Japan has said it is easing its travel warning about Egypt after an improvement in security conditions in the country, the Japanese embassy in Cairo said on Tuesday.

In an official statement, the Japanese embassy said new areas have been listed as safe to visit for its nationals after the downgrading of the travel warning.

Prior to the downgrade, Japanese nationals were advised not to visit areas of the country outside Alexandria, Greater Cairo, Hurghada, Luxor, Aswan, and Abu Simbel.

Now they are only advised against travel to North Sinai, the Western Desert, and the border with Libya.

Several countries, including the US, have asked citizens to not travel to Sinai, with the exception of travel to Sharm El-Sheikh by air, the Western Desert, and Egyptian border areas due to terrorism and military campaigns. 

Egypt has been seeking to attract more tourists from Asian markets following a drop in Russian tourists – who rank first among foreign visitors to the country – after a temporary Russian suspension of flights to Egypt in November 2015.

In February 2016, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi called during a historic visit to Japan on the Japanese to visit Egypt, stressing that Cairo is committed to protecting the safety of visitors.

In October 2017, Egypt’s flagship airline EgyptAir resumed flights between Cairo and Japan's Tokyo following a four-year suspension, with the number of flights dependent on the demand in the Egyptian tourism market.

The decision followed a resumption of direct EgyptAir flights between Luxor and Tokyo in 2016, in an effort to "revive tourism to [Luxor], which is considered one of the most important touristic destinations in Upper Egypt," according to a statement by the Egyptian national airliner.