U.S. Withdraws from WHO on Donald Trump's First Day in Office

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January 21, 2025 | 12:23 pm

Tempo.co, Jakarta - President Donald Trump has once again withdrawn the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO), the White House announced on Monday evening, just hours after he was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States.

According to USA Today, this first-day executive order fulfills Trump’s campaign pledge to distance the U.S. from global institutions. Health experts warn that the decision could isolate the U.S., with far-reaching consequences for pandemic response, disease management, and international diplomatic relations.

The United States has been, and remains, the largest contributor to the global health agency based in Geneva, Switzerland. The WHO, a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN), is responsible for preparing for and addressing health emergencies.

The U.S. has played a key role in shaping the agency since its establishment after World War II.

Trump criticized the WHO’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, even as his administration faced criticism for its own delayed response to the crisis. In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, he initiated the process of withdrawing from the WHO.

Despite his promise, he was unable to follow through due to U.S. laws governing the withdrawal timeline and financial obligations to the agency. After taking office, former President Joe Biden reversed Trump’s decision and restored funding to the WHO.

Trump’s executive order—issued on the first day of his second term instead of the final year of his first—allowed him to fully carry out the decision.

The order stated that the U.S. was withdrawing "due to the WHO's mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic that originated in Wuhan, China, and other global health crises, its failure to implement essential reforms, and its inability to maintain independence from undue political influence by member states."

The report also highlighted the "unfair financial burden" placed on the U.S. to support the organization.

Under the Biden administration, the U.S. maintained its role as the largest donor to the organization, which has a budget of $6.8 billion for the current fiscal year. Nearly one-fifth of the WHO's budget in 2023 is provided by the U.S.

The U.S. has been a member of the WHO since 1948, the same year the organization was founded. Its departure would leave the country as the only major power among the 194 member states not involved in the organization.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that the organization would do everything possible to collaborate with the incoming Trump administration to further strengthen global health security, according to WHO spokesperson Tarik Jašarevi in an email.

"The partnership between the WHO and the U.S. has saved and protected millions of lives both in America and worldwide," Jašarevi said, quoting the Director-General.

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