Tasnim – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and his Serbian counterpart, Ivica Dacic, held talks on a range of issues, including the outbreak of the new coronavirus, known as COVID-19.

In a telephone conversation on Friday night, Zarif and Dacic discussed the latest efforts to combat the novel coronavirus.

The Serbian foreign minister voiced the solidarity of his country's nation and government with Iran in its fight against COVID-19.

Spokesman for the Iranian Health Ministry said on Friday that since the outbreak of the coronavirus in the country, 3,529 patients have completely recovered from the infectious disease.

Kianoush Jahanpour said that since Thursday, the total number of coronavirus cases in the country has increased by 1,289, reaching 11,364.

Over the past 24 hours, 85 patients have lost their lives, the spokesman said, adding that the death toll from the new coronavirus epidemic in the country has risen to 514.

Fortunately, so far 3,529 patients infected with the COVID-19 have recovered and have been discharged from hospitals, he said.

Medical staffs in all 31 provinces of Iran have been working tirelessly over the past weeks to contain the novel coronavirus.

First detected in Wuhan city in central China in December, the virus has spread to more than 120 countries.

More than 126,000 have been infected globally, according to the WHO. Of those, over 68,000 have recovered.