Why Did Trump Order US Withdrawal From WHO?
United States: Hours after Donald Trump took oath as the United States president for a second term, the Republican leader has signed an executive order withdrawing the US from the World Health Organisation (WHO). In the notification, the president cited a host of reasons for the decision which include the mishandling of the Covid-19 pandemic, failure to adopt urgently needed reforms, and the organisation’s alleged inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of its member states.
The US president stated that the WHO demands unfairly onerous payments from the United States, claiming that the amount is far out of proportion with other countries’ assessed payments. Trump noted that China, with a population of 1.4 billion, has 300 percent of the United States’ population yet contributes nearly 90 percent less to the WHO.
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The order mentioned that the Presidential Letter to the Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) signed on January 20, 2021, that retracted the United States’ July 6, 2020, notification of withdrawal is revoked in addition to repeal of the executive Order 13987 of January 25, 2021 (Organizing and Mobilizing the United States Government to Provide a Unified and Effective Response to Combat COVID–19 and to Provide United States Leadership on Global Health and Security).
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It also ordered that the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs shall establish directorates and coordinating mechanisms within the National Security Council apparatus as necessary and appropriate to safeguard public health and fortify biosecurity. The order further demanded the Secretary of State and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to take appropriate measures, with all practicable speed to: pause the future transfer of any United States Government funds, support, or resources to the WHO; recall and reassign United States Government personnel or contractors working in any capacity with the WHO; and identify credible and transparent United States and international partners to assume necessary activities previously undertaken by the WHO.
The moves came as part of a slew of other executive orders Trump ordered since he took office on Monday. The president’s significant executive orders, apart from withdrawal from WHO, includes about Paris climate treaty, immigration, LGBTQ, and border security among others.
