Coronavirus: Trump formally pulling US out of WHO over ‘China puppet’ claims. Biden promises to rejoin it if he wins
- Letter submitted to UN secretary general triggers one-year withdrawal timeline
- US nears 3 million known infections as coronavirus surges in many states
The United States officially notified the UN secretary general of the country’s withdrawal from the World Health Organisation on Tuesday, setting in motion the country’s exit from the global body.
President Donald Trump in May said he would withdraw from the WHO, accusing the organisation of failing in the coronavirus pandemic and being a puppet of China. Trump also announced a funding halt to the WHO in a move that has drawn concern, including from US allies.
The move, effective July 6, 2021, was confirmed by a senior administration official, the UN and later the WHO itself. The WHO offered no further comment.
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Trump’s suspension of World Health Organisation funding met with widespread criticism
A spokesman for the UN noted that exit conditions include giving a one-year notice and “fully meeting” financial obligations.
Senator Bob Menendez, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, earlier said the Trump administration had notified Congress of the US withdrawal and was sharply critical of the president.
“To call Trump’s response to Covid chaotic & incoherent doesn’t do it justice. This won’t protect American lives or interests – it leaves Americans sick & America alone,” Menendez, of New Jersey, said on Twitter.
A chorus of Democrats followed in slamming the administration, warning on the dangers of exiting a global health body in middle of a pandemic.
“On my first day as President, I will rejoin the WHO and restore our leadership on the world stage,” Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee to run for president against Trump in November, wrote on Twitter.
The speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, tweeted that the WHO withdrawal was an “act of true senselessness”.
Allies, notably in Europe, have expressed concern over the US withdrawal and funding suspension, given the outsized role of Washington in bankrolling the organisation.
Trump has been pushing blame onto China for the pandemic, even as he faces mounting domestic criticism over his own handling of the virus.
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Much of his anger has been focused on the claim Beijing was not transparent about the virus’ spread in December and January.
China’s United States embassy said in a statement that China has been open, transparent and responsible since the pandemic broke out.
“We notified the [World Health Organisation] of the epidemic, shared the genome sequencing of the virus, carried out international cooperation and helped other countries affected, all at the earliest time possible,” the statement said. “These are plain, internationally recognised facts, which cannot be denied or erased by anyone.”
In the meantime, coronavirus cases have spiked in the US even as they have gone down in other parts of the world including China and the European Union.
The United States, the country hardest hit by the coronavirus, on Tuesday posted 60,209 new cases, a record for a 24-hour period, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University.
The country was just shy of three million cases, at 2,996,098 the Baltimore-based university said in its latest data. The death toll stood at 131,480.
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The biggest jumps occurred in Texas and California, the two largest US states, with more than 10,000 each. About 24 states have reported disturbingly high infection rates as a percentage of diagnostic tests conducted over the past week.
Trump has played down the resurgence, saying it is the result of expanded testing, though governors have dismissed this reasoning, as hospitalisation rates are also rising.
The president, facing re-election in November, has shifted his focus to reopening the economy. He was hosting a discussion Tuesday on reopening schools.
DPA, Reuters and Bloomberg
