U.S. CDC Opens East Asia Office in Tokyo

Jiji Press

11:30 JST, February 6, 2024

TOKYO, Feb. 5 (Jiji Press) — The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention opened its East Asia and Pacific regional office in Tokyo on Monday.

Through the office, the CDC aims to enhance its capacity to deal with infectious diseases such as COVID-19 by speeding up data exchanges with the region and strengthening cooperation in personnel training.

The CDC’s sixth regional office in the world covers East Asia, Oceania and Pacific Island nations. The CDC has a separate office for China.

In the opening ceremony, CDC Director Mandy Cohen said Japan was a leader in the global fight against the novel coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel said that the new office will serve as an early warning system for infectious diseases.

Noting that infectious diseases can become a global threat wherever they occur, he emphasized the significance of opening the office to deal with such diseases immediately and scientifically.

At the ceremony, a message from Japanese health minister Keizo Takemi was read out. It said that Japan “hopes to deepen mutual cooperation and exchanges even in peacetime in preparation for a future health crisis.” He was unable to deliver the message in person as he was late for the event due to parliamentary affairs.

In May 2022, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and U.S. President Joe Biden agreed to open a CDC office in Tokyo.