Beijing, Dec 14 (IANS): China has formulated national anti-terrorism guidelines to coordinate security forces across the nation, the media reported on Monday.

Nine guidelines were announced by security chief Meng Jianzhu at an anti-terrorism work conference in Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang Uygur region, the People's Daily reported.

Meng said the guidelines were aimed at coping with changes and trends in the fight against terrorism at home and abroad. China is closely integrating its efforts with the international battle against terrorism after an increasing number of domestic attacks were plotted overseas on the internet.

Mei Jianming, director of the Counter-terrorism Research Centre at the People's Public Security University of China, said the conference was held after the central government assessed the anti-terrorism situation following the attacks in Paris on November 13 that left 130 dead.

It also considered an attack in Bamako, the capital of Mali, on November 20 that killed 27 people, including three Chinese nationals, Mei said.

"The government also took the growing influence of Islamic State (IS) into consideration after it planned to recruit Muslims from all ethnic groups in China, posing new challenges for the country," he said.

The national guidelines will enable police to bust more terrorist cells before such groups launch attacks around China.