U.S. to pay over 200 mln dollars to WHO

Photo taken on Jan. 22, 2020 shows an exterior view of the headquarters of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland. (Xinhua/Liu Qu)

"This is a key step forward in fulfilling our financial obligations as a WHO member," U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that the United States intends to pay over 200 million U.S. dollars in assessed and current obligations to the World Health Organization (WHO) by the end of this month.

"This is a key step forward in fulfilling our financial obligations as a WHO member," Blinken said in his remarks to a virtual UN Security Council briefing on COVID-19.

"It reflects our renewed commitment to ensuring the WHO has the support it needs to lead the global response to the pandemic, even as we work to reform it for the future," he added.

Accusing the WHO of mishandling the pandemic, the previous Donald Trump administration last year announced U.S. withdrawal from the organization and redirected its funding for the body to other UN assessments, which led to criticisms at home and abroad.

President Joe Biden, on his first day in office, reversed his predecessor's decision of withdrawing from the WHO.