The United States has announced the release of $600 million for Gavi, while simultaneously cutting off the World Health Organization (WHO) from the global vaccine alliance, delivering a significant financial blow to the UN agency.
In a joint statement, the US State Department and the Department of Health and Human Services said: “The United States also reaffirms that it will not provide US Government funding to the World Health Organization through Gavi.”
The development aligns with President Donald Trump’s alleged instructions to “Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to negotiate reforms with Gavi as a condition for renewed US support,” according to the statement.
Republican Senator Susan Collins, who had pushed for reinstating US funding for the global immunization program, welcomed the decision. The State Department claimed Gavi agreed to work toward replacing mercury-containing vaccines with mercury-free alternatives.
The Trump regime’s latest move against the WHO follows historical animosity. In 2020, Trump temporarily halted funding to the WHO over its handling of the coronavirus pandemic, allegedly accusing the WHO of promoting China’s “disinformation.” At the time, the US was the WHO’s largest donor, contributing over $400 million in 2019.
In January 2021, then-President Joe Biden reversed Trump’s decisions, restoring funding and halting the withdrawal process. However, on the first day of his second term, January 20, 2025, Trump announced the US would withdraw from the WHO and suspended contributions.
Experts suggest the orders appear to be ideological rather than strategic. The WHO’s budget is approximately $3.4 billion, roughly a third of the CDC’s $9.3 billion core funding in 2023.
WHO funds support programs to prevent and treat polio, tuberculosis, HIV, malaria, measles, and other diseases, particularly in countries with weak healthcare systems. It also responds to health emergencies in conflict zones, including parts of Gaza, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and others.
Source: www.aljazeera.com