WHO Should Be ‘Ashamed,’ It Is Like PR for China: Donald Trump

File image of US President Donald Trump.

(Photo: AP)

US President Donald Trump on Thursday, 30 April, said the World Health Organization (WHO) should be "ashamed of" itself, as he likened it to a public relations agency for China, reported PTI.

The Trump Administration has launched a probe into the role of the WHO on coronavirus and has temporarily suspended the US' financial assistance to it.

“I think that the World Health Organization should be ashamed of themselves because they are like the public relations agency for China,” Trump told reporters in the White House, PTI said.

‘Duty to Hold WHO Accountable’

The Trump administration has accused WHO of taking sides with China in the coronavirus outbreak that has brought “America's economy to a standstill.”

American taxpayers provide between $400 million and $500 million per year to the WHO, and in contrast, China contributes roughly $40 million a year or even less, Trump had claimed, on 15 April.

“As the organisation’s leading sponsor, the United States has a duty to insist on full accountability. One of the most dangerous and costly decisions from the WHO was its disastrous decision to oppose travel restrictions from China and other nations.” 

US President Donald Trump

According to Trump, delays by the WHO in declaring a public health emergency cost valuable time. "More time was lost in the delay it took to get a team of international experts and to examine the outbreak...," he added.

(With inputs from PTI)