TBS claimed on Saturday that Prime Minister Kishida was infuriated when he learned that no U.S. personnel bound for bases in Japan had undergone PCR tests prior to departure since September because he had believed that the U.S. military’s prevention protocols were “in sync” with Japan’s border controls. Following the detection of the cluster infection at Camp Hansen, MOFA bureaucrats had requested in mid-December that the U.S. military adopt tougher prevention protocols. Upon instructions from the premier, however, Japan chose to elevate the level of the protest, tasking Foreign Minister Hayashi with filing a protest and a request direct to USFJ Commander Rapp. The discovery that all Japan-bound service members were exempt from pre-departure testing since early September prompted an unnamed Kantei official to say: “We were duped. This is unacceptable.” Another senior Kantei official reportedly blamed MOFA for failing to check with the U.S. military about the status of infection protocols for Japan-bound personnel.