South Korea, the European Union and 13 other countries issued a joint statement Monday calling for the "sufficient and equitable" distribution of coronavirus vaccines.

Seoul's Foreign Ministry said the statement was issued by the Friends of the COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access(COVAX) Facility, a multilateral initiative aimed at ensuring fair and equitable access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines for all. 

In the joint statement, the Friends of the COVAX Facility strongly supported vaccine multilateralism and the goal of ensuring affordable, fair and equitable access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines for everyone.

The Friends of the COVAX Facility, co-chaired by Singapore and Switzerland, comprises 14 countries and the European Union, including South Korea, Britain, Australia, Canada and Japan. 

Last week, South Korea said it is pushing to secure enough coronavirus vaccines for 30 million people and plans to secure one-third through participation in the COVAX Facility.