US President has warned international body that if structural reform is not implemented within 30 days, it will freeze US funding for organization • "No time to waste"
US President Donald Trump // Photo: Reuters
The dispute between the United Nations World Health Organization and the US administration escalated Tuesday, with President Trump setting a clear ultimatum, holding far-reaching structural changes within a month, or the United States ceasing to finance and retire.
In a letter to the organization's chairman, Tadros Andhum Gabrius, the president wrote: "We have no time to waste. For this reason, it is my duty as President of the United States to let you know that if the World Health Organization does not commit to significant improvements within the next 30 days, I will make the temporary moratorium on US participation in the organization's funding permanent and reconsider our membership of the organization.
Trump also added in the letter that: "I cannot allow US taxpayers' money to be funded by an organization that, in its current state, so clearly does not serve America's interests."
Trump has hinted in the past that he is negotiating with the organization's leaders with much-needed reforms in the organization's structure but has never elaborated on which reforms are involved, what their scope is and how he wants to see the organization change. Trump severely criticized the organization and its conduct regarding the outbreak of the virus in China and the organization's delay in announcing a global epidemic.
Trump criticized the organization for giving praise to the Beijing regime for the international closure he declared in his country but criticized the United States for imposing a similar closure on incoming Chinese citizens. In April, Trump announced a temporary freeze on transferring U.S. funding to the organization.
