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The Justice Ministry is considering helping Ukraine improve laws and regulations.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 14, 2024

Japan to help Ukraine improve laws to support reconstruction

The move is intended to support Ukraine's negotiations for EU membership and create an environment good for Japanese companies to enter the Ukrainian market.
Indian Ambassador Sibi George says one of his main tasks in his post is to boost Japanese public and private investments the South Asian powerhouse.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 18, 2024

India’s envoy in Japan calls for boosted supply chain and defense cooperation

The ambassador’s remarks come after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged to continue prioritizing ties with Japan.
Two Air Self-Defense Force F-15s (right) escort two German Air Force Eurofighter jets and an A330MRTT aerial tanker on their arrival in Japan Friday. The ASDF is conducting training exercises with the German, French and Spanish air forces this weekend.
JAPAN
Jul 19, 2024

German, French and Spanish fighter aircraft arrive in Japan for joint drills

The stopover in Japan is part of a two-month, trinational Pacific Skies deployment that will also take the three countries’ air forces to Australia, India and Hawaii.
People hold umbrellas while watching baseball to deal with the heat in the city of Shizuoka on July 7.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 19, 2024

As risk of heatstroke rises in Japan, so does that of COVID-19

Patients examined for suspected heatstroke have been diagnosed with COVID-19 instead, as symptoms can be similar.
(From left) Kim Myung-soo, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of South Korea, Gen. Yoshihide Yoshida, chief of staff of the SDF's Joint Staff, and Gen. Charles Brown, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Thursday
JAPAN
Jul 19, 2024

Japan and South Korea top uniformed officers resume dialogue

The meeting emphasized strong Japan, South Korea, and U.S. ties as the international community faces a crucial moment for maintaining order and the rule of law.
Self-Defense Forces soldiers walk past a Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missile unit in Tokyo in October 2017.
JAPAN
Jul 20, 2024

U.S.-Japan Patriot missile production plan hits Boeing component snag

The plan to boost production by the U.S. ally is being delayed by a shortage of a critical component manufactured by Boeing.
A concept model of the Global Combat Air Program fighter jet is displayed at the DSEI Japan defense show at Makuhari Messe in Chiba in March last year.
JAPAN
Jul 20, 2024

U.K. defense chief to discuss joint fighter program with Italy and Japan

There has been speculation that the Labour Party might not recommit to the next-gen fighter program in light of a defense review it recently announced.
A full-scale model of the new design of a next-generation fighter that Japan, Italy and Britain plan to develop together is showcased Monday by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Leonardo and BAE Systems — the projects’ lead system integrators — at the Farnborough International Airshow near London on Monday.
JAPAN
Jul 23, 2024

Japan and partners unveil design for cutting-edge new joint fighter

While unlikely to be the final design, the refined concept features major changes in the wing and aft fuselage areas ostensibly meant to improve its aerodynamics.
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. 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.
The health ministry is calling for people to take infection control measures thoroughly as cases of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases are rising in Japan.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 24, 2024

Japan battling 11th COVID wave, data shows, as KP.3 variant evades immunity

New infections have been increasing for 10 consecutive weeks amid the rise of the highly transmissible new coronavirus variant.
A computer-generated image shows the new refined design of a next-generation fighter aircraft being co-developed by Japan, Britain and Italy.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 24, 2024

Japan has ‘no concerns’ over rumored hitch in joint fighter jet plans

While experts agree there are currently no indications that the U.K. might drop out of the program, the multilateral project still faces a number of challenges.
A German Air Force Eurofighter jet takes off from Chitose Airbase in Hokkaido during Germany and Japan's first-ever bilateral fighter exercise, which ran from Monday to Thursday.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2024

Japan and Germany elevate ties with first joint fighter exercise

Named Nippon Skies, the aerial maneuvers took place in the airspace around the Air Self-Defense Force’s Chitose Air Base in Hokkaido.
Enea Almeida (right), chair of the Brazilian amnesty commission, shakes hands with the representative for Japanese immigrants on Thursday in Brasilia.
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2024

