President Donald Trump Friday announced that the United States is ending its relationship with the World Health Organization, accusing it of bowing to pressure from China and resisting reforms related to its handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
Trump made the announcement during a brief press conference at the White House, more than a month after US froze funding to the United Nations agency.
“The world needs answers from China on the virus. We must have transparency,” Trump said.
Trump said the money the US would typically send to the World Health Organization will instead go to “other worldwide and deserving urgent global public health needs.”
Trump also said the US will deny entry to certain people from China the administration has tagged as “potential security risks.”
Coming in rapid succession over roughly 10 minutes, the announcements included a series of actions against China, changes in relationship with Hong Kong, a new proclamation on securing research done at US universities and a review of how Chinese companies listed on US stock exchanges operate. (Courthouse News Service)
