Staying in Japan, the country will reportedly ban foreign spectators from this year's delayed Tokyo Olympics.
Officials are still determined that the games go ahead, though, despite public opinion being overwhelmingly against them.
Joel Fitzpatrick is a journalist based in Tokyo for the Kyodo News Agency - he says the Games were meant to show the city's resilience during the pandemic, and the country's rejuvenation 10 years on from the earthquake and tsunami.
He told Worldwatch's Max Towle that such hopes are fading.