Brazil issues apology for persecuting Japan immigrants during WWII

The apology aims to restore the dignity Japanese Brazilians lost due to the government's past atrocities, 79 years after the end of the war.
The Sado Gold Mine, so heavily tapped that the mountain bearing it has been cleaved in two, is up for consideration for UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site status.
JAPAN
Jul 27, 2024

Japan should display full history of Sado mine, South Korean archaeologist says

He will not advise the South Korean UNESCO delegation against accepting the designation of the mine if Japan explains its history properly.
Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi meet on the sidelines of Association of Southeast Asian Nations meetings in Vientiane, Laos, on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 27, 2024

As foreign ministers meet, China says relations with Japan at 'critical stage'

The pair discussed thorny issues, including Japanese nationals detained in China, food import bans and semiconductor curbs.
Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and her South Korean counterpart, Cho Tae-yul, shake hands during talks on the sidelines of Association of Southeast Asian Nations meetings in Vientiane, Laos, on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 27, 2024

Japan and South Korea top diplomats pledge even stronger cooperation

The pair reaffirmed the importance of cooperation in order to maintain and strengthen a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
A tunnel inside the Sado Island Gold Mines in Sado, Niigata Prefecture
JAPAN / History
Jul 27, 2024

Japan's Sado gold mines added to World Heritage list

The site is associated with Korean wartime labor and was once the world's largest gold mine complex.
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. 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.
Though some in the country rejected their wartime associations, the Japanese government made the Hinomaru flag and "Kimigayo" anthem official 25 years ago.
JAPAN / History / Japan Times Gone By
Aug 1, 2024

Japan Times 1999: Flag, anthem now official

After some controversy, the Hinomaru flag was made official alongside the country's national anthem, "Kimigayo."
Inscriptions on a disaster monument in Miyako, Iwate Prefecture (left), can be seen clearly when illuminated using a smartphone app "Hikari Takuhon" developed by researcher Hideyuki Uesugi.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jul 30, 2024

Number of natural disaster monuments on state map increasing in Japan

Stone monuments inscribed with descriptions of the damage caused by past natural disasters and lessons from forerunners have been erected since ancient times.
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 State Antony Blinken looks on as Prime Minister Fumio Kishida shakes hands with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 31, 2024

China lodges protest with Japan over 'irresponsible remarks' in talks with U.S.

China's director-general of Asian affairs at the Foreign Ministry lodged a complaint with the Japanese Embassy, in the latest row between the Asian giants.
Japan has made an extradition request for anti-whaling activist Paul Watson.
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2024

Denmark says Japan made extradition request for anti-whaling activist Watson

Japan is one of only three countries in the world to permit commercial whaling, along with Iceland and Norway.
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.
Chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Gen. Romeo Brawner (left), and Yoshihide Yoshida, chief of staff of the Joint Staff of the Self-Defense Forces, in Manila in July
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 2, 2024

Philippines and Japan militaries hold first joint exercises in South China Sea

The drills, which took place within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, followed similar exercises between Manila and Washington on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during the opening session of the 10th Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting in Tokyo last month.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 3, 2024

Japan and Central Asia to vow to uphold rule of law

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida aims to drive a wedge between these Central Asian countries and China and Russia during a summit later this month.
Freshly-caught bonito fish unloaded in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture. Japan's food exports to China plunged in the first half of 2024 due to Beijing's import ban on Japanese fishery products.
JAPAN
Aug 4, 2024

Japan's first-half food exports fall for first time in four years

The latest result reflected China's import ban on Japanese fishery products since last summer in response to the release of treated Fukushima water.
Ukrainian Minister of Justice Denys Maliuska (center left) and Justice Minister Ryuji Koizumi (center right) sign a memorandum of cooperation on judicial reforms and anti-corruption measures, in Kyiv on Monday.
JAPAN
Aug 5, 2024

Japan and Ukraine agree to cooperate on anti-corruption measures

The countries' two justice ministries will cooperate across fields such as judicial reform and the strengthening of judicial institutions via personnel training.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?