New Delhi, January 21 (IANS). The World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday expressed regret over US President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the global health body and hoped that the US would reconsider the decision.
WHO issued a statement on Tuesday saying, “We regret the announcement that the United States intends to withdraw from the organization.”
The organization also said it hoped the US would reflect on its decision, so that the decision could be changed “for the health and well-being of millions of people around the world”.
Trump took this decision after taking oath for his second term. He said that WHO did not handle the Covid-19 pandemic properly.
WHO said in this regard that it has played an important role in protecting the health and safety of the people of the world, including American citizens. This was done ‘by understanding the root causes of disease, building stronger health systems and responding to health emergencies’.
Let it be known that America was a founding member of WHO in 1948 and Washington, along with 193 other member countries, has been actively participating in the World Health Assembly and Executive Board.
WHO said that over the past 70 years, “together we eliminated smallpox and brought polio to the brink of extinction.”
WHO also said that America has contributed a lot to the membership of the organization and it has also benefited the health of Americans. According to the organization, over the past 7 years, WHO has made the largest reforms in its history with the participation of the US and other countries.
Meanwhile, many global health experts have expressed concern over Trump’s decision. Dutch virologist Marion Koopmans from the Netherlands’s Erasmus University said on social media that Trump’s move could be harmful to pandemic preparedness and global health cooperation.
Vaccination researcher Professor Peter Hotez described it as ‘disappointing’ and said that the decision would weaken America’s biosecurity and pandemic preparedness, especially as the risk of new diseases spreading due to climate change and urbanization is increasing.
–IANS
PSM/MK
