TOKYO, Apr 22 (NNN-NHK) – Japanese Prime Minister, Yoshihide Suga, cancelled planned trips to India and the Philippines, during the Golden Week holidays, due to the pandemic, the government’s top spokesperson said, yesterday.
According to Chief Cabinet Secretary, Katsunobu Kato, plans had been made for Suga to meet with Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, for the first time in person, with the pair slated to discuss a number of issues pertaining to economic and security issues and spanning infrastructure building, cooperation in outer space and cybersecurity.
Both India and Japan are struggling to contain a rebound in COVID-19 infections, with the Japanese government saying, a fresh state of emergency would be declared for Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo prefectures, from Friday (tomorrow), amid a surge in cases.
Japan and India also postponed their planned foreign and defence ministerial talks, that were scheduled to take place this weekend in Tokyo, owing to COVID-19 cases rising in both countries.
Suga’s visit to the Philippines was supposed to mark the 65th anniversary of the normalisation of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Suga said, he needs to remain in Japan to focus on the fight against the pandemic, which, in hard-hit Osaka Prefecture in western Japan, has seen the healthcare system overloaded, with not enough beds available in hospitals, to treat patients suffering from severe COVID-19 symptoms.– NNN-NHK
