Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected to discuss on COVID-19 outbreak with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations today in the Laotian capital of Vientiane.

Six countries in the 10-nation bloc have already confirmed cases of the new virus that causes COVID-19.

ASEAN leaders, in a joint statement earlier this week, had expressed 'serious concerns over the outbreak' and observed that the epidemic poses severe challenges to the well-being of the peoples and the development of their respective countries and the region and the world.

More than 70,000 have been infected globally, with more than 2,000 deaths being reported mostly in China till date.

