Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday called for swift and targeted measures to stem the spread of COVID-19 in China and stressed coordinating efforts for pandemic containment and socioeconomic development to get maximum virus containment results at minimal cost.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks while presiding over a meeting of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee to analyze the COVID-19 situation in the country. 

Multiple regions in China are presently experiencing virus outbreaks. The Chinese mainland reported 1,226 cases of local transmission on Wednesday, with more than a dozen provincial-level regions registering new local infections, the National Health Commission (NHC) said Thursday.

Warning the situation at home and abroad remains "complex, arduous and recurring," Xi asked governments at all levels to continue making unremitting efforts in prevention and control work.

He reiterated the need to put people first, saying the country should stick to science-based and targeted measures and adhere to the dynamic zero-COVID approach.

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The Chinese president also urged efforts to tackle problems in scientific and technological research, including the development of vaccines, rapid testing reagents and medications.

With respect to the normalization of prevention and control work, he pointed out that China has adhered to "forestalling imported infections and domestic resurgence," reinforced infection prevention and control measures in a targeted manner and promptly handled case clusters that emerged in some regions.

These actions protected the health and safety of the people to the greatest extent possible, Xi said, adding China has taken a leading position in both economic development and pandemic control worldwide.

This fully reflects the strength and ability of China in preventing and controlling the pandemic, and fully demonstrates the advantages of the CPC's leadership and the socialist system, he said.

Domestically, the country has seen cluster infections in multiple regions spread widely and taking place frequently, according to a statement released after the meeting.

The meeting advised to stick to "early detection, early reporting, early isolation and early treatment" when dealing with cases.

The meeting also stressed the need to guarantee the normal order of work and production, ensure supply of essential goods and meet people's needs for medical services.

Strengthening regular containment measures remains important in efforts to fight the virus, the meeting said, adding ports of entry and primary facilities such as schools are the focus.