The World Health Organization(WHO) has declared the coronavirus outbreak a "public health emergency of international concern," citing the risk that the virus could expand to other countries beyond China. 

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced the declaration in a news conference on Thursday in Geneva, Switzerland after an emergency meeting.

The WHO chief said that the goal of the declaration was to provide support for countries with weaker health systems that have imported the virus from China.

While stressing that the emergency declaration is "not a vote of no confidence" in China, Ghebreyesus said that there’s no need at this time for measures that would unnecessarily interfere with international trade and travel.

The UN health agency defines an international emergency as an “extraordinary event” that constitutes a risk to other countries and requires a coordinated international response. 

It's the sixth time the WHO declared an emergency, with past examples including the Ebola outbreak in 2019 in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Zika virus in 2016.