Palestine won the membership of UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) on 31 October 2011 with 107 votes in favour and 14 votes against. There were 52 abstentions. Eighty-one votes were required for approval with 173 UNESCO member delegations present. The USA, Canada, Germany, The Netherlands, Australia and the Czech Republic voted against. Britain, Italy and many Pacific and Caribbean island nations absented themselves from the voting. India, Russia, Brazil, China, South Africa and France voted in favour.
UNESCO is the first UN agency Palestine has joined as a full member. UNESCO protects historic heritage sites and works to improve world literacy and cultural understanding. Its headquarters are located at Place de Fontenoy in Paris, capital of France.
In fact, Palestine is seeking full membership in the UN (United Nations), but USA has threatened that it will veto it unless there is a peace deal with Israel. Full membership of UNESCO is a small but crucial step forward for the Palestine in its attempts to achieve international recognition and statehood. However, the issues of borders of an eventual Palestine state, security troubles and other disputes remain unsolved.
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