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 Reiji Yoshida

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Reiji Yoshida
Reiji Yoshida is a staff writer and deputy manager of the Domestic News Division. Since joining The Japan Times in 1993, he has intensively covered domestic politics, diplomacy and defense issues as well as the 2011 Fukushima nuclear crisis.
JAPAN
Jan 8, 2004
Fukuda wary of motive behind North Korea thaw
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda remained wary Wednesday over a string of events indicating a possible softening of North Korea's stance toward Japan.
JAPAN
Jan 6, 2004
Koizumi opens year with Iraq-dispatch resolve
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi reiterated his resolve Monday to send Ground Self-Defense Force troops to Iraq to help in the country's reconstruction, despite the repeated attacks there believed carried out by insurgents and terrorist elements.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 3, 2004
Reliance on Komeito reflects LDP decline
Soon after the Nov. 9 general election of the House of Representatives, the Democratic Party of Japan compiled a thick report analyzing the results of all 300 single-seat constituencies.
BUSINESS
Dec 18, 2003
Pension reformers give short shrift to the bigger picture
The political battle over public pension reforms may have subsided, but it's only a temporary lull.
BUSINESS
Dec 18, 2003
Premiums rise, benefits fall under pension plan
The government and the ruling parties on Wednesday approved a public pension-reform plan that will increase premiums paid by workers and cut their benefits over the coming decades.
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2003
Ruling coalition agrees to hike pension premium to 18.35%
After a lengthy political tug of war, the Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito agreed Tuesday night that public pension premiums paid by the average salaried worker should be raised to 18.35 percent of annual income from the current 13.58 percent.
JAPAN
Dec 16, 2003
Japan pleased but still wary of security situation
Japan welcomes the much-awaited capture of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, but the local security situation still needs careful assessment ahead of any dispatch of Self-Defense Forces elements, top government officials said Monday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 14, 2003
SDP puts on brave face at national convention
The struggling Social Democratic Party formally approved at a national convention Saturday the appointment of top party officials, including Mizuho Fukushima as party president.
JAPAN
Dec 12, 2003
Rape allegation heaps misery on SDP
The Social Democratic Party found itself in further turmoil Thursday as a former state-paid secretary to party lawmaker Tomoko Abe was accused of raping a woman on several occasions last year.
JAPAN
Dec 10, 2003
Koizumi's credibility placed on the line
There is arguably no profession that places a greater premium on the credibility of a person's words than politics.
JAPAN
Dec 9, 2003
500 to 700 ground troops to be sent to Iraq
Japan plans to dispatch between 500 and 700 personnel from the Ground Self-Defense Force to areas centering around Al-Muthanna province in southeastern Iraq, which include the city of Samawah, government officials told ruling Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers Monday.
JAPAN
Dec 7, 2003
New Komeito urges caution on SDF dispatch
New Komeito will not "actively support" the dispatch of the Ground Self-Defense Forces to Iraq unless the security situation in the country improves, Secretary General Tetsuzo Fuyushiba told a meeting of local party representatives Saturday in Tokyo.
BUSINESS
Dec 6, 2003
LDP panel eyes consumption tax hike in future
The government should raise the consumption tax to support the ailing public pension system in future, senior members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's tax panel agreed Friday.
JAPAN
Nov 28, 2003
Ozawa takes DPJ vice presidency but keeps his distance from party
Veteran Diet lawmaker Ichiro Ozawa continues to make headlines, even for things he doesn't do.
JAPAN
Nov 26, 2003
Koizumi again vows Iraq dispatch
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi reiterated on Tuesday his intention to dispatch the Self-Defense Forces to Iraq but admitted it will be "difficult" to draw demarcation lines between combat zones and noncombat zones in the country.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 19, 2003
Tanaka gets a stage in Diet as DPJ ally
The Democratic Party of Japan may have obtained a powerful weapon Tuesday to wield against Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi: former Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 18, 2003
LDP, NCP ink absorption agreement
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and New Conservative Party leader Toshihiro Nikai signed an agreement Monday stating that all seven of the NCP's Diet members will be absorbed by the Liberal Democratic Party.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2003
SDP hands Fukushima huge task as new leader
Diet members of the minor opposition Social Democratic Party chose Mizuho Fukushima as their new president on Saturday, handing her the task of rebuilding a party that suffered a crushing defeat in the Nov. 9 general election.
JAPAN
Nov 15, 2003
Future pension benefits, premiums depend on who does the calculating
Four government entities are bracing for a policy showdown that could dictate the financial state of future generations and could influence the country's economic vitality for years to come.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 14, 2003
Doi throws in towel as SDP president
Takako Doi said Thursday she will resign as president of the Social Democratic Party to take responsibility for the SDP's crushing defeat in the general election.

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