As Japan braces for a snap election later this month, Toshihiro Nikai, the No. 2 man of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, on Wednesday dismissed it as "impossible" that his party will lose big enough to put the leadership of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ...

A man in his 40s in Tokushima Prefecture has acquired the tick-borne disease known as severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome, or SFTS, through contact with a dog, local government said Tuesday. It is the first case of the infection transmitted through a dog, according to ...

The health ministry has enlisted the help of Amuro, the protagonist of the popular anime series "Mobile Suit Gundam," in its battle against the misuse and overuse of antibiotics — which can lead to antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Amuro Ray's famous phrase, "Amuro ikimasu!" ("Amuro is ...

Mount Shinmoe in the Kirishima mountain range bordering Kagoshima and Miyazaki prefectures erupted early Wednesday, marking its first such activity in about six years. The Meteorological Agency raised the warning level for a volcanic eruption to Level 3, restricting entry to the mountain. It warned ...

The Tokyo Stock Exchange said it removed Toshiba Corp. from its watch list for delisting after seeing better internal controls and efforts to improve corporate governance. Toshiba has made progress with its bookkeeping since an accounting scandal in 2015 and the disclosure of multibillion-dollar losses ...

A court orders the government to pay damages to residents around the U.S. Yokota Air Base over aircraft noise while dismissing the plaintiffs’ calls to halt some flights.

A three-day trade show featuring Japanese food opened Wednesday in Chiba, aiming to help expand exports of farm and fisheries products at a time when washoku (Japanese cuisine) is gaining popularity overseas among health-conscious consumers. More than 1,000 buyers from 66 countries and regions are ...

The U.S. sent powerful B-1B bombers from Guam for joint exercises with the South Korean Air Force over the Korean Peninsula late Tuesday as President Donald Trump gathered his top national security advisers to discuss "a range of options" for dealing with North Korea's ...

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's decision to call a snap election for Oct. 22 has clouded the outlook for Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda and one of the world's most radical monetary policy regimes. While the ruling Liberal Democratic Party is expected to attract the ...

Kobe Steel Ltd. raises fresh concern about the integrity of Japanese manufacturers after disclosing it falsified data on aluminum used in products ranging from cars to bullet trains.

Police arrested a woman on Tuesday for alleged vandalism at a building in the historically important Zenkoji Temple complex in Nagano Prefecture, while also looking into her possible connection with other graffiti found there. The 47-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion that she made x-marks ...

China's Communist Party opened a meeting Wednesday to make final preparations for a key party congress later this month, state media said, a five-yearly event where President Xi Jinping is expected to further tighten his grip on power. The seventh plenary session of the party's ...

SoftBank Group Corp. is leading a $93 million (about ¥10.4 billion) investment in a startup that simplifies for companies the use of machine learning or deep learning applications at scale. Petuum Inc., based in Pittsburgh, makes artificial intelligence software that can be used by a ...

A U.S. Navy destroyer sailed near islands claimed by China in the South China Sea on Tuesday, three U.S. officials said, even as President Donald Trump's administration seeks China's cooperation in dealing with North Korea's missile and nuclear programs. The operation was the latest attempt ...

Yuko Tanno, a supermarket worker who survived the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in the Tohoku region, says she will definitely move back to her old neighborhood, where she lost her 13-year-old son to the massively high waves. "The landscape is different from the time ...

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he likely will sign an order this week that is expected to allow Americans to buy stripped-down health insurance policies, a step some experts say would further undermine the Obamacare law that Trump opposes. Unable to win passage of ...

The last privately owned Leonardo da Vinci painting and one of fewer than 20 by the Renaissance artist known to still exist is hitting the auction block, Christie's announced on Tuesday. "Salvator Mundi," an ethereal portrait of Jesus Christ that dates to about 1500, is ...

We now have five years of data on Xi Jinping's policies and predilections, and very little of it suggests he is deeply invested in a pro-market, reformist agenda.

King Bhumibol successfully transformed the declining monarchy into the most important political institution in Thailand.

Ibrahim Yener discusses the lessons learned from his successful discrimination case against a used car dealership.

Maggie's Tokyo opened its doors in October last year, offering a space for cancer patients and their family members and friends to talk.

Hidetomo Masuno says he thinks too much. The 41-year-old comedian who goes by the name Bakarhythm says he spends most of his waking hours deep in thought — "but first," he stresses, "I observe." Working girl: Hidetomo Masuno paints an interesting picture of life at ...

Hokkaido Nippon Ham's two-way star Shohei Otani will undergo surgery on his right ankle in Tokyo on Thursday, the Fighters said. Otani, 23, will have keyhole surgery to treat a posterior impingement, according to his club. The slugging ace initially suffered the injury while running the ...

Hideki Kuriyama will remain at the helm of the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters for a seventh season, the Pacific League club said Wednesday. Kuriyama met with team owner Juichi Suezawa in Tokyo and agreed to a contract extension that will keep him in Sapporo through ...

Chiba Lotte Marines right-hander Hideaki Wakui could make himself available on the free-agent market to pursue a long-held dream of playing in the major leagues, a club executive said Wednesday. "We've known how he has always felt (about wanting to play in the majors). He's ...

Tadahito Iguchi, a member of the 2005 World Series champion Chicago White Sox and a three-time Japan Series winner, will manage the Chiba Lotte Marines next season, according to sources Tuesday. Although a long list of Japanese players have competed in the majors, the 42-year-old ...

National team manager Vahid Halilhodzic branded Japan's 3-3 draw with Haiti on Tuesday "the worst match I have seen" and warned his players to shape up or be humiliated in next month's friendlies against Brazil and Belgium. "I've been a manager for many years and ...

NFL team owners will consider requiring players to stand for the U.S. national anthem after President Donald Trump on Tuesday stepped up his criticism of silent player protests against racial injustice by targeting the league on taxes. Trump, a Republican, escalated his feud with the ...