Japan’s leader says Olympics were ‘symbol of global unity’

By JENNIFER PELTZ
Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. General Assembly meeting of world leaders has been packed with global gloom. But Japan’s outgoing leader highlighted what he cast a moment of inspiration — the Tokyo Olympics. They were controversially held amid the coronavirus pandemic. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga acknowledged in Thursday’s speech that there were differences of opinion about holding the Games. But he said that Japan fulfilled its responsibilities and that the Games “proved to be a symbol of global unity among people around the world.” Ahead of them, many Japanese objected to holding the event at a time when the country’s virus outbreak was worsening. Opposition softened after the Games began.