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December 22, 2024
 

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Alastair Gale
Akihisa Nagashima, national security adviser to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 13, 2024
Japan must brace and prepare for Trump tariffs, top adviser says
"Japan must be prepared for Trump following through on his plans,” says Prime Minister Ishiba's national security adviser Akihisa Nagashima.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (right) and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol visit the cenotaph for the victims of the Korean atomic bomb victims in Hiroshima Peace Park in Hiroshima in May 2023.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 6, 2024
Former PM Kishida worried upheaval in Seoul may hurt ties
Kishida, who left office in September, formed a warm relationship with Yoon over frequent meetings.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol announces his decision to impose martial law on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 5, 2024
South Korea turmoil strikes at heart of U.S. alliances in Asia
The potential impeachment of South Korea’s president after an aborted attempt to impose martial law may complicate U.S. efforts to counter China.
Members of the Self-Defense Forces march at the GSDF Camp Asaka, which straddles Tokyo and Saitama, on Nov. 9. As part of a five-year defense buildup launched in 2022, the government has said it will raise personal income, corporate and tobacco taxes to cover the added costs.
JAPAN
Nov 29, 2024
Japan wobbles on tax hikes to pay for historic defense buildup
A decision on raising taxes to help cover rising defense spending may be delayed again, a senior ruling coalition official has said.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Komeito leader Keiichi Ishii appeal to voters in Soka, Saitama Prefecture, on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 17, 2024
LDP may lose majority for first time since 2009, media forecasts show
Public support for the LDP has taken a beating following funding scandal that began last year.
The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier (left) and its strike group sails in formation with Italy's Cavour carrier (right) strike group in the Pacific Ocean on Aug. 9.
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Aug 17, 2024
NATO steps up naval presence in Western Pacific to counter China
The latest entrant is the Italian aircraft carrier Cavour, the first time Rome has deployed its lone carrier to the Pacific.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s decision to step down opens the door to newcomers competing at a time when the central bank is paving the way for policy normalization.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 16, 2024
Japan's change of leadership comes at challenging time for monetary policy
Next month’s ruling party vote will be held against a backdrop of persistent inflation.
Wreckage from a crashed U.S. Air Force CV-22B Osprey is brought ashore at a port on Yakushima island, Kagoshima Prefecture, on Nov. 30, 2023.
JAPAN
Aug 2, 2024
Gearbox fault caused fatal Osprey crash in Japan, U.S. Air Force says
The crash was caused by a "catastrophic” failure of the left-hand gearbox, which destabilized the aircraft.
Taro Kono, Japan's digital transformation minister, speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 17, 2024
Taro Kono says central bank needs to raise rates to lift yen
Kono’s remarks could add to pressure on the Bank of Japan’s policy board to raise interest rates when it meets at the end of this month.
Nippon Steel alleges undue White House influence on doomed deal review
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the economy at the Brookings Institution in Washington on Dec. 10.
Record 78% of people in Japan feel anxious, government survey finds
The public opinion survey on people's lives, conducted by the Cabinet Office, found that 28.1% of respondents think that their standard of living is at a lower-middle level among the general public — the highest percentage to give that response in 35 years.
Police raided suspect's home to arrest him after fatal Kitakyushu stabbing
Broken window glass is seen at Masanori Hirabaru's house in Kitakyushu's Kokuraminami Ward.
Taiwan lawmakers brawl over bills that would 'damage democracy'
Lawmakers from the Democratic Progressive Party and opposition party Kuomintang brawl in parliament in Taipei on Friday.
Mother hopes for reunion with daughter ensnared by Tokyo host clubs
The Kabukicho district in Tokyo, where the daughter of a woman in her 60s fell deeply into the host club culture.
Casual workouts, cool living, ‘complete’ food: Japan’s health trends of 2024
In 2024, efficiency trumped effort among Japan's fitness-focused aspirants.
Japanese officials inspect Yokota Air Base over PFAS concerns
The Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo in September 2019. An inspection of the base by Japanese government officials on Friday came amid public pressure to investigate suspected links between the use of PFAS-containing firefighting foam by the U.S. base and contamination of soil and groundwater in western Tokyo.
Crime numbers rise in Japan for second straight year
A police officer stands in front of the residence of a man alleged to have stabbed two junior high school students in Kitakyushu.
A year of Oscar wins and a quiet push for diversity
Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Evil Does Not Exist,” released in Japanese theaters in April, sharply dramatizes the clash between rural and urban values. The film won five awards at the 2023 Venice Film Festival, including the second-place Silver Lion prize.
Curiosity didn’t kill the meme: Why cats still rule Japanese YouTube
A screen shot from YouTube user @lagelda shows the simplicity of going viral in Japan in 2024: A cat dancing to EDM in front of a green screen.

Podcast

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

Longform

Yasuyuki Yoshida stirs a brew in a fermentation tank at his brewery in Hakusan.
The quake that shook Noto's sake brewing tradition
By Alex K.T. Martin

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