The international community must continue to work together to overcome the A/H1N1 flu, which is now a "pandemic," UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told reporters on Monday after the United Nations held a special meeting on global health in the face of crisis.

"The key is continued cooperation and coordination," Ban said. "Our best response is a firm demonstration of global leadership and solidarity."

Chief of the World Health Organization (WHO) Margaret Chan, who also attended the special conference, declined to comment specifically on the announcement that Swiss drug-maker Novartis will not donate vaccines to developing countries to combat the H1N1.

Instead, she told reporters "There are many ways in which a vaccine manufacturer can show solidarity. Donations are just one of them."

Chan added that she hoped to get vaccines at "an affordable price for developing countries."

On Thursday, WHO raised the H1N1 alert to phase six, its highest level, formally declaring that it had developed into a global pandemic.

According to WHO, 74 countries have officially reported 29,669 cases of the H1N1 infection, including 145 deaths.

(Xinhua News Agency June 16, 2009)