Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Tests Positive for COVID-19... Cancels Overseas Tours Including Africa (Comprehensive)
[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida tested positive for COVID-19 on the 21st, just before returning from his summer vacation. Due to the positive diagnosis, his scheduled tour of Africa and the Middle East was canceled and postponed.
According to NHK and other sources on the 22nd, the Japanese government announced the previous day that Prime Minister Kishida had contracted COVID-19. Starting from the night of the 20th, Kishida showed symptoms such as a mild fever and cough. On the morning of the 21st, he underwent a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test at his official residence, and was confirmed positive around 4 p.m.
Although Prime Minister Kishida is currently recuperating at the official residence, foreign media reported that since his symptoms are mild, no temporary acting prime minister will be appointed, and he plans to resume work online from within the residence. According to Japan’s quarantine regulations, Kishida is expected to remain at the residence and work there until the 30th.
This is the first confirmed case of COVID-19 infection in a sitting Japanese prime minister. Kishida had completed his fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose on the 12th. His wife, Yuko, and eldest son and secretary, Shotaro, were classified as close contacts, but the source of infection has not been disclosed.
Kishida had finished official duties on the 15th and started his summer vacation, planning to return on the 22nd. During his vacation, he visited a golf course in Ibaraki Prefecture for a round of golf, stayed at a hot spring inn in Shizuoka Prefecture, and returned to Tokyo on the 19th to stay at the official residence.
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Due to this positive diagnosis, Kishida has canceled his attendance at the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) scheduled for the 27th and 28th in Tunisia, North Africa. However, he is considering attending online. The planned Middle East tour immediately following the African development conference has been postponed.
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