Department official familiar with the discussions was quoted as saying by the news service.
In a recent meeting with State Department officials, Tillerson questioned the effectiveness of the UNHRC, a 47-seat inter-governmental body responsible for promoting and protecting human rights around the world. Supporters of Israel accuse the UNHRC, which was established in 2006 to replace the UN Human Rights Commission, of being biased toward the regime by pushing critical resolutions and issuing scathing statements. A spokesman for Haley did not immediately respond to a request for comment, Politico said. White House press aides also did not immediately offer comment.
State Department spokesman Mark Toner did not address whether US membership on the council was being reconsidered, but said, "Our delegation will be fully involved in the work of the HRC session which starts Monday."
The administration of George W Bush refused to join the UNHRC after it was created, questioning whether it would be much different from the commission before it. However, his Democratic successor, Barack Obama, decided to join the council and try to influence it from the inside.
During her confirmation hearing in January, Haley argued whether the US should reconsider its 22-percent contribution to the UN’s annual budget. She further said the Security Council vote on Israeli settlements was “damaging” and proof of a long history of anti-Israel bias at the UN.