To cushion the impact of the first stage of the consumption tax hike, the government plans to distribute cash payments of ¥10,000 to ¥15,000 to people with low incomes, sources said Wednesday. Households exempt from the local inhabitant tax will receive ¥10,000 per person, ...

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe maintained the lineup of his Liberal Democratic Party executives Tuesday, though he is expected to reshuffle lower-ranking members of the Cabinet later this month, party lawmakers said. The party’s general council backed Abe’s decision to keep Shigeru Ishiba as secretary-general ...

Caroline Kennedy, nominated by U.S. President Barack Obama to be America’s next ambassador to Japan, will take questions next week during a confirmation hearing on her appointment, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said Wednesday. The hearing Thursday will be Kennedy’s first chance since her ...

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Thursday that Japan must consider what role it should play in global affairs as he expressed a willingness to advance the national debate on lifting the self-imposed ban on collective self-defense. “We will consider and pursue where Japan should ...

A year to the day after Japan nationalized the Senkaku Islands, the Japan Coast Guard goes on high alert for potential confrontations over the issue.

As Tokyo continues to celebrate landing the 2020 Summer Olympics, some in Osaka are making noises about a future bid from the Kansai region.

Zhu Jianrong, a Chinese scholar based in Japan who comments on Tokyo-Beijing relations is under investigation in China for alleged espionage, Chinese sources said Tuesday. Zhu, a professor of Chinese politics and diplomacy at Toyo Gakuen University in Tokyo, has been missing since he ...