TOKYO: The Japanese government does not expect to reintroduce a state of emergency over the novel coronavirus for now, despite a series of new infection cases in Tokyo and Kitakyushu, an official said Sunday.

"We're not in such a stage," economic revitalization minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said on an NHK program, adding that infection routes have been identified in many of the recent cases in the capital and the southwestern city.

"We're monitoring the situations with a sense of crisis. We must do our utmost to prevent the disease from spreading further," he also said.

Nishimura again asked that the public avoid the three Cs of closed and crowded spaces plus close interpersonal contact and continue practicing social distancing through telework and other means.

The government will consider what should be done with the World Health Organization after US President Donald Trump said the United States will cut its ties with the WHO, Nishimura said.

JIJI Press