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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 Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 28, 2017
Labor reform panel adopts final report calling for overtime caps
A government labor reform panel adopted a final report Tuesday calling for revised labor laws capping overtime at 100 hours a month and improving conditions for nonregular workers.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 27, 2017
Discount travel agency Tellmeclub files for bankruptcy
Tokyo-based travel agency Tellmeclub filed for bankruptcy with the Tokyo District Court on Monday with liabilities estimated at ¥15.1 billion, including ¥9.9 billion relating to 36,000 travel contracts.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 23, 2017
In sworn testimony, Kagoike says he got ¥1 million in envelope during Akie Abe's visit
The head of Moritomo Gakuen tells the Diet in sworn testimony he got a u00a51 million donation from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to fund his nationalist elementary school.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 22, 2017
Government bans Brazilian meat producers over bribery scandal, says supplies won't be affected
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said on Wednesday the blocking of imports from 21 Brazilian processing plants involved in a high-profile bribery and tainted-meat scandal will not affect supplies in Japan.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 21, 2017
Cherry blossoms get an early start in Tokyo despite chilly, wet weather
Tokyo was rainy and cold on the first day sakura cherry blossoms officially began blooming in the nation's capital, according to the Meteorological Agency, with the peak timing for flower-viewing predicted to come in a week to 10 days.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Mar 17, 2017
Tillerson's tough talk on North Korea garners mixed reviews
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson issued bold proclamations during his Asia visit, saying that “all options are on the table” in dealing with nuclear-armed North Korea.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 16, 2017
Tillerson calls for new approach on North Korea
Visiting U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson indicated Thursday in Tokyo that Washington is ready to toughen its diplomatic approach toward North Korea, noting the futility of trying to convince it to abandon its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 14, 2017
Japan defense chief Inada in crosshairs after Moritomo scandal flip-flop
A court record linking Defense Minister Tomomi Inada and a scandal-tainted nationalist Osaka-based school operator emerged Tuesday, prompting Inada to withdraw an earlier denial of the link.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 13, 2017
Abe courts Saudi king as pair agree to launch study on special economic zones
Saudi Arabian King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz al-Saud and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agree to push forward on special deregulated economic zones to attract Japanese firms to the Middle Eastern country.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Mar 13, 2017
Abe stands his ground as Moritomo Gakuen scandal drags on
More than a month has passed since nationalistic school operator Moritomo Gakuen first made headlines over a controversial land deal for its next school.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 10, 2017
Japan to end SDF's South Sudan mission in May
The decision puts an end to participation in a U.N.-led peacekeeping operation that has been in place for over five years, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Friday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 10, 2017
In statement to WTO, U.S. urges Japan to further open up auto, farm markets
The U.S. said Tokyo should “take new, bold steps” to remove regulations and nontariff barriers to trade, hinting at possible priorities for president Donald Trump.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 9, 2017
North Korean missile splashdown closest so far to Japan's mainland, government says
One of the missiles fired into the Sea of Japan on Monday landed about 200 km north of the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture.
Japan Times
JAPAN / AFTEREFFECTS OF MARCH 2011
Mar 8, 2017
In tsunami-hit Kesennuma, fishing industry recovers but scars remain
A stranger visiting the fishing port of Kesennuma today may not realize that six years ago it suddenly became the scene of massive, deadly devastation.
Japan Times
JAPAN / AFTEREFFECTS OF MARCH 2011
Mar 7, 2017
Tsunami-hit Rikuzentakata rebuilding on raised ground, hoping to thrive anew
This is the first of a four-part series looking at the lasting impact of the March 11, 2011, disasters.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 24, 2017
'Premium Friday' drive kicks off to energize weary workers, feeble economy
The government-backed "Premium Friday" campaign kicked off on Friday with around 130 participating firms across the country encouraging employees to leave work early on the last Friday of each month.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Feb 21, 2017
Migrants exploiting refugee applicant loophole to work in labor-scarce Japan
Sayaka Hirose is a Tokyo-based immigration lawyer specializing in assisting Indonesians coming to Japan. She says that in the past two years her clients have been seeking legal advice on an issue she had never encountered before.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 14, 2017
Deflecting criticism of Trump ties, Abe says 'no other choice' but close Japan-U.S. relationship
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says Tokyo must maintain close ties with U.S. President Donald Trump because the United States realistically is the only country that can effectively defend Japan if it were attacked.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 10, 2017
Record 10,901 refugee applicants face abysmal odds of acceptance in Japan
As refugee applications continue to break records in Japan, the government's abysmal acceptance rate remains cause for international criticism.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 7, 2017
On the links, Abe to seek closer ties with Trump
During his U.S. visit this week, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is scheduled to play golf with President Donald Trump, a match-up he hopes will build closer personal ties.

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