U.S. warns Americans not to travel to Japan, but Japan says that won't affect the Summer Olympics

Tokyo Olympics
(Image credit: Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty Images)

The State Department on Monday warned Americas, "Do not travel to Japan due to COVID-19." The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cautioned that "because of the current situation in Japan, even fully vaccinated travelers may be at risk for getting and spreading COVID-19 variants and should avoid all travel to Japan." The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee said it still plans to send a delegation of athletes to this summer's Olympic Games in Tokyo, and Japan said the U.S. warning won't affect the Games.

"We feel confident that the current mitigation practices in place for athletes and staff," coupled with the frequent testing, "will allow for safe participation of Team USA athletes this summer," the U.S. committee said in a statement. Japanese Olympic Minister Tamayo Marukawa said Tuesday that "for now, we don't expect any impact" from the State Department's warning.

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.