Explainer: As COVID-19 cases surge, Japan sticks to "lockdown-lite"

People wearing protective masks, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, make their way in Tokyo, Japan, August 6, 2021. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan decided this week to expand COVID-19 curbs to more than 70% of its population, but in contrast to stringent lockdowns in some countries, authorities are relying mainly on requests for self-restraint and peer pressure.

With nationwide new cases topping 15,000 a day for the first time this week, expectations are simmering that Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga may declare a nationwide state of emergency, although he said on Thursday he was not considering this now.