Search - fukushima-

 
 
Greenpeace activists protest nuclear power in Berlin in April 2023, just as Germany was shutting down its three remaining nuclear power plants. 
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 26, 2024

It's time for Germany to admit its mistake on nuclear energy

The main thing standing in the way of Germany rebuilding its nuclear sector is a stubborn insistence that it can’t be done.
People remove snow in the city of Aomori on Thursday.
JAPAN
Jan 9, 2025

Caution urged as heavy snow forecast for Sea of Japan coast

Authorities have warned individuals to consider vehicle safety as well as the risks of traffic disruptions, snow falling from roofs and damage to buildings.
Rahm Emanuel professes that the biggest thing he has brought to the U.S.-Japan relationship might be a fresh injection of vitality.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 9, 2025

Emanuel leaves reform legacy amid historic shifts in U.S.-Japan alliance

The departing U.S. ambassador arguably oversaw the most consequential shift in the U.S.-Japan alliance in decades.
Solar panels and a coal-fired power station in Fukushima Prefecture. Japan has not set a clear path for phasing out coal and its new draft energy plan foresees an important role for fossil fuels, especially gas, and nuclear power in its future energy mix.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 13, 2025

Japan’s energy plans endanger real climate solutions

The government's draft energy plans were not subject to open debate and their outcome shows an insufficient commitment to making the changes needed to tackle climate change.
Komeito Secretary-General Makoto Nishida (left) and Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama (center) hold talks with Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing on Tuesday.
EDITORIALS
Jan 17, 2025

A moment of opportunity for Japan-China relations

While the outcome of the Japan-China meeting is important, it must not compromise Japan's national interests.
At several high-end restaurants in Tokyo, tatami is becoming a part of the dining experience — not underfoot but as a tabletop place mat for phones.
LIFE / Style & Design
Jan 25, 2025

Why tatami is going from the floor to the dining table

As smartphones have become integral to daily life, they are being incorporated into traditional Japanese hospitality.
Economic coercion has become a prominent tool in global geopolitics, with both China and the U.S. relying on it to pursue their policy goals, and more so with Donald Trump now in office.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 28, 2025

When big countries wave their big economic sticks

There is no agreed definition of economic coercion under international law; like pornography, we know it when we see it.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s reluctance to engage with newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump while strengthening ties with China raises concerns about Japan’s strategic priorities.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 31, 2025

Ishiba nudges his ‘little Japan’ closer to China

Prime Minister Ishiba’s reluctance to engage with Trump while strengthening ties with China raises concerns about Japan’s strategic priorities and its alliance with the U.S.
The United States was the biggest food export destination for Japan, with shipments totaling ¥242.9 billion, up 17.8%, helped by efforts to diversify scallop export markets following China's fishery import ban.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 5, 2025

Japan's food exports hit record high for 12th straight year

The United States was the biggest food export destination for Japan.
Shiseido's disappointing outlook, which came alongside a surprise fourth-quarter loss, shows the challenges facing consumer brands as Chinese shoppers rein in their spending.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 11, 2025

Shiseido says China’s cautious shoppers hurt profit outlook

The Japanese cosmetics firm does not expect to meet analyst forecasts for the 2025 fiscal year following a surprise fourth-quarter loss.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 12, 2025

China removes buoy in Japan's EEZ near Senkakus amid warming ties

The buoy’s removal comes as Beijing looks to further improve relations with Tokyo — and drive a wedge between the U.S. and Japan.
The city of Toyama. Under a new plan, the government of Toyama Prefecture, which lies on the Sea of Japan coast, will send officials to Shizuoka Prefecture in the event of a Nankai Trough megaquake.
JAPAN
Feb 12, 2025

Partner prefecture plan eyed for Nankai Trough quake

The ministry will formally adopt the new plan by the end of fiscal 2024 for implementation in April.
The city center of Obihiro, Hokkaido, is covered in snow on Feb. 4.
JAPAN
Feb 13, 2025

12 deaths related to heavy snow since Feb. 4

The Fire and Disaster Management Agency also said 51 people have been severely wounded across the country.
Kansai Electric Power's Takahama nuclear power station in Takahama, Fukui Prefecture
JAPAN
Feb 13, 2025

Kansai Electric proposes doubling Fukui-France nuclear waste shipments

It remains to be seen whether the prefectural government will support the revised plans. Fukui has long called for spent nuclear fuel to be taken out of the prefecture.
Co-leader and main candidate of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party Alice Weidel is seen on a screen as she takes part in a TV debate in Berlin on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 17, 2025

Anger, fear, nostalgia: Why German voters back far-right AfD

All other parties have pledged to isolate it behind a "firewall" of noncooperation.
The city government of Hirosaki, Aomori Prefecture, used corporate donations to create a volunteer tour, during which participants help farmers harvest apples and enjoy sightseeing in the city.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Feb 20, 2025

