'China Contributes 90% Less With 300% More Population Than US': Trump Signs Order To Pull Out Of WHO

US President Trump initiated the withdrawal of the US from the WHO due to its alleged mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic and unequal financial contributions by China.

By : ABP News Bureau | Updated at : 21 Jan 2025 09:50 AM (IST)

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Source : PTI

In a major decision after taking over as the 47th President of USA, Donald Trump signed an executive order initiating the process for the United States to withdraw from the World Health Organization (WHO). This marks the second time in under five years that the US has taken steps to exit the global health body.

The move was part of a series of executive actions Trump signed after being sworn in for his second term on Monday, addressing various issues, including immigration, foreign policy, and climate change.

Trump had been a vocal critic of the WHO’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, which escalated into a global health crisis in 2020, the final year of his first term. He argued that the WHO's response was inadequate and that the organization had been overly influenced by China.

"The United States noticed its withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2020 due to the organization’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic that arose out of Wuhan, China, and other global health crises, its failure to adopt urgently needed reforms, and its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member states," the US said in a statement.

In a statement to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump explained his decision to withdraw, citing the financial disparity between the US and China in their contributions to the WHO. "We paid $500 million to the World Health Organization when I was here, and I terminated it," Trump said. "China, with 1.4 billion people, paid just $39 million. It seemed unfair to me."

China has 300% of the population of the United States, yet contributes nearly 90% less to the WHO, the White House statement read.  

Trump added that the WHO had offered a deal to return for a lower payment of $39 million, but when President Joe Biden took office, the United States was asked to rejoin for the original $500 million. "They wanted us back so badly," Trump noted, as per news agency PTI.

The executive order outlined that Trump would send a formal letter to the United Nations Secretary-General notifying him of the US’s intention to withdraw. The order accused the WHO of mishandling the COVID-19 crisis and failing to implement necessary reforms. It also criticized the organization for accepting undue political influence from member states and for demanding disproportionately high financial contributions from the US.

"In addition, the WHO continues to demand unfairly onerous payments from the United States, far out of proportion with other countries’ assessed payments," the order stated. It also pointed out that while China has a population of 1.4 billion, contributing significantly less to the WHO than the US, the US’s payments were much higher.

As a result of Trump's decision, the WHO stands to lose a significant portion of its funding, potentially in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

This marks Trump’s second attempt to withdraw the US from the WHO. In July 2020, he sent a letter to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, expressing the US's intention to withdraw within a year, accusing the WHO of being complicit in China's efforts to mislead the world about the pandemic's origins.

However, after Trump lost the 2020 presidential election, his successor, President Joe Biden, reversed the decision to exit the WHO. With Trump now in office for a second term, the withdrawal process will proceed as planned.

Additionally, the executive order calls for the creation of new directorates within the National Security Council to better manage public health and biosecurity concerns in the future.

Published at : 21 Jan 2025 09:50 AM (IST)
Tags :
World Health Organisation Donald Trump WHO

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