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July 27, 2024
 

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Jesse Johnson
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks aboard the USS Howard destroyer at the Yokosuka Naval Base, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, in September 2022.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 23, 2024
Continuity in Asia: Harris' policies likely to assuage concerns in Japan
Tokyo is already quite familiar with the approach of the U.S. vice president, who will likely continue her predecessor's foreign policy if she is elected president.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Defense Minister Minoru Kihara meet in Singapore in June.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 23, 2024
U.S.-Japan security talks to cover 'extended deterrence' for first time
The allies' top diplomats and defense chiefs will for the first time cover the U.S. commitment to using its military capabilities, including nukes, to protect its ally.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at the White House in Washington on July 4.
WORLD
Jul 22, 2024
Biden drops out of presidential race, endorsing Kamala Harris
The stunning announcement — just 3½ months before the Nov. 5 election — came as concerns mounted that Biden could not defeat Republican rival Donald Trump.
Former U.S. President and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks to his vice presidential pick, Sen. J.D. Vance, during the second day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 17, 2024
Trump's VP pick signals stronger focus on China
J.D. Vance represents a hardening of Trump’s “America First” stance, but could also help push a tougher line on China and support for democratic Taiwan.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 14, 2024
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
The FBI identified the suspected shooter as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, a Pennsylvania resident who was later killed by Secret Service agents.
The Defense Ministry in Tokyo
JAPAN / Society
Jul 12, 2024
Defense Ministry hands out rare mass punishment over SDF issues
The ministry has disciplined a total of 218 Self-Defense Force members and senior officials following a wide-ranging investigation.
Ground Self-Defense Force troops conduct a military drill on the uninhabited island of Irisuna in Okinawa Prefecture in November.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 12, 2024
Japan’s new defense white paper delivers strongest words yet on Taiwan
Tokyo pins the blame squarely on China's large-scale military exercises around the democratically ruled island for continued tensions in the region.
Ground Self-Defense Force members participate in a seminar to prevent harassment at Camp Asaka in Tokyo in April.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jul 10, 2024
Spate of scandals threaten to tarnish Defense Ministry and SDF’s reputation
The emergence of multiple scandals is the latest challenge for the Defense Ministry as it seeks to strengthen Japan’s defense capabilities.
A Maritime Self-Defense Force's SH-60K helicopter. On April 20, two such helicopters collided during nighttime training off a remote island near Tokyo, killing all aboard.
JAPAN
Jul 9, 2024
Lack of coordination and improper lookout caused MSDF copter crash
Both SH-60K helicopters were aware of the other’s presence but had not performed evasive maneuvers up until the collision, possibly misjudging their distance, panel says.
Ground Self-Defense Force personnel take part in a joint amphibious landing exercise with Philippine and U.S. troops in San Antonio, in the Philippines' Zambales province, in October 2018.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 8, 2024
Japan and Philippines ink key military pact in defense ties upgrade
The agreement — Tokyo's first with a Southeast Asian nation — will facilitate mutual military visits.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida listens to U.S. President Joe Biden as they hold a joint news conference in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington in April.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 6, 2024
Biden again takes credit for pushing Japan to boost defense spending
The U.S. president said for the second time in just over a year that he had pushed Japan to its hike defense budget — comments likely to upset Tokyo.
Ryo Sakai, the chief of staff of the Maritime Self-Defense Force, is expected to quit his post following reports that several MSDF vessels allowed unvetted personnel to handle top secret information related to national security.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 2024
MSDF chief may quit over widespread mishandling of secret info
The latest revelation comes just months after the ministry punished five SDF members over leaks of secret information to unvetted personnel.
Anti-landing barricades protrude from the beach in Kinmen, Taiwan, in February, with China's Xiamen city visible in the distance. Taipei has demanded that Beijing release a Taiwanese-registered fishing boat boarded and seized by the China Coast Guard near Kinmen late Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 3, 2024
China’s detention of Taiwan fishing boat risks raising tensions
