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May 03, 2025
 

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The focus of this summer's election will be whether Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's ruling coalition can secure a majority of 125 seats in the Upper House, including seats that are not up for grabs in the upcoming race.
JAPAN / Politics
315 people gearing up to run in Japan's Upper House race
The focus will be on whether Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's ruling coalition will secure an Upper House majority of 125 seats.
JAPAN / Politics
CDP submits bill proposal on separate surnames, but challenges remain
Japan remains the only country in the world that forces couples to use one surname after marriage.
JAPAN / Politics
Ishiba hears advice from across the aisle on how Japan should handle Trump
A shared sense of national crisis and a desire to appeal to voters ahead of the July Upper House elections is pushing opposition parties to speak up.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. stands beside Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba during the singing of the national anthem at Malacanang Palace in Manila on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 30, 2025
‘Almost like allies’: Tokyo and Manila eye two more defense pacts
By Gabriel Dominguez
The Japanese and Philippine leaders agreed to launch talks on both a military intelligence-sharing pact and a deal to allow their armed forces to share fuel, food and services.
Hiroshi Moriyama (left), secretary general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, meets with Zhao Leji, the third-ranking official of the Chinese Communist Party, in Beijing on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 29, 2025
LDP’s Moriyama pushes for concrete results on China’s seafood import ban
By Eric Johnston
China offered no specific promises, instead emphasizing the stability of Japan-China relations at a time of great international volatility.
Liberal Democratic Party Policy Chief Itsunori Onodera (center) speaks at a think tank event Monday in Washington.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 29, 2025
Japan worries Trump tariffs will push countries toward China
By Erica Yokoyama
Many nations are looking to negotiate with the U.S. over the Trump administration’s reciprocal tariffs, which could undermine security in the region.
John Phelan at a Senate confirmation hearing for U.S. secretary of the navy in Washington in February
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 28, 2025
U.S. secretary of the navy weighs ‘dual-use’ shipbuilding with Japan
By Gabriel Dominguez
Washington’s idea appears to be aimed at attracting investment from allies to strengthen the U.S. shipbuilding industry and start closing the gap with Beijing.
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan head Yoshihiko Noda speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 28, 2025
CDP's about-face piles pressure on LDP to cut consumption tax on food
By Himari Semans
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan chief Yoshihiko Noda pledged that the party will abolish the consumption tax on food products for a year.
Wi Sung-lac, a South Korean lawmaker who advises presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung on diplomacy, is interviewed in Seoul on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 27, 2025
Aide to South Korean candidate suggests review of wartime labor solution
Wi did not provide specifics but said that a Lee administration might discuss historical issues more than the Yoon administration.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to reporters at his official residence in Tokyo on Sunday before leaving for a diplomatic trip to Vietnam and the Philippines later in the day.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 27, 2025
Golden Week proves to be busy for traveling members of Ishiba's Cabinet
Some in the opposition camp are questioning the need for the trips amid economic turmoil.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks during a discussion on the employment ice age generation in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Apr 25, 2025
‘Employment ice age generation’ returns to spotlight ahead of Upper House election
By Gabriele Ninivaggi
The generation, which graduated between 1993 and 2004, has long grappled with pay stagnation and irregular employment due to a tight labor market.
The House of Representatives passed a bill on Thursday to promote the development of artificial intelligence technology and take steps to mitigate its risks.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 25, 2025
Japan's Lower House passes AI promotion bill
AI "will be the foundation of economic and social development and is an important technology from the viewpoint of security," the bill said.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on April 17
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 23, 2025
Opposition slams Ishiba's gas price cut while calling to scrap provisional tax
By Himari Semans
Ishiba's decision would lower gas prices by ¥10 per liter starting May 22, but nixing the provisional gas tax would lower prices by ¥25.
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.
By Jesse Johnson
Disentangling the two will prove a challenge as U.S. President Donald Trump continues to voice long-held complaints about the alliance’s fairness.
Komeito leader Tetsuo Saito (right) and Liu Jianchao, head of the International Department of the Communist Party of China's Central Committee, in Beijing on Tuesday
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 23, 2025
Komeito leader Saito makes first visit to China
Carrying a letter from Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to Chinese President Xi Jinping, Saito will meet with senior Chinese officials before returning home on Thursday.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (right) meets with new U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass at the Prime Minister's Office on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 22, 2025
Ishiba meets with new U.S. envoy to Japan
The new U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass arrived in Tokyo last week.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping. A high-level Japanese delegation will deliver a letter from Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to Xi this week.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 22, 2025
Ishiba pens letter to Xi as Japan aims to avoid trade crossfire
By Mari Kiyohara and Sakura Murakami
The gesture highlights Japan’s desire to balance managing its relationships with China, its largest trading partner, and with the U.S., its sole formal security ally.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (right) and his Dutch counterpart, Dick Schoof, shake hands after a joint news conference at the Prime Minister's Office on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 22, 2025
Japanese and Dutch leaders agree to strengthen cooperation
The two leaders announced an action plan calling for cooperation in a wide range of fields, including diplomacy, security, economy and culture.
Lower House lawmaker Kai Odake in his Tokyo office on Wednesday
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Apr 21, 2025
Is Japan’s parliament ready to welcome more youth to its ranks?
By Gabriele Ninivaggi
Among the world’s largest democracies, Japan has some of the highest minimum age requirements for politicians.
The Maritime Self-Defense Force's Mogami frigate is docked at the MSDF's base in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, earlier this month.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 21, 2025
Japan and Indonesia continue frigate talks looking to boost defense-industrial ties
By Gabriel Dominguez
Ambassador Heri Akhmadi said Jakarta’s growing ties with Tokyo reflect its nonalignment policy, as it looks to avoid taking sides between China and the United States.
Shinji Ishimaru, leader of the regional political party Path to Rebirth, holds a news conference on March 14 in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 20, 2025
Party of Tokyo governor race challenger Ishimaru to field 10 Upper House candidates
Ishimaru himself, however, does not plan to run in the election for the upper chamber of parliament.
Protesters march in Tokyo's upscale Ginza district Saturday, demanding relief for those who suffered during World War II.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 20, 2025
Protesters march for WWII relief for civilians and others who were overlooked
Participants accuse the government of discriminating against civilian victims and people from the former Japanese colonies when it comes to state compensation for war damage.
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
By Jesse Johnson
Gen Nakatani said that spending “is appropriately shared between the Japanese and U.S. governments based on mutual agreement, with a set time frame.”

