Global leaders have promised eight billion U.S. dollars to fund research into vaccines, treatments and diagnostics to tackle COVID-19, but the United States has refused to contribute to the global effort.

World leaders took part in a virtual international conference on Monday to thrash out a battle plan to fight the pandemic, which has infected more than 3.5 million people and killed close to 250,000 worldwide.

Organizers included the European Union (EU) and non-EU countries Britain, Norway and Saudi Arabia. Leaders from Japan, Canada, South Africa and dozens of other countries joined the virtual event, and China was represented by its ambassador to the EU Zhang Ming.

Zhang said despite the daunting task of outbreak response at home, China is doing its best to help those countries in need. 

Zhang noted that the World Health Organization (WHO) has played a central role in coordinating the global response to COVID-19, and China will as always support the organization. China has donated 20 million U.S. dollars to the WHO to support response to COVID-19 and recently announced another donation of 30 million U.S. dollars. 

The most massive public health effort in history is needed to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic, said United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at the meeting.

In a strongly worded personal message, the UN chief welcomed donor countries' contributions to a fund of more than eight billion U.S. dollars, to speed up the production of diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines to end the novel coronavirus threat. 

But he said that five times that amount will likely be needed on a path to a world free of the disease.

The UN chief pointed to the launch last month of the landmark effort initiated by the WHO and a range of leading countries to speed up the scientific breakthroughs needed to get the coronavirus under control, known as the ACT Accelerator. 

"These new tools can help us to fully control the pandemic, and must be treated as global public goods available and affordable for all. This is the only path to a world free of COVID-19," he said.

"In the space of just few hours we have collectively pledged 7.4 billion euros (8.1 billion U.S. dollars) for vaccine, diagnostics and treatment" against COVID-19, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said after chairing the online event. 

"This will help kick-start unprecedented global cooperation," she added.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has just recovered from COVID-19, said the search for a vaccine was "the most urgent shared endeavor of our lifetime," calling for "an impregnable shield around all our people."

An EU diplomat said the United States, which has the world's most confirmed COVID-19 cases, was not taking part. A senior U.S. administration official declined to say specifically why the United States was not participating. 

"We support this pledging effort by the EU. It is one of many pledging efforts that are going on and the United States is at the forefront," the official told reporters by telephone. 

U.S. President Donald Trump announced last month to halt funding to the WHO, whose director general addressed the conference, over its handling of the pandemic.

Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg said she regretted that decision, as well as Washington's absence on Monday. 

"It is a pity the U.S. is not a part of it. When you are in a crisis, you manage it and you do it jointly with others," Solberg told Reuters in an interview, pledging one billion U.S. dollars to support the distribution of any vaccine developed against COVID-19, and for vaccines against other diseases. 

"We've had several discussions with our American partners and I'm convinced the Americans will eventually commit to this dynamic because it's the way forward for the world," French President Emmanuel Macron said.

The Global Preparedness Monitoring Board, a UN-backed body focusing on health crises, estimates that of the eight billion U.S. dollars immediately needed, three billion U.S. dollars will have to be spent to develop, manufacture and distribute a possible vaccine against COVID-19, the EU Commission said. 

Another 2.25 billion U.S. dollars is needed to develop treatments for COVID-19, 750 million U.S. dollars for testing kits, and another 750 million U.S. dollars to stockpile protective equipment, such as face masks. The remaining 1.25 billion U.S. dollars would go to the WHO to support the most vulnerable countries.

Canada and Australia also join the efforts

Canada committed 604 million U.S. dollars to the global effort to develop a vaccine for COVID-19 when its five provinces began easing restrictions on businesses and services imposed during the pandemic.

"It is really important that the world comes together to collaborate," said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during his daily COVID-19 news conference in Ottawa on Monday. "Even once we find a vaccine – whether it's in Canada or elsewhere around the world – we will share the vaccine in its formula."

On the same day, Canada's two largest provinces gave the green light to the reopening of mainly seasonal businesses in Ontario and storefront retail operations outside the Montreal area in French-speaking Quebec.

Meanwhile, the Australian government also committed 352 million Australian dollars (226 million U.S. dollars) as a joint effort to develop a vaccine in a video message to the Coronavirus Global Response International Pledging Event on Monday night local time.

"COVID-19 is putting us all to the test and it is a test we are all rising to. This is a great shared project by the peoples of the world with a clear purpose: to find that vaccine for COVID-19. A safe vaccine, available to all, affordable to all," Morrison said in his message.

Morrison's commitment includes a funding already announced for Australian institutions that are working with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) including the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).

The new funding includes 15 million Australian dollars (9.6 million U.S. dollars) for CEPI and the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) to help develop COVID-19 vaccines and diagnostics.

"As well, here in Australia, we're also providing 337 million Australian dollars (217 million U.S. dollars) to fund COVID-19 research and development work on vaccines, diagnostics, therapeutics and respiratory medicine," Morrison said.  

(With input from agencies)

Check out The Pandemic Playbook, CGTN Europe's major investigation into the lessons learnt from COVID-19.