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December 04, 2024
 

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Jesse Johnson
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the U.S. Democratic vice presidential candidate, speaks as Vice President and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris looks on at Temple University in Philadelphia on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Aug 7, 2024
New Democratic VP pick Walz adds deep China experience to ticket
The Minnesota governor’s focus on China issues include a foray there as a teacher and a role on a key human rights panel as a congressman.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin (left), U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (second from left), Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo (second from right), and Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro pose for a photo ahead of the allies' "two-plus-two" meeting at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City, Metro Manila, on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 30, 2024
Philippines gets 'unprecedented' aid — and reassurances — during talks with U.S.
Manila will receive $500 million in security assistance, months before the U.S. votes in a contentious presidential election.
Members of U.S. military services and the Self-Defense Forces wait for the arrival of then-U.S. President Donald Trump at the Air Force's Yokota Air Base, headquarters of U.S. Forces Japan, in Fussa, on the outskirts of Tokyo, in November 2017.
JAPAN
Jul 30, 2024
U.S. panel recommends four-star general as military commander in Japan
The commission reviewing the Pentagon's National Defense Strategy also said it “strongly praises” U.S. diplomatic and defense efforts to strengthen partnerships in Asia.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin (left to right), U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and Defense Minister Minoru Kihara prior their "two-plus-two" talks at the Iikura Guest House in Tokyo on Sunday
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 28, 2024
In historic move, U.S. to upgrade military command structure in Japan
The move — one of the most significant in the alliance's history — comes as Washington and Tokyo overhaul military ties in the face of an increasingly assertive China.
South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik (left to right), Defense Minister Minoru Kihara and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin pose for a photo at the Defense Ministry Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 28, 2024
U.S., Japan and South Korea ink deal to 'institutionalize' security ties
The move — just months before the U.S. presidential election — is seen as part of a bid to make the trilateral relationship more difficult to reverse.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks aboard the USS Howard destroyer at the Yokosuka Naval Base, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, in September 2022.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 23, 2024
Continuity in Asia: Harris' policies likely to assuage concerns in Japan
Tokyo is already quite familiar with the approach of the U.S. vice president, who will likely continue her predecessor's foreign policy if she is elected president.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Defense Minister Minoru Kihara meet in Singapore in June.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 23, 2024
U.S.-Japan security talks to cover 'extended deterrence' for first time
The allies' top diplomats and defense chiefs will for the first time cover the U.S. commitment to using its military capabilities, including nukes, to protect its ally.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at the White House in Washington on July 4.
WORLD
Jul 22, 2024
Biden drops out of presidential race, endorsing Kamala Harris
The stunning announcement — just 3½ months before the Nov. 5 election — came as concerns mounted that Biden could not defeat Republican rival Donald Trump.
Former U.S. President and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks to his vice presidential pick, Sen. J.D. Vance, during the second day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 17, 2024
Trump's VP pick signals stronger focus on China
J.D. Vance represents a hardening of Trump’s “America First” stance, but could also help push a tougher line on China and support for democratic Taiwan.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 14, 2024
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
The FBI identified the suspected shooter as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, a Pennsylvania resident who was later killed by Secret Service agents.
The Defense Ministry in Tokyo
JAPAN / Society
Jul 12, 2024
Defense Ministry hands out rare mass punishment over SDF issues
The ministry has disciplined a total of 218 Self-Defense Force members and senior officials following a wide-ranging investigation.
Ground Self-Defense Force troops conduct a military drill on the uninhabited island of Irisuna in Okinawa Prefecture in November.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 12, 2024
Japan’s new defense white paper delivers strongest words yet on Taiwan
Tokyo pins the blame squarely on China's large-scale military exercises around the democratically ruled island for continued tensions in the region.
Ground Self-Defense Force members participate in a seminar to prevent harassment at Camp Asaka in Tokyo in April.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jul 10, 2024
Spate of scandals threaten to tarnish Defense Ministry and SDF’s reputation
The emergence of multiple scandals is the latest challenge for the Defense Ministry as it seeks to strengthen Japan’s defense capabilities.
A Maritime Self-Defense Force's SH-60K helicopter. On April 20, two such helicopters collided during nighttime training off a remote island near Tokyo, killing all aboard.
