A Maritime Self-Defense Force submarine took part in a drill last week in the disputed South China Sea for the first time, the Defense Ministry says, signaling Tokyo’s intention to keep in check Beijing’s muscle-flexing in the area.

Senior members of the Ground Self-Defense Force might be dispatched to the multinational peacekeeping force in Egypt under new security laws that expanded the scope of Japanese troops’ activities overseas, government sources say.

At 6 p.m. on one weekday in August an enthusiastic audience had almost filled Gion Corner, a theater of some 200 seats at the center of the Gion traditional entertainment district in the city of Kyoto. Occupying most of the seats were visitors from overseas, ...

Takashi Inoue wants to transform his company, Lifull Co., into a one-stop shop for important lifestyle goods and services, where customers don't just make purchases but are able to get information about what they are buying as well. Adding to Lifull's varied product offerings — ...

A transgender doctor has opened a clinic in Nagoya specializing in counseling and hormone therapy for transgender people. While people diagnosed with gender dysphoria in Japan are receiving more social support, such as getting health insurance coverage for gender reassignment surgery, the more widely adopted ...

Russia thinks Japan needs time to form a position on President Vladimir Putin’s unexpected peace treaty proposal last week, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says.

Hokkaido's agriculture, forestry and fishery industry has taken at least ¥39.7 billion in damage from the level 7 earthquake on Sept. 6, the prefectural government estimates. Landslides in Atsuma and two other towns near the epicenter severely damaged forests and farmland, the officials said. Of the ...

Over a fifth of Japan’s population is now 70 years old or older, the government says to mark Respect for the Elderly Day.

Hong Kong began a massive cleanup Monday after Typhoon Mangkhut raked the city, shredding trees and bringing damaging floods, in a trail of destruction that has left dozens dead in the Philippines and millions evacuated in southern China. The death toll in the Philippines, where ...

Chinese territorial and maritime revisionism has made the South China Sea the world's most critical hotspot.

Despite findings linking fossil fuels to ecological damage and global warming, big oil companies kept their data secret, and then lied about it, potentially dooming the rest of us as a result.

The outcome of the race between technology and education will determine whether the opportunities presented by major innovations are seized, and whether the benefits of progress are widely shared.

Reading Japanese explanations of Japanese grammar patterns is a surefire way to improve your reading ability and to make sure you're getting unadulterated content.

After Kansai International Airport was flooded by a typhoon, the central government and the region proposes temporarily routing some flights to other Kansai airports.

This November, a cafe will open in Akasaka, Tokyo, where customers will be served by "avatar robots" controlled remotely by severely handicapped employees.

Introducing the differences between the verbs "sumu" and "kurasu," as well as "tsutomeru" and "hataraku"

Located on the ninth floor of a nondescript commercial building in Nishi-Azabu, and identifiable only because of a row of United Nations-like flags outside, the diminutive yet cheery offices of the Embassy of the Republic of Nicaragua are perhaps parallel to that country's influence ...

Japan's star duo of Rui Hachimura and Yuta Watanabe proved their talent on Monday evening, coming through down the stretch in the hosts' 70-56 win over Iran in a FIBA World Cup Asian qualifier at Ota City General Gymnasium. Japan (4-4), which cruised past Kazakhstan ...

Sumo is Japan's national sport and can be seen from one end of the country to the other in both official tournaments as well as regional tours. The birthplace of the sport is in modern day Nara Prefecture, and on that site now stands the ...

Takumi Kuriyama hit a grand slam and helped the Seibu Lions widen their lead in the Pacific League with an 8-1 win against the second-place Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks on Monday. With the victory, the Lions saw gained a magic number of 11 toward clinching the ...

Yokozuna Kisenosato bounced back from defeat and posted a victory over ozeki Tochinoshin on Monday at the Autumn Grand Sumo Tournament. Fellow yokozuna Hakuho and Kakuryu both survived scares and remain undefeated after the ninth day of action at the 15-day tournament at Ryogoku Kokugikan. A ...

Floyd Mayweather says he doesn't really miss fighting yet and is looking forward to expanding his brand through business. The former five-division and 12-time boxing world champion is currently visiting Japan to form "TMT Tokyo" and establish a partnership between his newly-announced Mayweather Holdings, Japan's ...

The Tokyo Yakult Swallows may have lost against the Hiroshima Carp on Sunday, but all in all it was still a good week to be a Swallows fan. The team went 4-1-1 last week, and put a few more games between themselves and the Yomiuri ...

Nasa Hataoka fell further down the leaderboard Sunday and finished at 6-under-par 278, six strokes behind Evian Championship winner Angela Stanford of the United States. Hataoka shot two birdies, a bogey, and a double bogey for a 1-over in the final round at the Evian ...