The ministry in charge of inter-Korean affairs said it is keeping tabs on North Korea as it pushes ahead with its five-year development plan proposed during last year's ruling party congress, regardless of an outbreak of COVID-19 in the country.

Citing an inside source, Radio Free Asia reported earlier that COVID-19 vaccines developed in China were administered to troops dispatched to an ongoing apartment construction site in Pyongyang on May 18.

While Seoul is closely monitoring COVID-19 cooperation between Pyongyang and Beijing, unification ministry deputy spokesperson Cha Deok-cheol said on Friday that the government has limitations in providing official information until the North confirms such matters.

Cha said the ministry is having difficulty ascertaining the North's claims that the number of people with fever, suspected of having been infected with the virus, has stabilized.

Referring to reports that contradict the regime's claims, the deputy spokesperson said no clear assessment can be made without confirming the standards applied to statistical data provided by the North.