Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe listens to IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi at the prime minister's official residence in Tokyo, Japan, February 25, 2020. Kimimasa Mayama/Pool via REUTERS

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Thursday that the government would ask all elementary, junior high and high schools to close from March 2 until spring break, typically around the end of March.

He was speaking at a meeting of the government’s task force to contain the spread of the new coronavirus.