No Plans to Discuss Coronavirus Threat at UNSC Under China's Presidency in March - Envoy

UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd March, 2020) The UN Security Council does not currently plan to address this month concerns over the deadly novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, Chinese Ambassador to the United Nations Zhang Jun said in a press briefing.

"The public health security issue is not in the scope of the mandate of the Security Council in a narrow concept," Zhang, who presides with the UN Security Council, said on Monday. "The Security Council will also watch the situation very closely, [but] at this moment, we do not have any plan to have a specific discussion at the Security Council."

Zhang pointed out that China is making a "huge" progress in trying to contain the novel coronavirus and the overall situation has become stable and is moving in the right direction.

"We have altogether more than 44,000 people recovered from the epidemic," Zhang said.

The virus was first detected in China in late December and has since spread to more than 60 countries, prompting the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare a global health emergency.

More than 89,000 people worldwide have been infected with the novel coronavirus and some 3,000 infected have died. However, more than 45,000 people have recovered from the disease.