“Over the weekend, Japan informed WHO of a new variant of the virus.
The more the virus spreads, the higher the chances that changes in the virus will appear, ”Ghebreyesus said during the briefing.
He added that this could lead to an increase in morbidity and hospitalizations, which will complicate the work of hospitals, which are already in dire straits.
On January 10, it became known that four people who flew to Japan from Brazil were found to have a new mutation of the coronavirus, which differs from the one recorded in the UK and South Africa.
Experts argue that the new mutation is partially similar to mutations that represent "a concern because of the higher contagiousness."
The WHO also said that a new variety of COVID-19, originally identified in the UK, has already been found in 22 European countries.