Argentina has declared it will withdraw from the World Health Organization, further imperilling an international agency charged with coordinating public health responses.

The announcement on Wednesday echoes a similar move last month from the United States.

Far-right administrations currently govern both countries, and President Javier Milei of Argentina has a close relationship with his US counterpart, Donald Trump.

The two leaders have each criticised the World Health Organization for its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A United Nations agency, the organisation cannot mandate governments to follow its guidance, but it does offer research and recommendations for how countries might collaborate to address public health crises like pandemics.

Still, on Wednesday, Milei blamed the World Health Organization for its advice about physical distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“That is why we have decided to leave such a nefarious organization that was the executing arm of what was the greatest experiment in social control in history,” Milei wrote on social media.

He punctuated his message with a campaign slogan: “LONG LIVE FREEDOM, DAMN IT.”

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