Japan PM Suga denies need for state of emergency as infections top 200,000

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Monday denied the need to declare another national state of emergency, even as the latest surge of coronavirus cases sent cumulative infections in Japan to over 200,000 and health experts warned that the medical system is becoming strained.Speaking in a prerecorded TV interview, Suga said the government may instead ask restaurants and bars to further shorten business hours in a bid to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.Suga has been reluctant to repeat his predecessor Shinzo Abe's decision in April to declare a nationwide state of emergency, vowing ins…READ FULL ARTICLE