ARGENTINA ANNOUNCES PLAN TO WITHDRAW FROM WHO

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Argentina will withdraw from the World Health Organization (WHO), President Javier Milei’s office announced on Wednesday, citing fundamental disagreements over health policies, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Presidential spokesman Manuel Adorni stated that Argentina would not permit an international organization to interfere with its sovereignty. He emphasized that the move would allow for more flexibility in implementing locally adapted policies while ensuring better allocation of resources.

Milei, a self-proclaimed “anarcho-capitalist” and admirer of former U.S. President Donald Trump, is following Washington’s lead after Trump’s administration announced its own withdrawal from the WHO last month. Trump has criticized the WHO’s handling of the pandemic and claimed the organization had unfairly benefited from U.S. financial contributions.

As the largest donor to the Geneva-based agency, the U.S. withdrawal is expected to impact global health funding significantly.

Since taking office in December 2023, Milei has aggressively cut public spending in pursuit of a zero-budget deficit after years of fiscal mismanagement. While his austerity measures have pushed millions into poverty, Argentina recorded its largest-ever trade surplus in 2024, driven by a sharp decline in imports and domestic spending.

Milei was also the first foreign leader to visit Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate following the Republican’s U.S. election victory in November.