JAPAN
Jul 9, 2024
Lack of coordination and improper lookout caused MSDF copter crash
Both SH-60K helicopters were aware of the other’s presence but had not performed evasive maneuvers up until the collision, possibly misjudging their distance, panel says.
Ground Self-Defense Force personnel take part in a joint amphibious landing exercise with Philippine and U.S. troops in San Antonio, in the Philippines' Zambales province, in October 2018.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 8, 2024
Japan and Philippines ink key military pact in defense ties upgrade
The agreement — Tokyo's first with a Southeast Asian nation — will facilitate mutual military visits.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida listens to U.S. President Joe Biden as they hold a joint news conference in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington in April.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 6, 2024
Biden again takes credit for pushing Japan to boost defense spending
The U.S. president said for the second time in just over a year that he had pushed Japan to its hike defense budget — comments likely to upset Tokyo.
Ryo Sakai, the chief of staff of the Maritime Self-Defense Force, is expected to quit his post following reports that several MSDF vessels allowed unvetted personnel to handle top secret information related to national security.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 2024
MSDF chief may quit over widespread mishandling of secret info
The latest revelation comes just months after the ministry punished five SDF members over leaks of secret information to unvetted personnel.
Anti-landing barricades protrude from the beach in Kinmen, Taiwan, in February, with China's Xiamen city visible in the distance. Taipei has demanded that Beijing release a Taiwanese-registered fishing boat boarded and seized by the China Coast Guard near Kinmen late Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 3, 2024
China’s detention of Taiwan fishing boat risks raising tensions
The incident follows the expansion of China Coast Guard regulations allowing it to detain foreigners suspected of trespassing in waters Beijing claims for up to 60 days.
The focus on artificial intelligence comes as the Self-Defense Forces grapple with concerns about recruitment and its abilities to harness the power of new technologies.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2024
Japan’s Defense Ministry unveils first basic policy on use of AI
The new policy comes as Japan looks to stave off a manpower shortage and keep pace with China and the U.S. on the technology’s military applications.
People watch a news broadcast of a North Korean missile test, at the main rail station in Seoul on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 1, 2024
North Korea fires two missiles, with one possibly failing near Pyongyang
The launches came just days after large-scale military exercises between South Korea, Japan and the United States concluded.
Japan’s 2024 buzzword of the year urges a reevaluation of past norms
Sadao Abe, who played the role of a time-traveling Showa Era teacher transported to present day in a popular TV drama, receives the 2024 buzzword of the year award for the word "futehodo," the nickname of the series.
Australian says romance scam tricked her into smuggling drugs into Japan
Donna Nelson says her life was turned upside down when she learned that the man she was falling for had tricked her into smuggling 2 kilograms of methamphetamine into Japan.
Trump says will 'block' Nippon Steel from taking over U.S. Steel
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump says he will "block" a planned takeover of U.S. Steel by Nippon Steel.
Japan witnesses warmest fall on record
Hibiya Park in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward on Saturday. Warm weather has delayed the country's autumn foliage season — when tourists flock to see leaves turn vibrant reds and yellows.
South Korea's Yoon backs down after parliament rejects martial law
Soldiers try to enter the National Assembly building in Seoul, after South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law late Tuesday evening.
U.S. Space Force launches first unit in Japan
Activated on Wednesday, U.S. Space Forces Japan — a component similar to the one established at South Korea’s Osan Air Base in 2022 — will operate out of Yokota Air Base in the city of Fussa, western Tokyo, with a staff of about 10.
Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?
The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
Europe eyes 'boots on the ground' in Ukraine as possible peace deal option
A serviceman with the Ukrainian Army's 24th mechanized brigade fires a machine gun during an exercise, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the country's Donetsk region on Friday.
Seven strangers and an algorithm: Can this new dinner app help you make friends?
Timeleft uses an algorithm to match its users with five or six strangers in an effort to prompt “human connection” over dinner at a restaurant. It determines the attendees with the help of a simple personality quiz available when you sign up for the service.
Don’t worry, you can still use your Japan health insurance card — for now
A My Number card reader at a pediatric clinic in Tokyo. While the government will stop issuing new health insurance cards on Monday, most people will remain unaffected by the move in the short term as existing health insurance cards can still be used for another year.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?
By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’
Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’

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