France and Germany expressed their backing for the World Health Organization in fighting the coronavirus on Thursday, with Germany saying it will contribute some half billion euros in funding for the U.N. agency this year.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, talking at a news conference in Geneva, said the agency, widely criticised by the United States, was getting all the financial and political support it needed.

More than 9.44 million people have been reported to have been infected by the coronavirus globally and 481,672​ have died, according to a Reuters tally.