TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has framed the new coronavirus pandemic as World War III, it was learned Thursday.

Japanese journalist Soichiro Tahara has revealed Abe's remarks made during their meeting on the virus crisis last Friday.

According to Tahara's blog, the prime minister said: "I used to think that World War III would probably be a nuclear war. But I now recognize the spread of the coronavirus as World War III."

Asked why it took a while to declare a state of emergency over the coronavirus outbreak, Abe said that most of his cabinet members were against the declaration on the grounds of budgetary constraints, according to Tahara.

On the declaration's lack of a provision for the imposition of penalties on uncooperative people, Tahara quoted Abe as saying: "Japan's post-World War II system is designed to set no penalties in a time like this. If we do so (impose penalties), it would be tyranny."

JIJI Press