The White House has officially moved to withdraw the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO), a senior administration official confirmed Tuesday, breaking ties with a global public health body in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic.
The U.S. has submitted its withdrawal notification to the United Nations secretary-general, the official said. Withdrawal requires a year’s notice, so it will not go into effect until July 6, 2021, raising the possibility the decision could be reversed.
Sen. Bob Menendez (N.J.), the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, tweeted that the administration informed Congress of the withdrawal plans.
“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,” the senator tweeted.
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The formal notification of withdrawal concludes months of threats from the Trump administration to pull the United States out of the WHO, which is affiliated with the United Nations. President Trump has repeatedly assailed the organization for alleged bias toward China and its slow response to the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan.
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Trump administration formally withdraws US from World Health Organization https://t.co/R9qbJNRg7y pic.twitter.com/sGpMzyyH8j
— The Hill (@thehill) July 7, 2020
Lamar Alexander reiterates opposition to withdrawing from the WHO:
“Withdrawing U.S. membership could, among other things, interfere with clinical trials that are essential to the development of vaccines, which citizens of the United States as well as others in the world need.” pic.twitter.com/ufkpEZRZUp
— Andrew Desiderio (@AndrewDesiderio) July 7, 2020
WH coronavirus coordinator Deborah Birx today touted U.S. investment in global public health and praised international efforts to contain the pandemic just as the Trump administration officially withdrew from the WHOhttps://t.co/lcvjQDOmcU
— POLITICO (@politico) July 7, 2020
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