EU leaders to hold conference call on coronavirus cooperation

European Union (EU) leaders will hold a conference call shortly to coordinate the bloc's efforts against the novel coronavirus, said President of the European Council Charles Michel on Monday on Twitter.

"Following consultations I will hold a #EUCO members conference call shortly on #COVID-19 to coordinate #EU efforts. We need to cooperate in order to protect the health of our citizens," he tweeted.

There have been frictions between EU member states over their respective measures to contain the epidemic, according to media reports.

COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, continued to spread across Europe, with the cumulative confirmed cases topping 10,000 in 39 European countries as of Sunday evening.