North Korea has reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) that the country has conducted coronavirus tests on around 36,000 people so far but found no confirmed cases, the UN agency said Wednesday.

According to the WHO's weekly report on COVID-19, 693 North Koreans underwent virus tests from July 30 to Aug. 5, bringing the total number of tested citizens to 35,947, but none were found to have been infected.

Of the newly tested citizens, 112 people with symptoms turned out to be those with flu-like illness or acute respiratory illness, the report said.

North Korea has claimed to be coronavirus-free but has taken relatively swift and tough measures against the pandemic, such as imposing strict border controls since early last year.

The North was expected to receive around 2 million doses of coronavirus vaccines through a global vaccine distribution program, but they have not been delivered to the country yet. (Yonhap)