Coronavirus prevention, control are at critical stage, says Chinese President

Amid Coronavirus outbreak in the country, Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday said that prevention and control are at a critical stage and there is a need for collective action to control the spread of the virus.

"The infection prevention and control is at a critical moment and there is a need to carry out the work in a law-based, scientific and orderly manner," said the Chinese President, while addressing a Communist Party's Central Committee meeting, as quoted by Xinhua.

He also stressed on the regulation on public health emergency response by the state officials.

Xi also emphasised for timely release of the medical data to assist the epidemic prevention and control efforts.

Meanwhile, China has been expanding its quarantine zones and travel restrictions, affecting the movement of 56 million people in more than a dozen cities, amid fears that the transmission rate will accelerate as hundreds of millions of Chinese travel for the Lunar New Year.

Health authorities around the world are taking action to prevent a global pandemic as the virus continues to spread, with cases reported in Australia, France, the United States and seven Asian countries besides China.

The US, Australia, and Singapore have temporarily shut their doors to non-citizens who have recently traveled to China. Vietnam has also barred all flights to and from China.