BEIJING, March 26 (Xinhua) -- The world is now in a battle against COVID-19, a disease caused by a previously unknown coronavirus that has spread to over 190 countries and regions.

The following are the updates on the contagious illness.

ROME -- The number of new COVID-19 cases reported daily in Italy is dropping steadily while the daily death toll is still fluctuating.

Based on the mixed picture, local experts forecast a trend of slower growth of COVID-19 infections in the country in the coming weeks.

A total of 3,491 new cases were reported on Wednesday, representing a downward trend from the past few days when the figure stood at 3,612 Tuesday, 3,780 Monday and 3,956 Sunday respectively.

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VIENTIANE -- Laos has been preparing medical teams and more control measures to prevent the widespread outbreak of COVID-19.

Local media on Thursday quoted the deputy head of the National Taskforce Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, Phouthone Muongpak, as saying that health officials were strengthening measures for coronavirus response and ensuring that the public can access healthcare.

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ULAN BATOR -- Mongolia's National Center for Communicable Disease (NCCD) said Thursday that one more Mongolian citizen tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of the confirmed cases in the country to 11.

"One of more than 200 Mongolian citizens who arrived in Mongolia on (a) chartered flight in route of Istanbul-Ulan Bator on last Wednesday night tested positive for the novel coronavirus," Dulmaa Nyamkhuu, head of the NCCD, told a press conference.

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BEIJING -- China has strengthened international cooperation in the research and development of vaccines against the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), according to an official Thursday.

Vaccines are key to the fight against the epidemic and it is the right choice to carry out international cooperation as vaccine development is difficult and faces many uncertainties, said Xu Nanping, vice minister of science and technology, at a press conference.

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CANBERRA -- Australia's COVID-19 death toll has increased from eight to 12 in a single day.

Victoria has recorded its first three deaths related to COVID-19 over the past day. All three deaths in the state were men in their 70s who were being treated in hospital and the other one in Queensland is a 68-year-old man who became infected on a cruise ship.

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NEW DELHI -- The death toll due to COVID-19 in India on Thursday morning rose to 13, the federal health ministry said, with 649 confirmed cases reported so far.

"Death toll related to novel coronavirus has reached 13," said the ministry at 10:15 a.m. local time.

"The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases across India is 649," the ministry said. "Of these, 602 cases are Indian nationals and 47 foreign nationals."

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BEIJING -- China's 2019 Novel Coronavirus Resource database has recorded more than 4 million downloads, providing data service to users from 152 countries and regions in the world, a Chinese official said on Thursday.

The COVID-19 outbreak presents a challenge for the whole world, requiring joint efforts from the global scientific and technological community as well as the wisdom of the whole society, said Xu Nanping, Vice Minister of Science and Technology, at a press conference.

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SUVA -- Vanuatu declared on Thursday a state of emergency as part of its efforts to curb COVID-19.

In a national address on Thursday, Vanuatu's caretaker Prime Minister Charlot Salwai said that the declaration was necessary to allow the government to mobilize resources and funding for their coronavirus response. Enditem

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