Berlin slammed the US’ decision to freeze payments to the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday, as German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas warned against “blaming others” for the coronavirus crisis.

“Blaming others won’t help… one of the best investments is to strengthen the UN, above all the under-financed WHO… in the development and distribution of tests and vaccines,” Maas wrote on Twitter, a day after US President Donald Trump accused the WHO of “severely mismanaging” the spread of coronavirus.

Trump accused the Geneva-based body of putting “political correctness abovelife-saving measures”.

The move sparked criticism across the world, and Maas joined the chorus on Wednesday, stressing the need for countries to “work together closely against COVID-19”.

Maas has previously taken aim at the Trump administration’s reaction to the virus crisis.

In an interview with Der Spiegel magazine last week, he said the United States had “played down the virus for a very long time”.
“There really isn’t any dispute, even in the USA, that many of the measures were taken too late,” he told Spiegel.

Source: Agenceis