The move has met with severe criticism, both in his country as well as globally.

Dr Pete Baker, policy fellow and deputy director of Global Health Policy at the Center for Global Development, said, “…It undermines global health security and risks progress on critical issues like pandemic preparedness and antimicrobial resistance… The accompanying withdrawal of US support from the Pandemic Agreement negotiations is the bigger threat. The political support of the US for the global health security architecture is irreplaceable. If this continues, it will seriously hamper the world’s efforts to ensure preparedness for future health threats.”

Experts also voiced concerns regarding the adverse impact the move will have on multilateralism.

K Sujatha Rao, former health secretary, government of India, said, “US is a substantial contributor to the WHO. But more importantly, WHO is an international organization made up of health ministers from over 190 countries. Diseases know no boundaries and health issues cannot be managed without the active cooperation of all. The US is an important country and its membership in the WHO is as vital. It's a hasty and unfortunate decision. I do hope the US will have a rethink…”

In its formal response, WHO also regretted the decision of the US and hoped it would reconsider.

“The World Health Organization regrets the announcement that the United States of America intends to withdraw from the Organization… We hope the United States will reconsider and we look forward to engaging in constructive dialogue to maintain the partnership between the USA and WHO, for the benefit of the health and well-being of millions of people around the globe,” said the UN health body in a formal statement soon-after Trump made the decision.

While these concerns are valid, there is another problem that the US withdrawal is likely to lead to, and that is the next biggest donor taking that space. It is not hard to guess which country it is going to be as it is publically known that the second biggest donor to WHO after the US happens to be China. It will only make sense to not cede space if concerns that the US has raised regarding the functioning of WHO need to be addressed.