Although the government repatriated more than 400 Japanese who were stranded in Wuhan in central China, epicenter of the deadly new coronavirus, the mission might have never gotten off the ground.

The Japanese government was preparing a rescue plan, but coordination with the Chinese side did not go smoothly, according to officials close to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Reflecting a growing sense of alarm over the fast-spreading virus, authorities in Wuhan imposed travel restrictions in the city with a population of 11 million on Jan. 23, canceling flights leaving the city.

The development spurred the Japanese government behind the scenes to begin considering flying special airplanes to Wuhan to bring Japanese citizens home.

The government contacted Japanese living in Wuhan based on resident papers and the list of Japanese expatriates registering to receive overseas travel safety information provided by Japan’s Foreign Ministry.

Many expressed their desire to return to Japan.

On Jan. 26, Abe instructed Japanese officials in the morning to accelerate talks with Chinese officials, saying he would announce the dispatch of special aircraft to Wuhan the same day.

After the order, diplomats at the Japanese Embassy in Beijing headed to Wuhan.

Shigeru Kitamura, secretary-general of the National Security Secretariat, called the Chinese Ambassador to Japan, Kong Xuanyou, several times on the morning of Jan. 26 following Abe’s decision and asked for cooperation from Beijing.

Later that day, Abe announced the plan to fly charter aircraft to Wuhan.

“As soon as we finish coordinating with the Chinese government, we will bring home all the Japanese there who wish to return to Japan through all possible means, including chartering aircraft,” he said. 

The government was working on sending the first flight on Jan. 28.

A senior government official recalled that the announcement could have been embarrassingly premature.

“When the prime minister announced the plan, it was not known that it would go as planned,” the official said.

But Japanese officials expedited efforts to make it happen quickly.

Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi managed to move up a telephone conference call with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, to the night of Jan. 26 over the details, rather than on Jan. 27 or later.

Japan’s initial plan to fly two All Nippon Airways Co. airplanes to Wuhan on the morning of Jan. 28 was postponed as the Chinese side was not fully prepared.

But the first ANA airplane left Tokyo's Haneda Airport on the night of Jan. 28 to retrieve 206 Japanese from Wuhan the following morning. A second plane followed the night of Jan. 29 to repatriate another 210.

The unprecedented operation was pulled off in only a matter of days.

This was the first time the government has flown in aircraft to rescue Japanese overseas amid the outbreak of an infectious disease.

Before the decision was made to send charted planes to Wuhan, critics on the internet accused the government of dragging its feet to assist Japanese trapped in the city.

“What is the Japanese government doing right now?” one tweet asked. Another tweeted, “Is the Japanese government abandoning them?” 

Criticism arose as a U.S. newspaper reported on Jan. 25 that Washington was arranging a charter flight to pick up U.S. citizens in Wuhan.

It was also reported that the French government was considering a similar measure.

Noting the criticism, Hiroshi Yamada, a Lower House member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, said on his Twitter account on Jan. 26, “We have asked the government for a swift repatriation of Japanese citizens.”

In the end, the expedited rescue effort not only ensured the safety of Japanese nationals and silenced the critics, but also helped the government gauge as to which countries Beijing prioritized.

“China gave the United States and Japan arrival and departure slots first of all the countries,” said a high-ranking official with the Abe administration. “That shows which countries China places importance on.”

(This article was written by Yuki Nikaido, Yuka Takeshita and Narumi Ota.)