World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Thursday that he still hopes the U.S. administration will reconsider its decision to withdraw from the organisation next month, warning that its exit would be a loss for the world.
In one of his first actions as president, Donald Trump signed an order to withdraw from the WHO, citing the agency’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and its close relationship with China. The withdrawal is set to take effect on 22 January 2026.
Responding to reporters, Tedros said, “There are things you can get only at the WHO and nowhere else. These issues are health security issues, and that’s why we were asking the U.S. to reconsider, because the world can only be secure if we are all on the same platform.”
“Their absence from the WHO is going to be a lose-lose: the U.S. will lose, and the rest of the world will also lose,” he added.
Tedros said U.S. criticisms of the organisation were unfounded, noting that the WHO had addressed these concerns, including through cost-cutting reforms. On allegations of mismanaging the pandemic, he said lessons had been learned.
He also stated that Washington, the WHO’s largest donor, should contribute less in order to reduce the organisation’s dependence on a single donor.
Tedros further noted that, despite initial instructions from the Trump administration for U.S. health officials not to contact the WHO, they had regularly sought information, which the organisation had provided.
“We have given them any information they need, because at the end of the day the WHO’s existence is to make the American people safe and the rest of the world safe,” Tedros said.
In a significant move towards regional energy collaboration, energy ministers from the Turkic States have agreed to expand cooperation on key oil, gas...
World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Thursday that he still hopes the U.S. administration will reconsid...
In a significant shift in its foreign policy, China has unveiled a new policy paper promising no-strings-attached development support to Latin America...
The U.S. is expected to keep the cargo of a Venezuelan-linked tanker recently seized, as the vessel heads to an American port for a formal forfeiture ...
As the world marks the tenth anniversary of the Paris Agreement, the progress in combating climate change is mixed....
The U.S. is expected to keep the cargo of a Venezuelan-linked tanker recently seized, as the vessel heads to an American port for a formal forfeiture process, officials said.
Iran is preparing to host a multilateral regional meeting next week in a bid to mediate between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
An extratropical cyclone has caused widespread disruption across Brazil’s São Paulo state, with powerful winds toppling trees and power lines, blocking streets and leaving large parts of the region without electricity.
Ukraine has handed the United States a revised 20-point peace proposal aimed at ending the war with Russia, a Ukrainian official said on Thursday, 11 December.
Scores of demonstrators gathered outside the Norwegian Nobel Institute in Oslo Tuesday (9 December) to protest against the awarding of this year’s Nobel Peace Prize to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.
The world’s leading minds and voices will be honoured on Wednesday, 10 December, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death, as Nobel Prizes are presented in Stockholm and Oslo.
In a dramatic Champions League clash at Baku’s Tofiq Bahramov Stadium, Qarabağ grabbed an early lead, but Ajax staged a thrilling comeback to win 4-2.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz congratulated Azerbaijan and Armenia on their recent peace deal which he said opened an "historic opportunity" for the region.
At least 19 people were killed and 16 injured as two buildings collapased in Morocco's Fes city according to the state news agency.
The United States has signed significant health cooperation agreements with Uganda and Lesotho, further strengthening bilateral relations and advancing global health initiatives, the U.S. State Department announced on Wednesday.
A viral claim circulating online that Denmark requires sperm donors to have an IQ of at least 85 is misleading. While one Danish sperm bank, Donor Network, does use an IQ threshold, there is no nationwide legal requirement for donors to meet a specific level of intelligence.
Chinese scientists have unveiled a new gene-editing therapy that they say could lead to a functional cure for HIV, making it one of the most promising developments in decades of global research.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has declared the end of a 16th Ebola outbreak, closing a two month emergency in Kasai Province that pushed national and international teams into an intensive response.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary said on Saturday that data showed 10 children had died because of COVID-19 vaccination shots.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment