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September 16, 2024
 

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Gabriele Ninivaggi
(From left) Economic security minister Sanae Takaichi, former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi, former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, former Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato, digital minister Taro Kono, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi pose for photographs at the ruling party's headquarters in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 13, 2024
LDP presidential candidates field questions on political reform and economy
At their first joint news conference after the start of campaigning, they gave their views on party and political reform and argued for a strong economic strategy.
Nine candidates, including Toshimitsu Motegi at the podium, attend a kick off event on Thursday for their campaigning in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 12, 2024
Ishiba and Koizumi speed ahead as LDP presidential race kicks off
Despite a decline in the LDP’s image due to a large-scale political funds scandal, Ishiba and Koizumi have remained surprisingly popular with the public.
Former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, 43, is one of two contenders who have consistently outperformed other candidates in the Liberal Democratic Party leadership race in recent polls conducted both among the general public and LDP supporters.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 11, 2024
Nine hopefuls vie for LDP presidency in complex election
The leadership race is the most crowded in the ruling party’s history and one of its most unpredictable in decades.
Former Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato announces his entry into the LDP leadership race in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 10, 2024
Kato announces bid for LDP presidency, adding uncertainty to race
While the former chief Cabinet secretary's chances of winning are considered minimal, his candidacy adds an extra layer of unpredictability.
Former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi declares his candidacy in the Liberal Democratic Party presidential election at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 6, 2024
Shinjiro Koizumi promises immediate snap election if elected LDP president
The former environment minister said he will turn to the electorate to allow voters to judge his plan to transform Japan.
Nippon Steel's proposed acquisition of U.S. Steel is opposed by politicians across the political spectrum, including both Republican and Democratic presidential candidates — Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 5, 2024
Japan miffed but reaction muted after shocking twist to U.S. Steel deal
U.S. President Joe Biden is set to reject Nippon Steel's acquisition of the American steelmaker, according to multiple unconfirmed reports released in recent days.
Shigeru Ishiba speaks at a supporters meeting in Tokyo on Aug. 30.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 5, 2024
Taxes and political reform in focus in upcoming LDP campaign
The candidates’ recipes to put the economy back on track after decades of low growth are varied, with some emphasizing redistribution and others promising no tax hikes.
Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi announces his candidacy for leadership of the party in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 4, 2024
In leadership bid, LDP Secretary-General Motegi says no tax hikes
He pledges to tackle Japan’s sluggish economy without increasing the burden on taxpayers and abolish the contentious "funds for political activities."
Former Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda is the second CDP lawmaker to join the leadership contest after party veteran Yukio Edano announced his decision to run last week.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 29, 2024
Noda announces CDP leadership bid with eye on a comeback for the opposition
The former prime minister emphasized that a certain degree of experience is required to tackle the challenges Japan is facing.
Former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to Liberal Democratic Party members during a leadership election at its headquarters in Tokyo in September 2020.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 24, 2024
Ex-defense chief Shigeru Ishiba announces fifth bid for LDP presidency
The party heavyweight underscored a commitment to clean politics, pledging to work to restore trust in the LDP after a wide-ranging slush fund scandal.
In a news conference Wednesday, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan's former chief, Yukio Edano, expressed his resolve to build a party that can challenge the dominance of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in national politics.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 21, 2024
CDP's Edano takes another shot at party leadership after 2021 polls failure
After a poor showing three years ago, Edano is seeking to return to lead Japan's largest opposition party ahead of upcoming polls.
Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi holds a news conference Tuesday. The party has decided to hold its leadership election on Sept. 27.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 20, 2024
Is factional support still key for aspiring LDP presidential candidates?
Despite persistent claims the groups won't play any role in the September vote, factional ties remain strong to this day.
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi announces his candidacy in the Liberal Democratic Party presidential election in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 19, 2024
Rising star Takayuki Kobayashi launches bid for LDP president
The former economic security czar has touted his candidacy as a symbol of radical change in a party embattled by scandals.
LDP Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and LDP Vice President Taro Aso attend an executive meeting in Tokyo on July 23.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Aug 15, 2024
With resignation, Kishida looks to LDP's political future
Once it became clear that his chances of winning the September vote were minimal, Kishida chose to prioritize the party’s interests.
Former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba (left) and Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te at the presidential office in Taipei on Tuesday
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 14, 2024
Is it fifth time's the charm for Shigeru Ishiba?
Ahead of the Liberal Democratic Party's presidential race, a short trip to Taiwan is allowing the former defense minister to burnish his foreign policy chops.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 14, 2024
Kishida to step down in September in bid to show ‘LDP has changed’
The surprise move came amid growing criticism from rank-and-file party members and bad poll numbers.
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi says changes in the international balance of power, along with deepening economic interdependence, have led some countries to attempt to use their economic power to impose their will on others.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 13, 2024
Economic security is about strengthening and sustaining growth, former minister says
The nascent concept goes beyond more regulations and restrictions, says Japan's first economic security minister, Takayuki Kobayashi.
Naoshi Hirata (center), chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Explainer
Aug 9, 2024
Japan issued its first-ever megaquake alert. What does that mean?
How serious is the situation, and what should people do in the days to come? Here’s what you need to know.
A tsunami advisory, shown in yellow, was issued following an earthquake in Kyushu on Tuesday afternoon.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2024
Tsunami advisory lifted after strong quake jolts Kyushu
The 7.1 magnitude quake, measuring a weak 7 on Japan's intensity scale, triggered small tsunami waves in some areas.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks at a meeting of a Liberal Democratic Party panel on constitutional reform in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 7, 2024
Kishida looks to constitutional reform to win over LDP conservatives
The prime minister has strengthened his tone on constitutional revision ahead of the party's presidential election.
Japan jumps to No. 2, from sixth place, in Best Countries index
Pedestrians cross an intersection in the Shibuya district of Tokyo. Japan has experienced a postpandemic travel boom, with tourists pouring back in after restrictions closed the country’s borders to travelers.
South Korea is facing deepfake porn crisis
Activists hold up symbolic eye masks during a protest against deepfake porn in Seoul on Aug. 30.
North Korean missiles rain down on Ukraine despite sanctions
Part of the tail section of a North Korean Hwasong-11 short-range ballistic missile in Kyiv earlier this year.
Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa urged to retire after latest concussion
Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa passes against the Bills at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Thursday.
Japan tries to reclaim its clout as a global tech leader
The construction site of the Rapidus chip factory in Chitose, in the northern prefecture of Hokkaido. The Rapidus chip factory in Chitose is a collaboration with IBM and backed by billions of dollars in government funding.
Tokyo Comedy Bar supersizes laughs with 11-night festival
Since opening in 2022 in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo Comedy Bar has hosted comedy workshops, roast battles, open mics and international guests.
Tokyo’s top fashion showcase pushes rising stars to the world stage
A model displays a creation by Japanese designer Norio Surikabe during a runway show on Sept. 6 for the latest edition of Rakuten Fashion Week Tokyo.
New mouse models can boost Japan's drug development: National Cancer Center
Hiroyuki Mano, director of the National Cancer Center Japan's (NCC) research institute, explains on Wednesday the use of mice bearing patients' cancer tissues to screen drug candidates for their efficacy.
Scientists win Ig Nobel for discovering anal breathing in mammals
Takanori Takebe (behind the lectern) speaks after his team of researchers and he were awarded the Ig Nobel Prize in physiology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Thursday.
iPhone 16 to land in Japan without Apple Intelligence 
Apple CEO Tim Cook unveils the iPhone 16 at the Steve Jobs Theater on the company's campus in Cupertino, California, on Monday.

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