Corporate hometown donations gain traction in Japan

Some local governments have been found to provide de facto rewards to donor companies, violating the system's rules and raising concerns about improper practices.
Students from Hiroshima Global Academy chat over gyōza dumplings with "island guardian" Koshi Omori at his home in Osakikamijima, Hiroshima Prefecture.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Mar 3, 2025

Model school for global education rooted on small Hiroshima island

The school hopes its well-equipped students will help inspire and bring new energy to the aging island community.
Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings' Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Kashiwazaki City, Niigata Prefecture, on Nov. 1, 2022
JAPAN
Feb 27, 2025

Tepco's antiterrorism facility completion delayed at Niigata nuclear plant

The completion date will be pushed back significantly to August 2029.
Toma Ikuta plays a former hit man who wakes from a coma to exact vengeance on a gang of masked criminals in “Demon City.”
CULTURE / Film
Feb 28, 2025

‘Demon City’: Live-action manga adaptation is ultra-violent — and ultra-dull

Seiji Tanaka’s Netflix film about a former hit man determined to avenge his family is relentlessly unsatisfying.
Air Canada has collaborated with chef Masaki Hashimoto (center) of Toronto's one-Michelin-starred restaurant Kaiseki Yu-zen Hashimoto to create its new in-flight menu for its Signature Class.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Mar 12, 2025

Air Canada has a new 'kaiseki'-inspired menu

The airline wants to give its customers ‘a real Japanese experience’ before they land in Japan.
Kansai Electric Power's Takahama nuclear plant in the town of Takahama, Fukui Prefecture
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 14, 2025

Nagoya court upholds NRA approvals extending use of reactors in Fukui Prefecture

The district court decision clears the operation of reactors at Kansai Electric Power's Takahama nuclear plant and Mihama plant for up to 20 more years, beyond the 40 year maximum.
According to changes made to Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings' business plan, approved by the government on Monday, the restart of the reactor at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture is expected to boost its earnings by around ¥100 billion per year.
JAPAN
Mar 17, 2025

Tepco aims to restart Niigata reactor in fiscal 2025

The restart of the reactor is expected to boost power utility' earnings by around ¥100 billion ($672 million) per year.
Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya has named the issue of fishery products imports as an important topic to be discussed with China.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 19, 2025

Japan, China and South Korea's top diplomats to meet in Tokyo

The last such trilateral meeting was held in November 2023 in the South Korean port city of Busan.
An economic dialogue between Japan and China will take place in Tokyo on Saturday, the same day as a meeting among top diplomats of the two countries plus South Korea.
BUSINESS
Mar 21, 2025

Japan and China set for economic talks as U.S. tariff pressure rises

The scale and proximity of the Chinese market means it is in Japan’s interest to maintain stable relations despite ongoing tensions.
AMKK’s latest exhibition, “X-Ray Flowers,” is the culmination of seven years of work aided by CT technologists, who help with the highly specialized imaging techniques.
CULTURE / Art
Mar 21, 2025

Avant-garde botanists AMKK illuminate the inner worlds of flowers

The punk florists' latest exhibition immerses visitors in darkness, bathed only in the glow of X-rays and CT scans of plants and flowers.
Shigeru Iwasaki, then the Self Defense Forces' chief, during an interview in Tokyo in 2013.
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 21, 2025

Taiwan names Japan’s ex-SDF chief as Cabinet consultant

China has lodged protests with the Japanese side in regards to the appointment of Shigeru Iwasaki.
The "Infinite Paradise" main lantern takes center stage at the 2025 Taiwan Lantern Festival, held in the city of Taoyuan between Feb. 12 and 23.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2025

Lantern festival lights up skies in Taiwan with Japanese flair

Japanese municipalities added sparkle to the celebration in Taoyuan, with decorations featuring local mascots and icons.
Government's stockpiled rice at a warehouse in Saitama Prefecture in February
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2025

Japan begins taking bids in second auction of stockpiled rice

The focus is on whether the release of reserve rice will help curb soaring rice prices.
Bento boxes and other food items attract visitors at the Sera roadside station in Hiroshima Prefecture.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Apr 21, 2025

10 years on, Hiroshima-Shimane highway boosts logistics and tourism

The Chugoku Yamanami Highway has played a crucial role in regional development since its full opening in 2015.
Government-stockpiled rice stacked in a warehouse in Feb. 18 in Saitama Prefecture
JAPAN
Apr 16, 2025

Japan to hold third auction of stockpiled rice next week

In total, 100,000 tons of reserved 2023 rice will be auctioned.

Longform

Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.
Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?