Watch: Jill Biden meets France’s first lady to celebrate US rejoining Unesco

Jill Biden met France’s first lady Brigitte Macron on Tuesday, 25 July, as she visited Paris to mark the United States’ official re-entry into United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco).

The US First Lady will attend a flag-raising ceremony to celebrate the re-entry into the agency after a five-year hiatus.

She is expected to make a speech about the importance of American leadership in preserving cultural heritage.

Under Donald Trump’s administration, the US pulled out of Unesco because of an alleged anti-Israel bias and a need for “fundamental reform” in the agency.

It was the second time the US returned to Unesco after withdrawing, after previously leaving under Ronald Reagan’s administration in 1984 citing alleged advancement of Soviet interests, mismanagement, and corruption.

The nation announced its intention to rejoin the agency in June 2023 before the agency’s 193 member states approved re-entry.

Today’s ceremony will feature a speech by Unesco’s director general Audrey Azoulay.