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November 07, 2025
 

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Himari Semans
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (left) listens to questions from Yoshihiko Noda, leader of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP), regarding her policy speech at the Lower House in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 4, 2025
Takaichi defends choices for government posts in first debate with Noda
CDP leader Yoshihiko Noda lambasted the prime minister's decision to appoint LDP lawmakers involved in the slush fund scandal to government posts.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, in her inaugural news conference as Japanese leader late Tuesday, called South Korea an “important neighbor" and a “vital partner.”
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 22, 2025
Takaichi seeks to dispel fears Seoul-Tokyo ties could falter under her government
The prime minister has called South Korea an “important neighbor" and a “vital partner” in addressing challenges confronting the international community.
Liberal Democratic Party President Sanae Takaichi (right) reaches out to shake hands with Japan Innovation Party leader Hirofumi Yoshimura after signing a coalition deal Monday evening in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 20, 2025
Path clears for Takaichi to become PM as LDP and JIP agree to form coalition
The tie-up is expected to see Japan Innovation Party lawmakers vote for LDP President Sanae Takaichi in Tuesday’s parliamentary vote for prime minister.
Liberal Democratic Party President Sanae Takaichi (third from right) and LDP executives hold talks with Nippon Ishin no Kai co-leader Fumitake Fujita (third from left) and Nippon Ishin executives at the Diet building on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 17, 2025
Nippon Ishin edges closer toward forming coalition with LDP
The Osaka-based party has decided to no longer take part in policy talks with its opposition peers on forming an alliance against the ruling party.
Nippon Ishin no Kai leader and Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura meets with Liberal Democratic Party President Sanae Takaichi in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 15, 2025
Coalition talks could bring Takaichi closer to being PM
If the LDP and Nippon Ishin agree to link up, they will only be two votes short of a majority in the Lower House.
LDP head Sanae Takaichi attends an LDP meeting in Tokyo on Oct. 4.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 14, 2025
A frustrated LDP weighs its options now that Komeito is out
Having Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba stay on at the helm and delaying the prime ministerial vote entirely were floated as ideas to buy time.
LDP leader Sanae Takaichi and Komeito leader Tetsuo Saito attend a party leaders' meeting on Friday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 10, 2025
Takaichi's PM bid faces further headwinds with coalition split
Komeito’s decision to end the 26-year partnership with the LDP means the ruling party will need to court opposition parties to vote Takaichi in as prime minister.
Set to become first husband, former Lower House lawmaker Taku Yamamoto is supportive of Sanae Takaichi potentially becoming prime minister despite the political circumstances surrounding the Liberal Democratic Party.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 9, 2025
Takaichi taking office will herald arrival of Japan’s first-ever first husband
Former LDP Lower House lawmaker Taku Yamamoto has supported Sanae Takaichi’s position on surnames after marriage and her bid to lead Japan.
The LDP's newly-appointed election chief Keiji Furuya (far left), general affairs council chair Haruko Arimura (second from left), vice president Taro Aso (center left), president Sanae Takaichi (center right), secretary-general Shunichi Suzuki (second from right) and policy chief Takayuki Kobayashi in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 7, 2025
Takaichi's leadership lineup favors Aso and his allies while shutting out rivals
The new lineup also reflects her desire to reward allies of the party’s former Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi and former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi.
Newly elected Liberal Democratic Party leader Sanae Takaichi celebrates in Tokyo on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 6, 2025
Takaichi kicks off LDP presidency with polls showing strong support
Sanae Takaichi, who was elected party leader Saturday, also gave the ruling LDP a much-needed boost, one of the polls showed.
Sanae Takaichi, the newly elected leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, holds a news conference after the LDP presidential election in Tokyo on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 4, 2025
Takaichi poised to become Japan's first female PM after winning LDP poll
Takaichi earned 185 votes against Koizumi’s 156 in a runoff after none of the five candidates in the party leadership race secured a majority in the first round of voting.
Former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi poses with supporters at Hie Shrine in Tokyo on Sept. 22.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 1, 2025
Can Takaichi win back conservative voters? Maybe not.
The conservative champion has been trying to soften her image to reach more moderate voters — the party’s largest support base.
Sensoji Temple in the Asakusa district of Tokyo on Sept. 16. All five candidates in the Liberal Democratic Party presidential race demonstrated a tougher stance on foreign tourists and nationals.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 26, 2025
