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ECOSOC president calls U.S. withdrawal from WHO "regrettable" but says WHO will continue its mandate
Summary
Ambassador Ray said a U.S. decision to withdraw funding from the World Health Organization is regrettable and will have an impact on the agency, but he told reporters the WHO’s mandate and work will continue and that the organization is pursuing restructuring to adapt to reduced funding.
Ambassador Ray said during a United Nations press briefing that he "deeply regret[s] any decision by a country, any country, to withdraw from any of the work of the United Nations," and described the United States' withdrawal from the World Health Organization as "deeply regrettable." He added that such a withdrawal "will have an impact on the organization."
Ray said he had met with World Health Organization Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in Geneva and that WHO leaders are restructuring to cope with funding reductions. "The work of the WHO is going to continue, and the mandate of the WHO is gonna continue," Ray said, while acknowledging that the agency faces difficult choices on staffing and programs when large donors reduce support.
He urged resilience in the UN system but noted practical consequences: "A withdrawal of funding from The United States invariably will have an impact on the organization," he said, adding that the UN and its agencies must adapt to shorter-term political choices by member states.
The remarks came in response to an Associated Press question during the ECOSOC briefing.
