Hate crimes against Asian-Americans 'must stop:' Biden

"So many of them, our fellow Americans, they're on the front lines of this pandemic trying to save lives, and still, still, they are forced to live in fear for their lives, just walking down streets in America," he said. "It's wrong, it's un-American, and it must stop."

During his remarks, Biden also said he would direct U.S. states to make all adults eligible for the coronavirus vaccine by May 1 and urged Americans to stay vigilant against the virus.

In a forceful but somber speech from the White House on the first anniversary of the pandemic lockdown, Biden said he was working to speed COVID-19 vaccinations to create a greater sense of normalcy in the country by the July 4 Independence Day holiday.

That date is a new goal for the president, who has warned Americans that further pain and death were still to come from the virus that has killed more than 530,000 people in the United States, the most of any country. Coronavirus-related lockdowns and restrictions have cost millions of jobs.