Yuriko Koike, left, talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the prime minister's office in Tokyo Monday, July 6, 2020.
(Yoshitaka Sugawara/Kyodo News via AP)TOKYO Tokyos governor and her political rival, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, agreed Monday to cooperate on handling the coronavirus outbreak to safely hold the Olympics next year.
The first woman to head Tokyo prefecture, Koike, 67, is viewed as a potential candidate to succeed Abe when his term ends in September 2021.
After her meeting with Abe, Koike renewed her campaign pledge to set up a Tokyo version of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, by cooperating with the health ministry and other experts.
She also tried to gain public understanding for a simpler version of the Tokyo Olympics after the games were postponed to next year because of the virus.