Trump withdraws US from WHO at the beginning of his term?

Multiple sources confirmed that Mr. Trump's transition team is preparing the necessary procedures to withdraw the US from WHO on the first day of his term.

US President-elect Donald Trump at a Republican Party conference in Phoenix, Arizona on December 22 - Photo: REUTERS

Reuters news agency on December 24 quoted a knowledgeable medical law expert as saying that the transition team of US President-elect Donald Trump is preparing the necessary procedures to withdraw the country from the World Health Organization (WHO) on the first day of his next term.

"I have a strong case that he (Trump) intends to withdraw (from WHO), possibly on day one or very early in his term," said Lawrence Gostin, professor of global health at Georgetown University (Washington DC) and director of the WHO Collaborating Center for National and Global Health Law.

Ashish Jha, former White House COVID-19 response coordinator, made similar predictions.

The plan, if true, follows years of criticism from Mr Trump of the WHO.

In 2020, Mr. Trump initiated the process of withdrawing the United States from the WHO in the final months of his first term. Just six months later, when Mr. Joe Biden took over the White House, the process was canceled.

The then-US president-elect criticized the WHO for not holding China accountable for the initial outbreak of COVID-19.

Mr. Trump has even repeatedly called WHO a "puppet of Beijing" and pledged to redirect current US efforts to domestic health initiatives.

After winning a second term as president, Mr. Trump continued to appoint many individuals dissatisfied with WHO to leadership positions in the health sector.

Notable among them is Health and Human Services Secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has long been vocal about his opposition to vaccines.

The US's actual withdrawal from the WHO is considered a relatively major turning point for US global health policy, further isolating Washington from international efforts to prevent the pandemic.

Many critics have also warned that the US withdrawal from the WHO could negatively impact global health surveillance and emergency response systems.

"The United States will lose influence and power in the field of global health. China will fill that void. I cannot imagine a world without a strong WHO. The departure of the United States will certainly seriously weaken this organization," Mr. Gostin declared.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/ong-trump-rut-my-khoi-who-ngay-dau-nhiem-ky-20241224103201115.htm