Organizers for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics announced on Saturday that foreign spectators will be barred from attending the upcoming Olympic and Paralympic Games.

According to Japan's Kyodo News and NHK, the decision was made on Saturday in a five-party meeting that involved the Japanese government, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

With the decision, about 630-thousand tickets that have been bought by international fans will be refunded.

The Japanese government and the organizing committee also decided not to allow overseas volunteers to enter Japan for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The IOC and the IPC said in a statement that they fully respect and accept this conclusion.

The Olympic Games were postponed last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Tokyo Olympics is now scheduled for July 23 to August 8,with the Paralympics running from August 24 to September 5.