Pharmaceutical company Linepharma International plans to seek approval for Japan¡¯s first abortion pill next month following successful trials in the country, the Yomiuri newspaper reported.

Linepharma, which received its pharmaceutical license in Japan in July, will seek approval for a combination of two drugs called mifepristone and misoprostol to terminate pregnancy, the paper said. Approval for the drug combination could be forthcoming within a year, Yomiuri said, citing sources familiar with the matter.

About 140,000 abortions were carried out in Japan in 2020, according to the newspaper, all via surgical procedures. By contrast, medication-induced abortion was introduced in France in 1988 and is available in more than 70 countries, the report said.