Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has backed the government's Go To Travel campaign to support domestic tourism despite growing calls for another state of emergency declaration amid a resurgence of coronavirus infections in Japan.
The move came Friday as the number of new cases totaled 1,704, topping the previous record high of 1,660 marked a day earlier, according to a Kyodo News tally based on official data. Health experts are warning of a possible "third wave" of infections.
Though recognizing the "clear signs of an upward trend" in coronavirus cases, particularly in Tokyo, Osaka and Aichi prefectures as well as Hokkaido, Suga called on the public to take "basic preventive measures" to halt the spread of infections.