European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Sunday she welcomes China's move to join COVAX, an international initiative aimed at ensuring equitable global access to COVID-19 vaccines.

"We are all in this together. Multilateralism is key to reaching our #GlobalGoal of access to vaccines everywhere, for everyone who needs them," said von der Leyen on Twitter.

The chief executive of the European Union (EU) said the bloc looks forward to working with China and other partners on providing the common good.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Friday that China signed Thursday an agreement with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, officially joining COVAX.

With four COVID-19 vaccine candidates in the final stage of clinical trials, China is so far the largest economy supporting the initiative.

On Sept. 18, the European Commission confirmed its participation in the COVAX Facility for equitable access to affordable COVID-19 vaccines, following its expression of interest on Aug. 31 and its announcement of a contribution of 400 million euros (473 million U.S. dollars).