Trump Threatens WHO With Permanent Fund Freeze, Seeks Corona Probe Against China

Washington: Amid the coronavirus pandemic, President Donald Trump has warned of permanently freezing US funding to the World Health Organization (WHO) if it fails to undertake substantive steps for improvements within 30 days.

In a letter to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Monday, Trump accused the organization of being biased towards China and ignoring early reports of the emergence of the virus.

Seeking an independent investigation against China, he wrote, “It is clear that the repeated missteps by you and your organization in responding to the pandemic have been extremely costly for the world. The only way forward for the WHO is if it can actually demonstrate independence from China.”

The US is likely to reconsider its membership with WHO in case the organization does not improve on its shortcomings to handle the COVID-19 pandemic and launch an independent review.

Trump also alleged that the Chinese government was aware about the repercussions of the deadly virus when it first emerged in Wuhan.

“I cannot allow American taxpayer dollars to continue to finance an organization that in its present state is so clearly not serving America’s interest,” he wrote.

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