<p style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;">The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has confirmed its first COVID19 outbreak in over two years and declared a national lockdown, state media KCNA reported on Thursday, saying that people in Pyongyang had contracted the Omicron BA.2 subvariant of SARS-CoV-2, without providing case numbers or sources of infection. </p>''<p style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><br />''</p>''<p style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;">DPRK leader Kim Jong Un has vowed to overcome the "unexpected crisis," calling on all cities and counties to "thoroughly lock down" their regions to curb the spread of the virus, the news agency reported. North Korea has had strict measures, such as border lockdowns, in place since COVID-19 outbreak in early 2020.</p>''<p style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><br />''</p>''<p style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;">China stands ready to provide full support and assistance to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in the fight against the COVID19 epidemic, China's foreign ministry said on Thursday.</p>''<p style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><br />''</p>''<p style="margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #222222;">In other news from the North Korea, the country has fired a ballistic missile toward the East Sea, Yonhap News Agency reported on Thursday, citing the Republic of Korea's (ROK) military.</span></p>