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Chubu Centrair International Airport near Nagoya, Japan

The Japanese government plans to initiate discussions around mid-July toward resuming normal entry procedures for business travelers from 10 Asian countries including South Korea, the Nikkei newspaper reported on July 10.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe plans to make an announcement concerning the discussions shortly at the government countermeasures headquarters. The parties to be included in the negotiations are 10 Asian countries that typically have frequent traffic with Japan and have seen considerable improvements with the COVID-19 pandemic. The list consists of South Korea, China, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, and Mongolia. While reports late last month stated that Tokyo planned to begin discussions shortly with Taiwan and Brunei, the discussions of resuming entry procedures now appear poised to take place with a much wider range of countries.

The Japanese government plans to have discussions with South Korea and China, but its priority is likely to be on discussions with Taiwan, the Nikkei reported. With average daily arrivals on the order of 20,000 travelers from Japan in both South Korea and China, Tokyo could face serious challenges in dealing with travel from both countries with its current testing capacity. Currently, Japanese airports are capable of conducting a maximum of 2,300 tests per day, with plans to increase the number to 4,000 by August.

The Japanese government has already been in discussions since late June toward resuming travel to and from Vietnam, Thailand, Australia, and New Zealand. After the conclusion of an agreement with Vietnam, over 400 Japanese resident employees and other business travelers departed for Vietnam on special flights between June 25 and 27.

Since February, Japan has adopted increased entry regulations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As of July 1, the list of countries from which travelers would not be accepted as a rule stood at 129, including all of the G20 countries.

By Choi Hyun-june, staff reporter

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