Merkel says we are still at the start of the coronavirus pandemic

Germany is still at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic and will have to live with it for a long time, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday.

"We are not living in the final phase of the pandemic, but still at the beginning," she told the Bundestag lower house of parliament.

"We have won time," Merkel said, adding that this had been used well to bolster Germany's healthcare system.

The World Health Organisation is an indispensable partner for Germany, Merkel said on Thursday, distancing her government from President Donald Trump's pause in U.S. funding to the global body.

"The WHO is an indispensable partner and we support it in its mandate," she said.