Japan advises against travel to some 50 nations including U.S., China

TOKYO, March 31 Kyodo - Japan on Tuesday raised its travel advisory for some 50 countries including the United States, China and South Korea to Level 3, warning against any trips to these areas as the novel coronavirus continues to spread globally. That is one step down from the Foreign Ministry's highest level, which urges Japanese nationals to "evacuate immediately" from a country or area and "avoid all travel regardless of purposes." Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government is expected to impose an entry ban on foreign travelers who have recently been to the listed countries, which now cover more than a third of the world including most of Europe and Southeast Asia. In addition to the risk of infection, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi cited border closures and stay-in-place orders enacted abroad as reasons for raising the travel advisory. "Global infections have been increasing at a faster pace...and we are deeply concerned for the safety of our citizens," he told a press conference. Among the countries that were raised to Level 3 on Tuesday, 21 are in Europe, nine in the Middle East and Africa, seven in Southeast Asia and six in South America. Japan is also rushing to stem a rise in infections brought in by returnees and foreign visitors, with imported cases making up about one in four of the total in recent days. More than 780,000 have tested positive for the coronavirus worldwide, with the death toll topping 37,000, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. ==Kyodo