TOKYO: Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike said on Tuesday that the novel coronavirus situation in Japan's capital is improving and she's still intent on the city hosting the Olympics next year.
"I think the situation is much better than before," Koike said in an interview with Reuters Television.
"We will do our best to prevent coronavirus infections here in Japan and also to welcome the athletes from all over the world."
Koike said last month that Tokyo could declare a state of emergency if the coronavirus situation deteriorated.
Daily cases had soared past 400 a day amid increased testing. New cases have trended lower in the past week, and were at 187 in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Koike said Tokyo has established many concrete measures to combat contagion, but the arrival and distribution of effective vaccines is an "essential factor" that still has to be determined before the Games can go on.
A former TV announcer, Koike was Japan's first female defence minister and the first woman to run, albeit unsuccessfully, for leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. Agencies