The number of coronavirus infections in Ukraine has exceeded 1.5 million with 29,253 deaths, Ukrainian Health Minister Maksym Stepanov announced on Thursday.

Ukraine has faced a sharp jump in COVID-19 cases in recent weeks, which Prime Minister Denys Shmygal called a “third wave” of the global pandemic.

Ukraine registered on Wednesday a record daily high of 289 coronavirus-related deaths and the death toll remained at a high level of 267 on Thursday, Stepanov said on Facebook.

He added that the number of hospitalized Ukrainians remained at a high level – 4,376 were admitted to hospitals in the past 24 hours, down from a record 4,887 the day before.

The surge in new cases and deaths has forced the PM to call on regional authorities to impose tougher restrictions to contain the deadly disease.