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Digital minister Taro Kono (left), Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi (center) and former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba are among the potential candidates for the ruling party's presidential election next month.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 14, 2024

Kishida's out. Who will likely be Japan's next leader?

The prime minister's decision not to run in the Liberal Democratic Party's presidential race has ignited discussion on who might succeed him.
Former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi visits Yasukuni Shrine on Thursday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 15, 2024

Kishida clears the way for ministers to campaign in LDP election

Prospective candidates are weighing whether they can gather the necessary endorsements and rake in enough votes to have a decent shot at winning.
As if moving isn't stressful enough, Japan requires a host of paperwork to accompany your switch to a new apartment — a process that may get a little simpler in the near future.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Aug 16, 2024

Online banking consortium to slash the busywork of moving in Japan

The free service is expected to launch in February 2025, with even more functions available online by 2026.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Aug 16, 2024

Japan Times revamps iOS mobile app

This week we released a major upgrade of our mobile app.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Aug 16, 2024

Japan Times revamps Android mobile app

This week we released a major upgrade of our mobile app.
The Foreign Ministry has issued a Level 1 infectious disease alert for seven African countries, urging travelers to take precautions against mpox during visits to those nations.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 18, 2024

Japanese government considers taking precautions against mpox

Senior officials agreed to collect data on infection situations in countries where mpox outbreaks — formerly known as monkeypox — have been confirmed.
The volunteer lifesavers of Nishihama Surf Lifesaving Club never know what's in store at the start of their day.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Aug 19, 2024

It's no simple day at the beach for Japan's volunteer lifesavers

Protecting beachgoers from drowning, heatstroke and possible tsunami, lifesavers are seeking formal recognition for what they do.
A man tests his lung function free of charge using a device provided by the Tokushima Prefectural Government at an event organized by companies.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 19, 2024

Japan takes new steps against lifestyle-linked lung disease COPD

A health ministry survey highlighted 16,384 deaths from COPD in 2021, making it the ninth leading cause of death among men.
Bags of Indian spices and dry fruits at a roadside shop in New Delhi on May 3
BUSINESS
Aug 19, 2024

Nearly 12% of India's tested spice samples fail quality and safety standards

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India conducted inspections, sampling and testing of mixed spice blends.
Participants of Shomeikai’s Type B employment support workshop take part in a training session at a rental meeting room in the city of Fukuoka in May.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Aug 26, 2024

Welfare workshop helps people with disabilities become IT engineers

Shomeikai leverages on a cutting-edge software development methodology that lets users work in a team and support one another.
An ambulance is parked at the entrance of the emergency room of Saitama Hospital in Wako, Saitama Prefecture, on July 24.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Boiling Point
Aug 20, 2024

How Japan's health care system is gearing up for more heatstroke cases

Rising heatstroke cases are weighing on the nation’s health care system, which is already wrestling with the growing burden of a rapidly aging population.
People wait to board a Tokaido Shinkansen train at Tokyo Station on Aug. 10.
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2024

Bon holiday train passengers up 7% despite quake and typhoon worries

The possibility of a megaquake and news that a powerful typhoon was approaching Japan did not dissuade people from traveling for the holidays.
An image of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is displayed on a screen during a video presentation on the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on Monday.  Trump's campaign earlier this month reported that Iran hacked one of its websites.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 20, 2024

U.S. says Iran cyber operations targeted Trump and Harris campaigns

Iran's mission to the United Nations issued a statement calling the allegations "unsubstantiated and devoid of any standing."
The Metropolitan Police Department holds a workshop on dealing with cybercrimes in February.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 20, 2024

Tokyo police expand team for initial cybercrime investigations

The team will focus on investigations pertaining to online fraud, distribution of indecent images of children and drug trafficking.
Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui offers flowers for the victims of the massive landslides on the 10th anniversary of the disaster during a ceremony in Hiroshima on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2024

Victims of Hiroshima landslides remembered 10 years on

The landslides, which occurred in the early hours of Aug. 20, 2014, claimed the lives of 77 people and completely or partially destroyed 396 houses.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and head of the Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, look at weapons said to have been captured during Russia's military campaign in Ukraine, as they visit the Russian Special Forces University in Gudermes, Chechnya, on Tuesday.
WORLD
Aug 21, 2024

Ukraine's drone attack on Moscow 'one of largest ever,' mayor says

Russian air defense units destroyed at least 11 drones flying toward the capital, as well as 34 over the border Bryansk region and others, officials said.
A Ukrainian Humvee passes through the destroyed Russian border post at the Sudzha border crossing with Ukraine, on Aug. 12.
WORLD
Aug 22, 2024