The incident follows the expansion of China Coast Guard regulations allowing it to detain foreigners suspected of trespassing in waters Beijing claims for up to 60 days.
The focus on artificial intelligence comes as the Self-Defense Forces grapple with concerns about recruitment and its abilities to harness the power of new technologies.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2024
Japan’s Defense Ministry unveils first basic policy on use of AI
The new policy comes as Japan looks to stave off a manpower shortage and keep pace with China and the U.S. on the technology’s military applications.
People watch a news broadcast of a North Korean missile test, at the main rail station in Seoul on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 1, 2024
North Korea fires two missiles, with one possibly failing near Pyongyang
The launches came just days after large-scale military exercises between South Korea, Japan and the United States concluded.
Self-Defense Force troops take part in an amphibious landing exercise on Tokunoshima island in Kagoshima Prefecture last November.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 1, 2024
Japan's SDF marks 70th anniversary as it faces change and challenges
The SDF is grappling with dramatic policy shifts while facing down challenges ranging from recruitment to rising Chinese military assertiveness.
North Korea's claimed successful separation and guidance control test of individual mobile warheads is seen in this image released Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 27, 2024
In a first, North Korea claims successful multiple-warhead missile test
Such a capability would potentially allow Pyongyang to use a single missile to drop nuclear warheads on a broad swath of targets.
A vapor trail believed to be created by a North Korean ballistic missile is seen from South Korea's Yeonpyeong Island near the two countries' maritime boundary on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 26, 2024
North Korea missile launch ends in midair explosion, Seoul says
The launch came as the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier visited South Korea for joint military exercises with Seoul and Tokyo.
News of a North Korean missile launch is shown at a the main rail station in Seoul on May 30.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 25, 2024
State-run think tank makes rare call for Seoul to consider own nukes
While discussions have grown about Seoul deploying or building it own nuclear weapons, it is extremely unusual for a state-run body to broach the issue.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un toast during a reception at the Mongnangwan Reception House in Pyongyang on Wednesday following summit talks.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jun 21, 2024
New Kim-Putin pact sparks unease — and talk of more aid for Ukraine
An opaque new treaty signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this week could end up bolstering U.S.-allied cooperation.
Japan's population continues to fall even as foreign resident count rises
The number of residents in Tokyo as of Jan. 1 rose by 0.03% from a year before, data shows, marking a year-on-year increase for the first time in three years, while the country's other 46 prefectures saw their populations continue to decline.
Japan’s minimum wage set for record ¥50 hike in major boost
Demonstrators rally to demand a big hike in minimum wages in Tokyo last week.
One dead, three missing as heavy rain batters Tohoku
Camera footage shows the Mogami River bursting its banks in Tozawa, Yamagata Prefecture, on Friday morning.
Yen melt-up nudges Japanese stocks into correction territory
Japanese stocks are down 10% from their July peak as the yen strengthens.
Yen rally could help end crushing wage decay in Japan
Some economists say a sticky weak yen trend would have a negative impact on Japan's real wage growth.
Japan’s minimum wage set for record ¥50 hike in major boost
Demonstrators rally to demand a big hike in minimum wages in Tokyo last week.
Japan loses top spot on strongest passport list to Singapore
Japan had the strongest passport for six years running from 2018, before being dethroned by Singapore on the 2024 list.
Why Japan's mysterious stash of classified funds escapes scrutiny
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi (right) during a meeting in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Terunofuji, as he tends to do, returns to stamp his authority on sumo pretenders
Terunofuji (left) throws down Kirishima on Tuesday to build on his perfect record at the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament.
Japanese startups advised to internationalize to get some global mojo
Entrepreneurs who participated in the Beyond Japan Zero to X program last year share their experiences in the United States during a meeting in May in Tokyo.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Traditional folk rituals like Mizudome-no-mai (dance to stop the rain) provide a sense of agency to a population that feels largely powerless in the face of the climate crisis.
As climate extremes intensify, Japan embraces ancient weather rituals
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

mission sustainability vol.8: Omron Corp.Omron helping firms achieve carbon neutrality
mission sustainability vol.8: Omron Corp.Omron helping firms achieve carbon neutrality

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