TOKYO: Tokyo and three nearby prefectures are in a “crucial stage” to contain COVID-19 infections, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Thursday, as the government plans to extend its ongoing state of emergency over the pandemic in the metropolitan area.

At a House of Councillors Budget Committee meeting, Suga reiterated the view that it is necessary to extend the state of emergency, currently set to expire on Sunday, for around two weeks. Suga was responding to a question from Masayuki Tokushige of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.

Tokushige cited calls mainly from the restaurant and tourism industries for lifting the state of emergency as soon as possible. Suga said, “We will make the final decision after listening fully to the opinions of related experts and concerned parties.”

Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told a press conference on the day that a possible two-week extension of the state of emergency is not linked to the start of the Tokyo Olympics torch relay on March 25.

“The torch relay or the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics are not factored into discussions on the state of emergency at all,” Kato stressed.

At the same parliamentary meeting, Shigeru Omi, head of the government’s COVID-19 advisory panel, said it will be the right choice to extend the state of emergency as the metropolitan area faces higher risks of a resurgence in infections than other areas.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi suggested that the government is making efforts for stable supply of COVID-19 vaccines in the country, noting that the European Union has so far fully approved vaccine exports to Japan. He was giving an answer to a question from Makoto Nishida of Komeito, the LDP’s coalition partner.

Nishida proposed setting up a national council aimed at improving the situation of medical services, which are under stain amid the pandemic.

In response, the prime minister said the government will closely cooperate with local governments and the medical sector to ensure necessary medical services.

JIJI Press