The White House has announced a global summit on ending the Covid-19 crisis and blueprinting for future shocks on May 12.

The summit will redouble our collective efforts to end the acute phase of the Covid-19 pandemic and prepare for future health threats, the countries said in a joint statement.

Biden held a similar summit last September, in which he called on partners to increase vaccine availability and ensure that 70 percent of every country's population is vaccinated by September of this year.

While death rates are falling rapidly around the world, the virus continues to spread, preventing many leading countries from fully lifting restrictions.

The hosts of the summit called for a sense of urgency to be maintained.