The 47th President of the United States, Donald Trump, has announced that he will consider rejoining the World Health Organization (WHO), although it has made it somewhat clear that the United States will contribute significantly less money to the agency.
Criticism of Donald Trump
After his inauguration on January 20, Trump signed a series of executive orders in his first week back in office, including the withdrawal of the United States from the WHO, which he criticized for mishandling the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking to a crowd in Las Vegas on Saturday (25 Jan), the president told the crowd that the US contributed $500 million to the World Health Organization while China contributed only $39 million. The president argued that the figure does not make sense considering that the US has a much smaller population than China—339 million people compared to 1.4 billion people, respectively.
It is important to note that the population of China is about 4.13 times that of the United States. According to radio network NPR, the United States paid close to $706 million to the WHO, compared to China’s $184 million.
Important things to know
Trump’s Las Vegas rally later on Friday included visits to disaster areas in both North Carolina and Los Angeles, where damage from hurricanes and wildfires was evident.
The rally was originally intended as a thank you to voters after the Republican Party won Nevada in the 2024 US presidential election. The state saw Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and Joe Biden win twice in previous elections.
According to Newsweek, President Trump has expressed that he would consider returning to the WHO, but he would have to do so for a lower amount, citing $39 million, which he believes is the amount China pays.
Trump says, “We’re going to pay you back $39 million; they’re going to drop it from $500 million to $39 million, and I turn them down.”
Trump said that, but maybe we’ll consider joining the WHO; I don’t know, maybe we will. They (WHO) need to clear it up a bit.
After Trump’s order, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a statement on 21 January: “The World Health Organization regrets the announcement that the United States of America intends to withdraw from the Organization. WHO plays a crucial role in protecting the health and security of the world’s people, including Americans, by addressing the root causes of disease, building stronger health systems, and detecting, preventing, and responding to health emergencies, including disease outbreaks, often in dangerous places where others cannot go.”
According to Newsweek, Trump has already withdrawn the United States from the WHO, but these comments from Trump’s allies insist that most of the threats, especially financial ones, are made in the interest of negotiations.
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