Japanese Government Plans to Expand State of Emergency to Osaka and Two Other Prefectures... "Likely to Announce on the 13th"

Additional Alert Areas Added in Tokyo and Other Metropolitan Regions

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] On the 12th, the Japanese government indicated its intention to expand the state of emergency to three prefectures?Osaka, Kyoto, and Hyogo?due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). Japanese media reported that based on expert opinions, the government is adjusting to possibly issue the declaration as early as the 13th.

According to NHK and other broadcasters, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga stated at the ruling party meeting that "In addition to the Tokyo Metropolis and the three prefectures of Kanagawa, Saitama, and Chiba, there are regions such as Osaka where infections are rapidly increasing," and added, "Based on this situation, we will begin reviewing the expansion of the state of emergency declaration areas." The currently mentioned areas are the three prefectures of Osaka, Kyoto, and Hyogo.

Regarding reports on the expansion of the state of emergency, Prime Minister Suga responded, "We will quickly make a judgment based on expert opinions and the situation." Foreign media in Japan reported that the government is adjusting to announce this as early as the 13th, and is making a final decision considering expert opinions on the target areas.

If the state of emergency is declared in the additionally reviewed regions, the target areas will expand from the Tokyo Metropolis and three prefectures in the metropolitan area to seven prefectures. Previously, on the 7th, the Japanese government declared a state of emergency for the Tokyo Metropolis and three prefectures, maintaining it until the 7th of next month. Accordingly, it is expected that the newly declared areas will also be subject to the state of emergency for the same period.

Meanwhile, the number of new COVID-19 cases nationwide in Japan on the previous day was 4,876, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 294,348. The number of deaths increased by 48 the previous day, reaching 4,128. The number of severe cases requiring ventilators or intensive care reached a record high of 864.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.