LDP presidential hopefuls take hard-line stance on immigration
Unruly tourists, visa overstayers and increasing land purchases by foreign nationals were some of the issues spotlighted during debates.
U.S. President Donald Trump will visit Japan in October, according to media reports.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 25, 2025
Trump may visit Japan during upcoming Asia trip
With Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba stepping down, the U.S. president’s visit to Japan would come at a politically shaky time for the nation.
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi, ex-LDP Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi, former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi and agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi pose for group photos before a Liberal Democratic Party presidential election candidates' debate at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 24, 2025
LDP presidential hopefuls failing to stand out on policy
During a two-hour debate Wednesday, each candidate's policy stance seemed to overlap with one another's, making it hard for anyone to stand out.
Agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi speaks during a news conference announcing his formal entry into the Liberal Democratic Party leadership race in Tokyo on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 20, 2025
Koizumi makes economic growth top priority in bid for LDP presidency
Agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi used a news conference Saturday in Tokyo to unveil a raft of policies as he sought to appeal to his party’s conservative wing.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on Thursday about his candidacy in the Liberal Democratic Party leadership race.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 18, 2025
Hayashi pledges to carry on Ishiba and Kishida’s work if elected LDP president
The chief cabinet secretary, who served under both prime ministers, says he will follow their lead as well as add initiatives of his own.
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi speaks in Tokyo on Thursday. He is attempting to become Liberal Democratic Party president for the second time.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 12, 2025
Will a more conservative leader emerge from the LDP presidential election?
Conservative members of the party are looking to elect such a leader, but there is a possibility that their votes might be split between two presidential hopefuls.
Former Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi announces he will run in the race for president of the Liberal Democratic Party at a news conference on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 10, 2025
Motegi calls for ‘new coalition’ in bid for LDP presidency
The former party secretary-general sees welcoming a new coalition member — possibly the Democratic Party for the People or Nippon Ishin no Kai — as the way forward.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba attends the India-Japan Economic Forum in Tokyo on Friday, Aug. 29
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 4, 2025
Darkest hour for Ishiba amid pressure to quit and executive resignations
An offer by the secretary-general to resign after the party’s poor performance in a recent election has prompted Ishiba's LDP leadership team to call time on the administration.
The Toyota buyout is a major test for Japan’s reforms
Akio Toyoda, chairman of Toyota Motor, speaks during a media preview at the Japan Mobility Show in Tokyo on Oct. 29. Minority investors are challenging the carmaker's bid to take affiliate Toyota Industries Corp. private.
From France to Mali, a deportee's struggle far from home
Moussa Sacko, a Malian deported from France — where he had lived since he was a young child — stands on a street in Bamako, Mali, in December. Compared with his home in France, Bamako feels like a different planet, Sacko said.
ChatGPT nickname and Trump tariffs nominated for Japan’s buzzword of 2025
Women hold toys depicting Myaku-Myaku, the official character for the 2025 Osaka Expo, during a media day ahead of the event's public opening day in Osaka in April.
SoftBank is said to have explored potential takeover of Marvell
SoftBank explored a potential takeover of U.S. chipmaker Marvell Technology earlier this year, in what would have been the semiconductor industry's largest-ever deal.
The second life of Japan's net cafes
Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
Across borders and screens, Tokyo film festival finds humanity in migration
“Mother Bhumi” takes place in a multiethnic rice-farming community where Chinese, Thai and Malay lineages intertwine.
Takaichi’s balancing act: Supporting Taiwan and stabilizing China ties
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi shakes hands with Lin Hsin-i, Taiwan’s presidential adviser, on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit meeting in Gyeongju, South Korea, on Saturday in this image posted to Takaichi's official X account.
From 1973 to 2025: A Japanese American skater’s long ride to recognition
Judi Oyama at Winchester Skatepark in San Jose, California, in January 1979. The Skateboarding Hall of Fame inductee and Guinness World Record holder still skates and hopes to inspire older women.
More Japanese universities pushing toward teaching in English
Waseda University in Tokyo
Young Indonesians in Japan find their political voice
Indonesian students at Hiroshima University hold posters of the 17+8 Demands, demanding transparency and action from their homeland’s government.

Podcast

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

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes
By Alex K.T. Martin

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