MOSCOW, February 24. /TASS/. Chinese authorities are confident that the novel coronavirus outbreak will be defeated soon and a normal life will resume in most regions across the country by the end of February.

A supposedly effective vaccine has been developed that helps mount an immune response against the infection, and it needs to be fine-tuned and tested, Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui told reporters on Monday.

"There is confidence in China that soon we will finally defeat this outbreak," the ambassador said. "Besides the epidemic center [in Wuhan] a normal life will be restored in most provinces and cities by the end of this month. Certainly, I believe this moment will happen later in the center of the outbreak, somewhere in March," he noted.

According to the diplomat, the vaccine developed in China has proven to be effective, but more tests need to be carried out. "China has developed a vaccine that shows immunity. But these are preliminary results and time is needed for further tests and fine-tuning [the vaccine]," he explained.

China has enhanced cooperation with the international community to fight the coronavirus spread. The World Health Organization has sent a delegation to the country to conduct a study on the novel coronavirus. "This delegation includes two specialists from Russia. Earlier, Russia sent a delegation of medical specialists and our specialists exchanged views. This is a very good start of cooperation between China and Russia in healthcare sector," he said.

China is ready to step up cooperation with Russia in this field, the envoy noted. "We are very thankful for the support of the Russian leadership and Russian citizens. We see a sign of a good will," the ambassador said.

On December 31, Chinese authorities informed the World Health Organization (WHO) about an outbreak of an unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan - a large trade and industrial center in central China populated by 12 million people. The source of the outbreak is the COVID-19 coronavirus. Besides China, the cases of COVID-19 have been detected in 30 countries, including Russia. The WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak in China a global health emergency.

Currently, the total number of people infected with the novel coronavirus has exceeded 77,000 in China, with nearly 2,600 deaths. Some 25,000 people have recovered to date.