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Argentine President Javier Milei, a close ally of President Donald Trump, on Wednesday announced his intent to withdraw from the World Health Organization (WHO), echoing steps taken by the U.S.’s Commander-in-Chief last month.
A spokesman for Milei announced the order and said the withdrawal from the world’s top health and safety agency was due to “profound differences” with the United Nations organization due to its advice during the COVID-19 pandemic that led to the largest shutdowns “in the history of mankind.”
Milei’s decision came just 2 weeks after Trump, for the second time, issued an executive order to pull the U.S. out of WHO, again citing its handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
Argentina’s President Javier Milei said at a Bloomberg event on January 22, 2025, that “The world should celebrate the arrival of President Trump.” (Photo by FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
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WHO, which issued a statement immediately following Trump’s announcement noting that it “regrets” his decision to end U.S. involvement in the organization, has yet to comment on Milei’s move to end Argentina’s participation in the organization.
While the U.S. withdrawal could prove detrimental to the organization as it is the WHO’s single biggest contributor and is reported to have provided nearly 15% of the agency’s total two-year budget, donating $958 million towards the $6.5 billion budget ending in 2025, Argentina’s withdrawal is far less significant, the Associated Press reported.
According to local news outlet, the Buenos Aires Times, Argentina contributed between $8-$9 million a year to the WHO during 2022-2023 and 2024-2025, accounting for roughly a quarter of a percent of the budget annually.
“We Argentines are not going to allow an international organization to intervene in our sovereignty, much less in our health,” a spokesman for Milei’s office said during a Wednesday press conference, according to multiple reports.
Customers shop for produce at a vendor stall in a market in the Recoleta neighborhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. (Anita Pouchard Serra/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
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Despite the spokesman’s comments, the WHO holds no legal authority over a nation’s internal decisions, like issuing quarantine orders amid a pandemic, which both the first Trump administration and Milei’s predecessor issued.
But Argentina might not be the only country considering leaving the international health organization, as Italy’s deputy prime minister, Matteo Salvini, last month also proposed a bill that would follow Trump’s executive order.
Italy’s Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, also a top ally of Trump and who attended his inauguration alongside Milei, has not publicly commented on the recent internal push to leave WHO.
Milei is expected to face opposition at home as his decision to withdrawal from WHO would require congressional approval – an argument that some have made in opposition to Trump’s unilateral move to sever ties with the international health organization.
Argentina President Javier Milei, left, speaks with Italy Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni before walking the Capitol Rotunda on Capitol Hill in Washington, on January 20, 2025. (Photo by Tom Brenner for The Washington Post via Getty Images / Getty Images)
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Trump’s first attempt to withdraw the U.S. from WHO in 2020 was unsuccessful as President Biden took up the top job six months after he issued the order, and according to the charter signed by the U.S. in 1948, Washington must give the international body one year’s notice before leaving.
As the U.S. entered the U.N. organization by an act of Congress, it is believed that Trump would need Congress to agree to the withdrawal, which means he could face a future lawsuit over his attempts to remove the U.S. unilaterally from the WHO.
The WHO did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s questions.
