North Korea is tightening quarantine efforts against COVID-19 as the infectious virus shows no signs of abating around the world. 

The North’s state-run government newspaper Minju Joson said Tuesday that the nation’s quarantine authorities are devising preemptive measures to fully shut down its borders and further strengthen inspection efforts.  

In particular, the paper said authorities plan to implement stronger rules for objects that enter the North via sea or air. Currently, such objects are disinfected or burnt once they enter the North’s territory.  

Observers believe that in devising the latest measures, the North took into account the distribution of anti-North Korea propaganda leaflets by South Korean organizations which use balloons and plastic bottles to send the leaflets across the border.  

The North has often denounced the leaflets as obstacles to its quarantine efforts.  

The latest moves come after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called for a "maximum alert" against the COVID-19 pandemic during a meeting of the ruling Workers' Party politburo last Thursday.