The director general of the World Health Organisation said on Tuesday that Washington's impending withdrawal from the UN health body would weaken global health security and leave the US more vulnerable to crises.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that he “deeply regretted” the decision and said it would have consequences that extended far beyond the US.
“I hope the US will reconsider its decision and rejoin WHO. That's what I wish. The reason I'm saying this is (because) withdrawal from the WHO is a loss for the United States, and it's also a loss for the rest of the world,” Dr Tedros told reporters in Geneva. “When I say loss, I mean it makes the US unsafe. The withdrawal makes the rest of the world unsafe. It's not really the right decision. I want to say it bluntly."
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January last year, directing the US to leave the Geneva-based agency.
The move followed long-standing criticism by Mr Trump and his allies of the WHO’s handling of global health emergencies, including the coronavirus pandemic.
Dr Tedros said the decision would weaken America’s health defences by cutting it off from disease surveillance, co-ordination and emergency response systems run through the WHO.
“There are many things done through WHO that benefit the United States, especially in health security,” he said. “The US cannot be safe without working with WHO.”
He added that the withdrawal would weaken global readiness for pandemics, stressing that no country can tackle worldwide health threats on its own, and urged Washington to reconsider.
“When I say for the US to reconsider its return, it's not about money," he said. “Money can be adjusted. It's about co-operation. It's about solidarity. The best immunity is solidarity.”
Legal questions also remain over whether the US has met the conditions required to complete its withdrawal.
WHO chief legal officer Steve Solomon said the organisation’s constitution does not explicitly allow for members to leave – a deliberate choice by its founders.
“The WHO constitution does not have a withdrawal clause,” said Mr Solomon. “This was not an oversight. It was very deliberate. In 1946, the drafters understood the historic struggles against the international spread of disease, and they saw how a truly universal organisation would make the world safer … Instead, they provided flexibilities within the treaty so it could accommodate all countries.”
He said the US secured a special arrangement when it joined in 1948, reserving the right to withdraw provided it gives one year’s notice and settles all financial obligations for the current fiscal year.
Mr Solomon said the US is currently in arrears on payments for 2024 and 2025, although he did not give figures, and added that WHO member states would need to determine whether the conditions have been met.
