The director general of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesus, pressured Argentina and the United States to reconsider their decision to leave the organization, after both countries advanced a more sovereign health policy and less subordinate to supranational structures. His statements were made in the midst of the hantavirus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship
.Tedros took advantage of the health episode to defend the role of the WHO and warn against countries that seek to distance themselves from the body. As he argued, health security requires “universality” and any gap in the exchange of information gives the virus an advantage. In this context, he said he hopes that both Argentina and the United States will “reconsider” their decisions, arguing that “viruses don't care about our politics” or borders.
The phrase once again exposed the tension between global organizations and governments that seek to recover national decision-making margin in sensitive areas. In the Argentine case, Javier Milei's administration formalized the withdrawal from the WHO on March 17, 2026, one year after the official notification sent by the country. Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno then confirmed that the exit was taking effect according to the
