TOKYO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st February, 2020) As many as nine countries have urged nationals to limit traveling to Japan amid the growing number of people tested positive for the deadly coronavirus infection in the Asian country, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said on Friday.
"We know that nine countries, namely Micronesia, Tonga, Samoa, Israel, Kiribati, Solomon Islands, South Korea, Thailand and Bhutan have called for restrictions on traveling to countries, including Japan, where the new coronavirus was registered. In addition, the United States and Taiwan do not call for refraining from traveling, but recommend [its nationals] to be careful," Motegi said at a press conference.
As of Thursday evening, a total of 728 people were tested positive for the coronavirus in Japan, including 634 people, who are on board of the disease-stricken Diamond Princess cruise ship quarantined off the Japanese port of Yokohama. Media reported on Thursday about the first two coronavirus-infected people from the ship who died.
The novel coronavirus disease, dubbed COVID-19 by the World Health Organization (WHO), was first detected in the city of Wuhan, China's Hubei province, in late December 2019 and has since spread to more than 25 other countries. In late January, the WHO declared a global health emergency in light of the epidemic. The outbreak has already left over 75,000 people infected worldwide and resulted in more than 2,200 fatalities.
