President Donald Trump said he instructed his administration to temporarily halt funding to the World Health Organization for taking China’s claims about the coronavirus “at face value” and failing to share information about the pandemic as it spread. “The WHO failed in its basic duty and must be held accountable,” Trump said Tuesday at a White House press conference. “The outbreak could have been contained at its source” if the organization had correctly responded early on, he added.
It’s unclear when any halt in payments would take effect or how much authority Trump has to suspend disbursements, which are authorized by Congress. The U.S. has contributed $893 million to the WHO’s operations during its current two-year funding cycle, according to the organization. Administration officials signaled the suspension would be for 60 days.
In a statement Tuesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the chance to investigate how the disease spread around the world would come later.