The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has dispatched the army to help distribute medicines as the country is fighting a tough battle against its first acknowledged COVID-19 outbreak, KCNA reported on Tuesday.

The DPRK has reported over 1.4 million people with fever symptoms and 56 deaths since the first positive case was confirmed in the country last week, KCNA said. It did not say how many people have tested positive for COVID-19.

"On the special orders of the Party Central Committee expecting the Korean People's Army to play the role of the main force in defending the country's safety and people's lives in the present public health crisis, a powerful force of the military medical field was immediately dispatched for the supply of medicines vital to the ongoing anti-epidemic campaign," the news agency said.

DPRK leader Kim Jong Un has vowed to overcome the "unexpected crisis" and called on lockdown measures to be implemented in all cities and counties.

Kim on Monday issued an order to involve the military in the country's "ongoing anti-pandemic war," KCNA said.