A bipartisan group of U.S. policy experts recommended Wednesday that the Self-Defense Forces and the U.S. military create a combined joint task force to better cope with possible contingencies with China over Taiwan, as well as the South and East China seas, as part ...

While the prime minister has declared boosting the profile of professional women a top policy priority, Tuesday’s reshuffle reduced the number of female ministers to just one.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's latest Cabinet reshuffle has failed to gain much public support, with a survey showing Wednesday that 45.2 percent of respondents did not view it positively, while only 31.0 percent said they did. A reshuffle typically helps boost a Cabinet's approval ratings, ...

Satsuki Katayama, the sole female minister named to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's reshuffled Cabinet, demonstrated her presence from the start of her tenure, as she was seen rushing to buy a new dress just before the declaration ceremony Tuesday at the Imperial Palace in ...

A Japanese probe launched a new observation robot toward an asteroid on Wednesday as it pursues a mission to shed light on the origins of the solar system. The Hayabusa2 probe launched the French-German Mobile Asteroid Surface Scout, or MASCOT, toward the Ryugu asteroid's surface, ...

A 30-year-old man, who was at large for nearly seven weeks after escaping from a police station in Osaka Prefecture in mid-August, masqueraded as a cycle tourist, spun a web of lies and stole basic goods including clothes and a bicycle, investigative sources said ...

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday openly mocked the university professor who has accused his Supreme Court nominee of sexual assault, joking about her inability to remember details surrounding the night of the alleged attack. It marked an aggressive change of tactics after Trump shown ...

Findings by a third-party committee of lawyers, released in September, stated that management were involved in forgeries of loan screening documents, sources said.

The White House's high-stakes talks with Pyongyang over its nuclear program have entered a crucial phase, with the negotiations likely to hinge on a scheduled meeting Sunday between U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The U.S. State Department ...

Experts said a near-miss between a U.S. Navy destroyer and a Chinese warship in the disputed South China Sea earlier this week could have dire implications for American allies and partners operating in the waterway and elsewhere — including Japan — after the U.S. ...

China has ordered A-list movie star Fan Bingbing to pay about 884 million yuan ($129 million) in overdue taxes and fines, the Xinhua News Agency said on Wednesday, as a crackdown on tax evasion in the entertainment industry gathers momentum. The 37-year-old actor, whose June ...

Roger Federer said on Tuesday in Tokyo that his decision to end a 20-year association with Nike and embark on a new chapter with Uniqlo was influenced by the Japanese clothing company's commitment to stay with him long after his playing days are over. While ...

The U.S. Treasury Department took aim Tuesday at Japan's largest yakuza syndicate, placing four senior officials of the Yamaguchi-gumi on its sanctions blacklist as well as two companies tied to the gang. "We are ramping up pressure on this dangerous Japanese crime syndicate and local ...

An international conservation committee ruled on Tuesday that Japan's domestic commercial distribution of meat from sei whales caught for scientific purposes violates the so-called Washington convention and advised the country to take corrective steps. The pact, formally called the Convention on International Trade in Endangered ...

Will public opinion thwart Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's effort to amend the Constitution?

After decades of thoughtless military interventionism, it is little wonder that so many Americans support Trump's "America First" policy.

In these polarized times, crises bring together people from a range of backgrounds to spread the word about perils linked to climate change.

Some readers' letters in response to the recent Community articles about Japan's first tennis singles Grand Slam champion.

Aero — a fun-loving, happy dog that "sometimes goes over the top in his exuberance" — has found a family.

I first heard Ami Yamasaki's voice in 2016 at a studio where I hosted a radio show in New York. She popped by to promote an upcoming performance at the Japan Society with composer Mamoru Fujieda, koto player Kayoko Nakagawa and shō (free ...

In the 1960s Koji Wakamatsu was Japanese cinema's enfant terrible: A real-life outlaw — he once joined a yakuza gang and served time in prison — he made pioneering "pink" (softcore porn) films such as "The Embryo Hunts in Secret" (1966) and "Go, Go, ...

"You Are the Apple of My Eye," a teen romance by writer and director Giddens Ko in 2011, became a hit not only in his native Taiwan but across Asia. Seeing it at the Udine Far East Film Festival, I was struck by the ...

How much did movie fans hate "Star Wars: The Last Jedi"? Perhaps not as fiercely as social media might suggest, according to a U.S. academic study which found that half of negative tweets about the 2017 movie came from bots, trolls or political activists, some ...

Matt Carasiti tossed four solid innings on Wednesday and the Tokyo Yakult Swallows' bullpen maintained an early lead for a 2-1 victory over the Yokohama BayStars. Despite outhitting the Swallows, the BayStars were unable to take advantage of several chances at Jingu Stadium and suffered ...

Atsuto Uchida struck a 93rd-minute winner as the Kashima Antlers completed a remarkable 3-2 comeback win over the Suwon Bluewings in the first leg of their Asian Champions League semifinal on Wednesday night. The former Japan defender scrambled the ball across the line from a ...

The NFL suspended Seattle Seahawks linebacker Mychal Kendricks indefinitely on Tuesday after he pleaded guilty last month to federal insider trading charges. Kendricks was suspended under the personal-conduct policy, said league spokesman Brian McCarthy. A suspension had been anticipated since his guilty plea in early September. Seattle ...

Kei Nishikori was everywhere. Whether it was the left side of the court, the right side of the court or near the net, for large stretches it seemed like wherever Benoit Paire hit the ball, Nishikori was there to meet it. Before long, they were ...

Former top-division wrestler Osunaarashi fell to 45-year-old actor Bob Sapp in his mixed martial arts debut this week. The fight at Saitama Super Arena, which was widely derided online and in the media, slowed to a snail's pace after 30 seconds, and ended with both ...

Lewis Hamilton will be looking to restore normal service at the Japanese Grand Prix after being gifted a controversial victory by Mercedes in Russia last weekend. But the runaway Formula One championship leader appears to have complicated that task by refusing to rule out leaving ...

Real Madrid is having trouble scoring with Cristiano Ronaldo no longer on the team. His new club, Juventus, did just fine without him on Tuesday. For the first time in more than a decade, Madrid has gone three straight games without a goal after losing ...

Since his 2012 arrival in Japan, Nick Fazekas has been regarded as one of the very best to compete in Japan pro basketball. Now, he is one of the very best Japanese players. Late in April, the Kawasaki Brave Thunders made the stunning announcement that their ...

Tony Wolters waited and waited as the NL wild-card game went deep into Tuesday night. He stretched a couple of times and tried to figure out when he might get a chance to play. When that opportunity arrived, he was ready. Wolters hit a tiebreaking single ...

The pitching staff of the Seibu Lions has put up some scary numbers in 2018. Not scary-good numbers either. The recently crowned Pacific League champions entered Wednesday's games with a 4.23 team ERA that ranked 10th in NPB. They're eighth in Japan in fielding independent ...