KUALA LUMPUR: The World Health Organisation (WHO) issued a rebuttal to the US following its formal notification of withdrawal, warning that the move will make both America and the wider world “less safe”.
In a detailed statement released on Jan 24, the UN health agency rejected allegations from Washington that it had “trashed and tarnished” the US or compromised its own independence.
“The reverse is true,” WHO stated, insisting it has always engaged with the US in “good faith” and with full respect for its sovereignty.
The diplomatic divorce comes after months of escalating rhetoric from US President Donald Trump’s administration, which has accused the Geneva-based body of a “politicised, bureaucratic agenda” and catastrophic failures during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Addressing US claims that it “concealed” failures and obstructed information-sharing during the initial outbreak in Wuhan, China, the WHO noted that it activated its emergency system on New Year’s Eve 2019 — immediately after the first reports of “pneumonia of unknown cause” emerged — and alerted the world via formal channels and social media nearly two weeks before the first death was reported in China.
“While no organisation or government got everything right, WHO stands by its response,” the statement read.
The health agency sought to distance itself from the controversial domestic policies that have fuelled American anger, clarifying that while it recommended masks and vaccines, it “at no stage recommended mask mandates, vaccine mandates or lockdowns.”
The withdrawal, initiated by an executive order exactly one year ago, reached its official deadline this week. However, the exit remains mired in legal and financial disputes.
Under the terms of its 1948 entry into the organisation, the US must provide a year’s notice and meet all financial obligations. The WHO confirmed that the “notification of withdrawal raises issues” that will now be scrutinised by its Executive Board on Feb 2 and at the World Health Assembly in May.
Reports suggest the US remains behind on some USD260 million in membership dues for the 2024-2025 period.
Main image: WHO/Pierre Albouy
