In one of his first official acts as president of the United States, Donald Trump signed an executive order to withdraw from the World Health Organization (WHO).
The withdrawal will take effect in 12 months, once the United Nations (UN) has been formally notified, reported SBS.
The US is the global health agency’s biggest donor and contributes about 18 per cent
of funding.
Trump has said the WHO mishandled the COVID-19 pandemic and other international health crises and failed to act independently from the political influence of member states.
He said the WHO has required payments from the US disproportionate to the sums provided by other large countries, such as China, and said the US was being “ripped off”.
This is the second time Trump has sought to withdraw from the WHO after accusing the organisation of helping China “mislead the world” about the origins of COVID-19.
Experts have warned the withdrawal will have significant impacts on global health.
Terry Slevin, CEO of the Public Health Association of Australia, described Trump’s order as “disappointing, but not surprising”.
He said it would impact the WHO’s capacity to deal with health emergencies, health threats, and disease outbreaks – and poor countries would be most affected.
He said it would also impact the WHO’s ability to respond to outbreaks such as the COVID-19 pandemic and issue public health advice.