Former UN ambassador claims Trump's WHO funding pullout exceeds Putin's 'wildest dreams'

Samantha Power.
(Image credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

President Trump caused a stir Tuesday evening when he announced the United States will stop funding the World Health Organization and review its "role in in severely mismanaging and covering up the spread" of COVID-19.

There's been a lot of backlash over the decision, but one person who might be pleased by it is Russian President Vladimir Putin. At least that's what former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power — who served in the role during the Obama administration — thinks.

Not only does Power imagine Putin is happy about the funding pullout, but she claims it probably goes beyond "his wildest dreams" of the fall of the U.S.'s global reputation.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Putin hasn't said anything publicly about Trump's decision, but, for what it's worth, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has previously discouraged any finger pointing at the WHO or specific countries. He did, however, praise Trump's offer to eventually provide Russia with medical equipment to fight the pandemic in a "partner-like approach."

Explore More
Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.