A North Korean public health expert said no person has been infected with a new pneumonia-causing coronavirus in the country so far, as the nation has stepped up measures to prevent an expansion of it.

In an attempt to detect possible infection in an early stage, North Korea has conducted screening for all citizens, Pak Myong Su, president of North Korea's State Hygienic Control Board said in a recent interview with Kyodo News.

(People wearing masks walk near Pyongyang Station on Feb. 18, 2020.)

Pak said that large-scale gatherings have been also restricted in the country, given that people may become infected as they come into contact with others.

North Korea marked the anniversary of the founding of its army on Feb. 8 and the birthday of late leader Kim Jong Il on Sunday, respectively, but it is believed to have refrained from holding major events on the days unlike previous years.

Following the spread of the virus, North Korea has cut off traffic to and from China and Russia since earlier this year. At home, citizens have been urged by the nation's health authorities to wear masks when they go outside.

Spreading worldwide, the new coronavirus, first detected late last year in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, has infected more than 70,000 people and killed over 2,000 in China.

North Korea is vulnerable to infectious diseases against the backdrop of chronic food and medical shortages triggered by economic sanctions aimed at thwarting Pyongyang's nuclear and ballistic missile ambitions, foreign affairs experts say.

In the past, North Korea barred foreigners from entering the country during the 2002-2003 epidemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, and the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014.