Ukraine attacks Moscow in one of largest ever drone strikes on Russian capital

For months, Ukraine has fought an increasingly damaging drone war against the refineries and airfields of Russia.
The Italian Navy's aircraft carrier ITS Cavour at the Yokosuka naval base on Thursday. The 244-meter, 27,100-ton Italian flagship arrived at the base in Kanagawa Prefecture Thursday morning for a port call.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 22, 2024

Italy-Japan ties enter ‘new era’ amid deepening alignment, top envoy to Tokyo says

Underscoring this rapidly expanding partnership was the 244-meter, 27,100-ton flagship's visit to the Yokosuka naval base in Kanagawa Prefecture.
A drone view shows Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter, Florida, on Aug. 11.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 22, 2024

Trump earns big from Florida golf resorts as his other businesses flag

The health of Donald Trump’s golf business is a bright spot at a precarious moment for the Trump Organization.
Even when ships are docked, members of the Japan Coast Guard work on shifts on board. As such, the JCG is considering rehiring retired servicemen to allow crews to take sufficient holidays on land.
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2024

Japan Coast Guard promoting work style reform

The move comes as the agency grapples with a declining number of applicants as well as its rising turnover rate.
Currently, the frequency of medical visits is checked using receipts of medical fees issued by medical institutions and pharmacies to health insurance program operators.
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2024

Ministry to identify and support those who make frequent medical visits

The health ministry plans to carry out a model project for swiftly identifying welfare recipients who frequently visit the same medical institutions.
Hisako Tokuda left her office job to follow a passion for working with “bekko” (tortoiseshell) and says that even though it has been hard, she doesn’t regret it. 
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Aug 23, 2024

Hisako Tokuda: ‘I believe making things is what makes us human’

After taking an interest in tortoiseshell works, Hisako Tokuda left her office job and pursued her passion as an artisan.
A construction worker in Akasaka-Mitsuke, Tokyo, on Wednesday. High temperatures are projected to linger on past the summer.
JAPAN
Aug 23, 2024

High temperatures expected to continue in Japan through October

The warm fall will follow what has already been a particularly hot summer, with July’s average temperature coming in at a record high for the month.
A boy pushes a biped robot developed by LimX Dynamics at the World Robot Conference in Beijing on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 23, 2024

China's robot makers chase Tesla to deliver humanoid workers

The Asian giant's push into the emerging industry draws from the formula behind its initial electric vehicle drive more than a decade ago.
Health workers and patients in a ward for women infected with mpox at a hospital in Bujumbura, Burundi, on Thursday.
WORLD / Science & Health
Aug 23, 2024

WHO says partners can start talks to buy mpox vaccines before its approval

Traditionally, organizations like Gavi, which helps lower-income countries buy vaccines, can only start purchasing shots once they have approval from the WHO.
U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan attends a plenary session during the summit on peace in Ukraine, in Stansstad near Lucerne, Switzerland, in June.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 24, 2024

With election approaching, U.S. national security chief to visit China

During three days of talks starting Tuesday in Beijing, Jake Sullivan will discuss issues ranging from Taiwan to bilateral military talks.
Forensic police inspect the scene of stabbings in Solingen, Germany, on Saturday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Aug 24, 2024

Three dead in knife attack on German festival

Police closed off the center of Solingen, while victims and witnesses were being questioned about the attack on Friday night.
Elisabeth Furaha applies medication on the skin of her child, Sagesse Hakizimana, who is undergoing treatment for mpox, near Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Aug. 19.
WORLD / Science & Health
Aug 25, 2024

Why mpox vaccines are only just arriving in Africa after two years

The slow arrival of the shots — available in many places outside Africa — showed that lessons from COVID-19 about global health care inequity must still be learned.
The Environment Ministry plans to offer ¥100 million to the U.N. Environment Program to be used for a study into synergistic model cases including reducing greenhouse gas while preserving the ecosystem.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 25, 2024

Japan to give ¥100 million to U.N. environment program

The funds are to be set aside under the Environment Ministry's fiscal 2025 budget request.
The government is expanding subsidies for the use of robotics by nursing care facilities to reduce the burden on care staff amid a chronic labor shortage.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 25, 2024

Japan to expand nursing care robot introduction support

The government is working to reduce the burden on care staff while maintaining the quality of care services by utilizing robots.

Longform

Ayumi Matsuki, a priestess at Yoshiwara Shrine, shows off some "o-mamori" charms. She says visitors to the shrine have increased since the NHK drama “Unbound” began airing this month.
Tracing Tsutaya Juzaburo, Edo’s media maverick