The United States will exit the World Health Organization, President Donald Trump said on Monday, saying the global health agency had mishandled the COVID-19 pandemic and other international health crises.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday night withdrawing the U.S. from the World Health Organization.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The United States will exit the World Health Organization, President Donald Trump said on Monday, saying the global health agency had mishandled the COVID-19 pandemic and other international health crises.

WHO’s constitution, drafted in New York, doesn’t have a clear exit method for member states. A joint resolution by Congress in 1948 outlined that the U.S. can withdraw with one year's notice. This is contingent, however, on ensuring that its financial obligations to WHO “shall be met in full for the organization’s current fiscal year.”

The move to exit the WHO is historic and controversial. The U.S. has long been the most generous provider of humanitarian assistance.

President Trump fulfilled his campaign pledge Monday to pull the U.S. out of the World Health Organization (WHO). The big picture: The U.S. is the WHO's top donor, contributing about $130 million per year to help cover its global health preparedness and response,

US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to begin the process of withdrawing the US from the World Health Organization (WHO).

President Donald Trump has signed an executive order directing the US to withdraw from the World Health Organization, a decision that would cut off one of the international aid and disease response group’s largest funding sources.