President Moon Jae-in on Monday vowed to actively seek international support for Africa in fighting the coronavirus pandemic during talks with his Ethiopian counterpart.

During a phone conversation with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Moon said protecting the global economy and the vulnerability of Africa's health systems were discussed by the leaders of the Group of 20(G20) nations during a video summit on the pandemic last week.

Moon said he expects the issue of supporting Africa will be discussed in depth as a followup to the leaders' joint statement, pledging that he would actively highlight the need to assist and cooperate with countries most vulnerable to the infectious disease.

The president praised the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize laureate's leadership in partnering with the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group in providing COVID-19 testing kits, protective masks and guideline books to African countries.

Abiy, for his part, said he was "proud" of the "brother-like president's coronavirus response," adding Africa is in need of Moon's experience and global leadership.