Watch live: Biden hosts democracy summit

President Biden will host a virtual summit Wednesday morning on Democracy at the White House in an effort to bolster unity among the world’s democratic governments amid war in Ukraine and concerns about backsliding among some allies.

Wednesday’s virtual gathering titled the ‘Summit for Democracy Virtual Plenary on Democracy Delivering on Global Challenges,’ is the second U.S. organized summit for Democracy.

Biden is set to announce up to $690 million in funding for his administration’s Presidential Initiative for Democratic Renewal, a senior administration official said. The money will be dispersed around the globe to help fight corruption, bolster free and independent media organizations and defend free and fair elections.

Another major theme of this week’s summit will be working to ensure technology is used to benefit democracy. Biden on Monday signed an executive order prohibiting the use of commercial spyware that poses a security risk to the U.S. government or risks improper use by foreigners.

The summit informally kicked off Tuesday, and Biden will meet Wednesday with the leaders of Costa Rica, the Netherlands, South Korea and Zambia, which are all co-hosting this year’s event. 

The Biden administration hosted the first edition of the summit in late 2021 as part of the president’s broader efforts to strengthen democracies globally and combat the influence of authoritarian nations like Russia and China.

The event is scheduled to begin at 11:20 a.m. ET.

Watch the video above.