Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Saturday vowed to continue to take all necessary measures to fight the spread of COVID-19 while accelerating his push to create a "new capitalism."
In his New Year's address, Kishida also said he would step up summit diplomacy in 2022 and that constitutional reform would be a "major theme" of the year.
"I will further enhance prevention, testing and early treatment and reduce the risk that the novel coronavirus poses to society," Kishida said.