by Lu Hui
BEIJING, July 14 (Xinhuanet) -- At a critical moment with the COVID-19 pandemic spreading apace, the U.S. decision to withdraw from the World Health Organization (WHO) undermines the global combat against the disease, threatening global health security.
The United States formally submitted its withdrawal notification to United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres on July 6.
The move came after U.S. President Donald Trump and his administration had repeatedly assailed the WHO and threatened to cut ties with the organization.
Earlier, in mid-April, Trump already announced that his country would halt funding to the WHO.
Unfortunately, the United States is the world’s hardest-hit by the virus, with 3,346,246 cases and 135,477 fatalities as of Monday, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
At the moment when international coordination is badly needed, the U.S. withdrawal decision is irresponsible, unconscionable and short-sighted.
At home, the decision has drawn a lot of concerns since it will impair the country's anti-COVID-19 efforts and put Americans at a greater risk in this unprecedented health crisis.
The decision is "an act of true senselessness," U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday.
The decision was made at a time when "the WHO coordinates the global fight against COVID-19," Pelosi said, adding, "With millions of lives at risk, the President is crippling the international effort to defeat the virus."
Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, ranking member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, also opposed the decision.
"To call Trump's response to COVID chaotic & incoherent doesn't do it justice. This won't protect American lives or interests -- it leaves Americans sick & America alone," Menendez said.
Since the current outbreak, the WHO, as the most authoritative and professional institution in global public health, has played a leading role in guiding and coordinating response, and is irreplaceable in helping developing countries, especially African nations, to combat health crises.
WHO's contributions have been highly recognized by the international community and support for its role should certainly be further strengthened.
The U.S. decision has drawn well warranted criticism from across the world.
Dr. Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, considered the decision "an extraordinarily bad decision that will both harm global public health and harm the health of the American people."
It's an exemplification of narrow nationalism with little regard to the greater national interest or humanity's wellness, echoed Cavince Adhere, an international relations researcher specializing on China-Africa relations.
A comment by The Lancet's website stressed that the U.S. departure from the WHO “would have dire consequences for U.S. security, diplomacy, and influence.”
"The USA cannot cut ties with WHO without incurring major disruption and damage, making Americans far less safe," the comment warned.
Today, we live in a globalized world. In this world, interests and destinies of all countries are increasingly intertwined.
When facing challenges such as economic recession, public health crises and environment problems; multilateralism and international cooperation should be emphasized.
But the fact is that from the outset, the Trump administration has departed from a series of multilateral mechanisms, thus obstructing the international cooperation.
Critics said this kind of habitual quitting evidences increasing unilateralism on the part of the United States, which as the world's largest developed country, needs to be living up to its international obligations.
So, behind the withdrawal decision, many see Trump's attempt to deflect blame from his mishandling of the coronavirus and manipulation for the November presidential election.
It is important that saving lives is always placed above political motivations.
In short, the U.S. decision to withdraw from WHO undermines the global anti-COVID-19 fight, without benefiting the United States and its people.