Israel protests after Kyoto inn seeks war crime declaration from tourist
A street in Kyoto in March 2023. An Israeli tourist was asked to sign a document stating that he had not committed war crimes when he checked in at a Kyoto guesthouse in April, prompting a response from Israel's ambassador.
Nearly half of workers in Japan engage in ‘quiet quitting’
"Quiet quitting" is most common among the younger generation, with 46.7% of respondents to a survey in their 20s identifying with the practice, reflecting a less-motivated workforce more focused on work-life balance.
Britain responds after Expo 2025 afternoon tea brews outrage
The café space at the Osaka Expo's British pavilion
Truck driver's body recovered from huge Japan sinkhole after three months
Workers stand around a vehicle carrying the body of a person recovered from a sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Friday.
Second round of U.S.-Japan tariff talks ends inconclusively in Washington
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick (far left), U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (left) and Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief tariff negotiator. The second round of tariff negotiations between Japan and the United States were held on Thursday in Washington.
Want to see the future at Expo Osaka? Get in line.
“‘Future of life,’ by Ishiguro,” the World Expo pavilion by roboticist Hiroshi Ishiguro, displays humanlike androids.
Ishiba hears advice from across the aisle on how Japan should handle Trump
Prime Minister Shigaru Ishiba and CDP head Yoshihiko Noda at a parliamentary session in Tokyo on April 23.
Don't send in the clones: AI event nixed as Alt accounts get reality check
A screenshot from the website for Alt's AI conference, which was canceled after the company disclosed an investigation into its sales figures.
CDP submits bill proposal on separate surnames, but challenges remain
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan lawmakers speak to reporters in parliament on Wednesday after submitting a bill in the Lower House to allow married couples to retain different surnames.
Puzzling decisions and opaque rankings are all part of sumo's charm
Chiyoshoma (right) battles Churanoumi during the New Year Basho in Tokyo in January. The Mongolian's drop down the sumo rankings ahead of the May tournament was one of the biggest surprises of the latest banzuke.

Podcast

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

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami
By Alex K.T. Martin

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