Tuesday, May 25, 2021
Emergency shortly before the Olympics
USA imposes the highest warning level for Japan
Japan is struggling with the fourth wave of corona infections, but the Olympic Games are to take place in Tokyo. The US has issued a travel warning of the highest level for Japan. The effects on the Olympics are still unclear, Japan continues with the final plans despite the emergency.
Two months before the start of the Summer Olympics in Tokyo (July 23 to August 8), the USA issued a travel warning of the highest level 4 for Japan with reference to the pandemic situation. “Do not travel to Japan,” the Foreign Ministry’s recommendations have been saying since Monday.
In Tokyo, government spokesman Katsunobu Kato said the US warning would have no impact on the Olympics. “We assume that the US position in supporting Japan’s efforts to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games has not changed,” he said at a regular briefing. Japan had been informed that the recommendation would have no impact on the US Olympic team and that the measure would not constitute a ban, Kato said.
Tokyo’s OK chief Seiko Hashimoto said she “doesn’t think it will affect the Games,” adding that organizers “will do their best to prepare for Olympics, which prioritize safety”.
Japan is fighting with fourth wave
The US Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) said it was “confident that current safeguards will allow safe participation,” it said in a statement. A US State Department spokesman said President Joe Biden is proud to support the US athletes who have trained for these Games and will compete in the best traditions of the Olympic spirit.
Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga recently extended the corona emergency in Tokyo to May 31. The rate of fully vaccinated people in Japan is currently two percent. The provisions of the German Foreign Office say: “Unnecessary tourist trips to Japan are currently discouraged due to ongoing entry restrictions.”
Japan is fighting a fourth wave of corona infections, and an emergency has been imposed in over ten regions. Most recently, more than 80 percent of those questioned in a survey by the Asahi Shimbun newspaper spoke out against a scheduled Olympic event.
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