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Jesse Johnson
People walk past a television screen showing a news broadcast with file footage of a North Korean missile test, at the main train station in Seoul on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 8, 2025
North Korea fires off multiple short-range missiles from east coast
One of the missiles had traveled 800 kilometers, Japan's Defense Ministry said, nearly falling inside the country's exclusive economic zone.
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani (right) stands alongside his Indian counterpart, Rajnath Singh, during a ceremonial reception in New Delhi on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 6, 2025
Japan and India to set up new consultation defense cooperation framework
The two countries' defense chiefs have also agreed on a plan to look at how Japan can help India develop fighter jets and tanks, including by exporting engines.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping attends a meeting in Hanoi on April 14 with Vietnamese Communist Party General-Secretary To Lam.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 4, 2025
China's Xi to visit Russia for Victory Day events and talks with Putin
Xi Jinping, who had already been set to attend a Victory Day parade in Moscow on Friday, will also hold talks with Vladimir Putin on their countries' "no-limits" partnership.
A China Coast Guard helicopter is seen near the Japanese-controlled Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea on Saturday.
JAPAN
May 3, 2025
China Coast Guard helicopter enters Japanese airspace near Senkakus
The incursion near the Japanese-controlled, Chinese-claimed islands on Saturday was just the fourth such flight by Chinese aircraft since the end of World War II.
An unidentified weapons system is fired from the deck of North Korea's latest destroyer, the Choe Hyon, during two days of tests on Monday and Tuesday in this undated photo released Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 30, 2025
North Korea's Kim sets sights on nuclear-armed navy
Leader Kim Jong Un directed officials to push forward equipping his naval forces with nuclear weapons following the unveiling of his country’s biggest destroyer.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un pose for a photo during a signing ceremony following bilateral talks in Pyongyang last June.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 28, 2025
North Korea confirms troop deployment to Russia for first time
Leader Kim Jong Un called the move "a sacred mission to further consolidate as firm as a rock the traditional friendship and solidarity between the two countries."
China Coast Guard officers unfurl a national flag on Sandy Cay reef, near the Philippine-held Thitu Island, in disputed waters of the South China Sea this month in this screen shot taken from Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 27, 2025
China seizes disputed reef near key Philippine military outpost
Beijing's focus on claiming sovereignty over Sandy Cay reef in the South China Sea adds to fears over a clash with Manila.
Japan’s chief tariff negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, poses with a "Make America Great Again" cap at the White House in Washington on April 16.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 23, 2025
Japan wants to 'separate' tariff and security issues. That may be tough.
Disentangling the two will prove a challenge as U.S. President Donald Trump continues to voice long-held complaints about the alliance’s fairness.
Chinese H-6 bombers (top right) are seen flying near the eastern edge of the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea on March 24.
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 21, 2025
Chinese Navy says Philippine warship 'illegally entered' Scarborough Shoal waters
Sunday's incident was a rare instance involving the militaries of both countries, and came amid fears that a clash or accident could erupt into a full-blown conflict.
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani speaks to reporters in Tokyo on April 11.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 18, 2025
Japan defense chief says 'no reason' to change current U.S. troop deal
Gen Nakatani said that spending “is appropriately shared between the Japanese and U.S. governments based on mutual agreement, with a set time frame.”
U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass speaks to reporters on Friday in Tokyo just after he arrived at Haneda Airport.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 18, 2025
New U.S. envoy arrives in Japan with focus on trade, defense and reining in China
Ambassador George Glass said Washington will aim to deepen cooperation with Tokyo on pushing back against China's economic and military moves.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Thursday in Washington.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 16, 2025
Trump calls the U.S.-Japan alliance ‘one-sided.’ Tokyo says otherwise.
Some observers believe the U.S. president’s worldview is stuck in the 1980s, a time when trade deficits with Japan captured the attention of U.S. policymakers.
Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, well regarded in Tokyo as a leading voice in the promotion of U.S.-Japan ties, has died at the age of 79.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 15, 2025
Richard Armitage, ex-U.S. diplomat known for boosting Japan ties, dies at 79
He was a leading voice in the promotion of U.S.-Japan relations even after leaving government service.
George Glass, then-nominee to be U.S. ambassador to Japan, speaks during a confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on March 13.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 13, 2025
New U.S. ambassador to Japan 'optimistic' about tariff negotiations
Tariffs on vehicles and auto parts are expected to be a key focus of the talks this week, Japanese officials have said.
George Glass, U.S. President Donald Trump's pick to be ambassador to Japan, attends a Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing in Washington on March 13.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 9, 2025
Japan gets a new U.S. ambassador — and he has his work cut out for him
The U.S. Senate has voted to confirm George Glass, whose top agenda items include resolving the tariff row and getting Tokyo to spend more on defense.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance speaks near Elbridge Colby (right) at Colby’s confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee for undersecretary of defense for policy, at the Capitol in Washington on March 4.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 9, 2025
U.S. confirms new Pentagon No. 3 as Japan defense budget in crosshairs
Elbridge Colby is a known China hawk and advocate for Asian allies — including Japan — to spend more on defense.
A MQ-4C Triton drone taxis at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam
JAPAN
Apr 8, 2025
U.S. to send long-range surveillance drones to Japan amid Taiwan tensions
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said that the drones will be sent to the U.S. air base in Kadena, on Okinawa Prefecture’s main island, in the coming weeks.
A Chinese military unit fires a land-based rocket during military exercises near Taiwan last week.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 7, 2025
G7 condemns 'provocative' Chinese military drills around Taiwan
Group of Seven foreign minsters expressed “deep concern” over the “provocative” and “destabilizing” drills.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks during a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 5, 2025
Ishiba says he plans to speak to Trump about tariffs in coming days
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said that these talks could see Japan offer a fresh investment package, though he ruled out a small, piecemeal deal.
Anti-Yoon protesters react after the Constitutional Court's verdict on the impeachment of South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 4, 2025
South Korea upholds Yoon impeachment, prompting snap election within 60 days
The move, while deepening a divide in South Korea between conservative and progressive voters, could also have broad implications for relations with neighboring Japan.

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