U.S. steers clear as global COVID-19 pledging conference begins

FILE PHOTO: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen speaks during a news conference after a video conferenced EU summit with European heads of state to discuss measures related to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Brussels, Belgium April 23, 2020. Olivier Hoslet/Pool via REUTERS

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - World leaders launched a pledging "marathon" on Monday - without the United States - to raise at least $8 billion for research into a possible vaccine and treatments for the coronavirus.

Organisers included the European Union, non-EU states Britain and Norway, as well as Japan, Canada and Saudi Arabia, although, China, where the virus originated in December, was only represented by its ambassador to the European Union.