US announces it will seek seat on UN Human Rights Council

Secretary of State Blinken says Washington hopes to return to the rights body after Donald Trump’s withdrawal in 2018.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the United Nations Human Rights Council on Wednesday that Washington will seek a permanent seat on the panel for the 2022-2024 term. The announcement is the latest instance of President Joe Biden’s administration’s pivot towards multilateralism and rejection of former leader Donald Trump’s “America First” approach. Trump withdrew from the council in 2018 accusing it of anti-Israeli bias and allowing chronic rights-abusing states as members.