Leaders from around 15 countries are expected to attend Friday’s opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics. Reports in Japan have suggested that those attending the COVID-hit ceremony in person could be as low as 1,000 due to the pandemic.
Chief Cabinet Secretary of Japanese government Katsunobu Kato said to a news agency that around 70 cabinet-level officials are also set to visit Japan, adding that there is still uncertainty over the number of VIPs attending the opening ceremony.
World leaders who have already promised their attendance in the opening ceremony include French President Emmanuel Macron, Mongolian Prime Minister Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene, and US first lady Jill Biden. But the sudden rising of cases of coronavirus in Japan has forced many leaders to cancel their visits. The delayed Tokyo Olympics will be held under a state of emergency sans spectators due to the global pandemic.
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