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“The ultimate beneficiary of this decision will be China, which has been flexing its muscles in the Human Rights Council recently and would love to use it as a platform to roll back Western positions on individual rights,” Richard Gowan, an expert on the U.N., told Newsweek. “Almost every time Trump attacks a multilateral body or agreement these days, it strengthens China's hand, as Beijing looks like the only alternative global leader available.”

Gowan continued, “The Trump administration has always seen the council as a potential target. The withdrawal is part of a much broader pattern of U.S. disengagement from U.N. talks and agreements on issues like migration and climate change under Trump. But the Human Rights Council is especially important symbolically because of its persistent criticisms of Israel. Pulling out is also one small way to undo the Obama administration's multilateral legacy, as Obama's team made a big point of joining the council in 2009 as a sign that the U.S. was returning to the international community after Bush.”