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COMMENTARY
Mar 27, 2006

No more tax money to U.S.

The administration of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has played down Japanese public sentiment against the U.S. military presence, believing that most people approve of it in general but object when their own community is affected.
JAPAN
Mar 24, 2006

JAL misses jet check deadline, hit

The transport ministry Thursday ordered Japan Airlines to ground a jetliner that had gone unchecked 10 days past an inspection deadline, after it was discovered JAL had not followed proper procedures when conducting the belated check on the aircraft, ministry officials said.
COMMENTARY
Mar 20, 2006

Iwakuni vote poses a risk

In a referendum March 12, a majority of residents in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefecture, voted no on a government plan to host additional 57 carrier-based warplanes at the U.S. Marine Corps air station there. Under a plan for the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan, the planes are to be transferred from the...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 14, 2006

Iwakuni vote won't halt U.S. move: Abe

The central government will go ahead with plans to move 57 U.S. carrier-based warplanes and support personnel to the U.S. Marine Corps Iwakuni Air Station in Yamaguchi Prefecture, despite the overwhelming opposition expressed in a nonbinding local plebiscite, Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said Monday....
BUSINESS
Mar 4, 2006

Household spending, incomes slipped in January

Spending by wage-earning households fell a real 4.7 percent in January from a year earlier to 323,863 yen, the first decrease in four months, the government said Friday.
BUSINESS
Mar 1, 2006

Industrial production increased 0.3% in January

Industrial production rose a seasonally adjusted 0.3 percent in January from the previous month for the sixth straight monthly increase, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Feb 24, 2006

'05 tertiary index highest since '88

Japan's service industry activity index rose 2.2 percent in 2005 from the previous year for the third straight yearly increase, with the index registering its highest score since 1988, the government said Thursday.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 2, 2006

U.S. Navy puts maritime pirates on notice

HONOLULU -- In ordering a U.S. Navy destroyer to capture and board a suspected pirate ship on the high seas in the Indian Ocean, the United States has fired a warning shot across the bow of would-be terrorists who might lash up with pirates in the Asia-Pacific region.
COMMENTARY
Jan 24, 2006

Homestretch for Koizumi

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's structural reform initiative for a "small and efficient government" enters a crucial stage this year, since his term as president of the Liberal Democratic Party (and hence as prime minister) will expire in September.
BUSINESS
Jan 20, 2006

JAL may ax Vegas, some L.A. flights by autumn

Trouble-plagued Japan Airlines is close to stopping service on four international routes by this fall, including one from Kansai International Airport to Los Angeles and others from Narita airport to Las Vegas, sources said Thursday.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 6, 2006

East Timor split by truth, justice and reconciliation

EAST TIMOR Swooping low over the azure Savu Sea, the pristine coastline and gnarly hills of Timor suddenly appear about two hours after takeoff from Bali. Before entering the spartan air terminal, visitors pass through a trailer where, upon arrival, $30 one-month visas are sold.
JAPAN
Dec 26, 2005

Two ships enough to stop missiles: Defense Agency

The Defense Agency believes that keeping two Aegis warships equipped with Standard Missile 3 interceptor missile systems constantly deployed is sufficient to shield Japan from ballistic missiles, according to agency sources.
BUSINESS
Dec 21, 2005

Self-healing elevators up and running

Mitsubishi Electric Corp. group said Tuesday it has developed technology that will allow elevators to stop automatically in an earthquake, check for damage and quickly restore operations if no problems are detected.
EDITORIALS
Dec 9, 2005

Dutiful extension in Iraq

The government has extended by another year the deployment of Self-Defense Force (SDF) troops in Iraq. The extension, decided at Thursday's Cabinet meeting, came about by changing the basic plan under an ad hoc law that allows SDF soldiers to engage in noncombat activities in Iraq. The decision follows...
EDITORIALS
Nov 30, 2005

China's environmental challenge

Achemical spill on China's Songhua River is a grim reminder of the costs attendant to China's breakneck economic development. The release of toxic chemicals underscores three sets of challenges that China faces as it modernizes: environmental practices of its businesses, government's response to the...
EDITORIALS
Nov 26, 2005

Health ministry's number-juggling act

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's initiative to give local governments more fiscal autonomy -- part of his structural reform agenda -- is meeting stiff resistance from the central bureaucracy. The plan calls for seven ministries to cut a total of 630 billion yen in subsidies provided by the state. The...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 25, 2005

Auto lobby battling tax plans -- but why?

Japan's automotive industry Thursday lambasted the government's plans to make tax revenues hitherto earmarked for road construction available for general purposes.
COMMENTARY
Nov 24, 2005

Time for U.S. to leave Korea

When U.S. President George W. Bush was in Pusan last weekend for the APEC summit, he and South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun agreed upon a "strategic dialogue" at ministerial level on security issues.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Nov 20, 2005

The good, the bad and the cliched

A RABBIT'S EYES by Kenjiro Haitani. Vertical, 2005, 288 pp., $14.95 (paper). On first publication, the mellow and delightful 1974 novel "A Rabbit's Eyes," out now in English for the first time, brought Kenjiro Haitani a great deal of fame and a wide following.
BUSINESS
Nov 19, 2005

State special accounts: Why they face scrutiny

A subcommittee of the Finance Ministry's Fiscal System Council recommended Friday that the 31 special accounts in the government's budget be streamlined by absorption into the general account, privatization, or management by independent administrative institutions.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 17, 2005

Liberia's new president brings fresh hope

NEW YORK -- The election of Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf as president of Liberia could mean that a tremendously positive transformation could happen in Africa, one that may extend beyond Liberia's borders. In a country where women make up more than half the electorate, the election of Johnson-Sirleaf could...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / THEN AND NOW
Nov 11, 2005

Investigating the history of Hiroo

The Shibuya River starts at Shinjuku Gyoen. Running southward, it makes a big horseshoe curve near Ebisu and heads north to Roppongi. At Ichi-no-hashi, it abruptly bends east to eventually pour into Tokyo Bay. The river's upper reaches are now culverts, but water emerges just south of Shibuya Station...
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 10, 2005

Cultural diversity strengthens nations

During UNESCO's recent biannual conference at its Paris headquarters, the United States remained adamant in its opposition to the conclusion of an international convention on cultural diversity. On the surface it appears that the U.S. position is mainly motivated by trade interests. The U.S. seems to...
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 9, 2005

The politics of assigning a nuclear carrier to Japan

HONOLULU -- The easy part of newly assigning a U.S. aircraft carrier to Japan, which was to persuade the Japanese to accept a nuclear-powered vessel, has been accomplished. Now comes the hard part: deciding which one of 10 carriers should be based in the port of Yokosuka.

Longform

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