Suga's Pride Severely Hurt in 'Olympic Diplomacy'... Fewer Than 20 Top-Level Officials Attend

▲Yoshihide Suga, Prime Minister of Japan [Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] With less than two days remaining until the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics, it is projected that fewer than 20 heads of state from various countries will attend, casting a red light on Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's diplomatic capabilities. Even considering the COVID-19 situation, this is an extremely low number, which is expected to become a political burden for Prime Minister Suga.

According to a report by Mainichi Shimbun on the 21st citing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, fewer than 20 heads of state are expected to attend the Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony on the 23rd. This is significantly lower compared to the 40 heads of state who visited the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics in Brazil during the Zika virus outbreak.

Initially, the Japanese government anticipated that around 80 to 120 heads of state would visit the opening ceremony, but as the COVID-19 spread intensified, the target was lowered to the 30s earlier this month. However, even this reduced target has not been met by a large margin. According to the original plan, Prime Minister Suga was scheduled to hold meetings with heads of state from various countries over three days from the 22nd to the 24th, but this schedule is also expected to be significantly reduced.

Mainichi Shimbun reported, "Not only in Japan but also worldwide, heads of state are increasingly reluctant to visit Japan due to the spread of the Delta variant."

Meanwhile, the only heads of state who have confirmed their visit to Japan so far are French President Emmanuel Macron, U.S. First Lady Jill Biden, and Mongolian Prime Minister Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene. President Macron, who is almost the only head of state attending, appears to be considering the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. President Macron is scheduled to hold a summit meeting with Prime Minister Suga on the 24th. It is known that First Lady Jill Biden will be accompanied only by the acting Japanese ambassador.