PM Abe vows Japan's utmost efforts to coronavirus; Xi visit, Olympics on track

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Saturday promised his government's utmost efforts to curb the spread of the new coronavirus, while acknowledging the authorities alone could not tackle the threat.

© Reuters/ISSEI KATO Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attends a news conference on coronavirus at his official residence in Tokyo

© Reuters/ISSEI KATO Officials wearing protective face masks, following an outbreak of the coronavirus, prepare a prompter before a news conference by Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at his official residence in Tokyo

"To be frank, we cannot win this battle through the efforts of the government alone," Abe told a news conference two days after abruptly calling for all schools nationwide to be closed for more than a month.

© Reuters/ISSEI KATO Media members wearing protective face masks, following an outbreak of the coronavirus, sit before a news conference by Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at his official residence in Tokyo

"I have decided we must make all efforts in the next one or two weeks to prevent the spread" of the virus, he said, while expressing confidence this was possible.

Abe said plans were proceeding for a spring visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping and for this summer's Tokyo Olympics, but said Japan won't hesitate to expand immigration curbs if needed.

(Reporting by Junko Fujita; Additional reporting by Linda Sieg, Chang-Ran Kim and Elaine Lies; Editing by William Mallard)