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Elbridge Colby (center) speaks at the Threat and the Strategy panel during the Air Force Association Air, Space and Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Maryland, in September 2019.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 23, 2024

Trump's Pentagon policy pick pushed for Japan to spend 3% of GDP on defense

Elbridge Colby said in an interview earlier this year that Japan is moving at a leisurely pace on defense despite being under threat from China and North Korea.
The government said in the survey there were no cases of disruptive behavior, such as radio jamming, from sites that buyers from China acquired targeting the areas with national security importance.
JAPAN
Dec 24, 2024

Most foreign buyers of land near Japan security areas are Chinese: survey

Japan's government said there were no cases of disruptive behavior, such as radio jamming, from the acquired sites targeting the areas with national security importance.
Japan Post said it will incur losses as a result of Yamato Transport exiting their collaboration.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 24, 2024

Japan Post seeks ¥12 billion in lawsuit against Yamato Transport

Yamato is backing out of an agreement to outsource the delivery of small thin parcels to Japan Post, the latter said in its suit.
Japanese imports of seafood are seen in a supermarket in Hong Kong in July 2023.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 24, 2024

China and Japan expected to discuss seafood ban on Wednesday

Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya's one-day visit to Beijing, on China's invitation, is his first since assuming his role in October.
Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya (left) and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, in Beijing on Wednesday
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 25, 2024

Japan's top diplomat visits China as a step toward mending ties

Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya's trip marks the first visit by a top Japanese diplomat to Beijing since April 2023.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba shakes hands with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Nov. 15 during their meeting on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Lima.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Dec 26, 2024

Japan and China to continue delicate diplomatic dance in 2025

While Tokyo and Beijing have touted the importance of thawing ties, experts say a number of issues are likely to mean continued hedging by both sides.
A Ground Self-Defense Force helicopter flies over GSDF's Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade soldiers and U.S. Marines during a drill in Okinawa last year.
JAPAN
Dec 27, 2024

Japan and U.S. draw up guidelines for extended deterrence

The two countries came up with the guidelines for extended U.S. nuclear and conventional deterrence at a time when the security environment in the region is becoming more severe.
On the first day of the 2000s, the world was relieved that the Y2K computer glitch was mostly nothing. And in Russia, Vladimir Putin came to power.
JAPAN / History / Japan Times Gone By
Jan 1, 2025

Japan Times 2000: Japanese celebrate new year

Check out what was on the front page on Jan. 1 in 1925, 1950, 1975 and 2000.
The strategic partnership agreement between Japan and the European Union took effect on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jan 2, 2025

Japan-EU strategic partnership agreement takes effect

Under the deal, both sides will strengthen cooperation in a wide range of fields, including security, environment and energy, and personnel exchanges.
The U.S. government has approved the sale of advanced air-to-air missiles to Japan.
JAPAN
Jan 3, 2025

U.S. approves sale of advanced air-to-air missiles to Japan

The sale is designed to strengthen Japan's deterrence against threats from China and others in the Indo-Pacific region.
Residents and bomb squad members stand in front of a house destroyed by a Russian missile strike in Chernihiv, Ukraine, on Saturday. Japan plans to help Ukraine with measures to fight corruption.
JAPAN
Jan 5, 2025

Japan to help Ukraine eradicate corruption

Ukraine was 104th among 180 countries and regions in the 2023 corruption perceptions rankings by Transparency International.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken shakes hands with Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya at the start of their working lunch at a hotel in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 7, 2025

Blinken in final Japan visit as Trump's return weighs on Tokyo's mind

The top U.S. diplomat sought to reassure Tokyo that the U.S.-Japan alliance will remain robust even after Donald Trump returns to the White House in less than two weeks.
Japanese cybersecurity authorities raised an alarm Wednesday over a China-linked hacker group called MirrorFace, saying it has struck 210 targets in Japan since 2019.
JAPAN
Jan 8, 2025

Japan authorities raise alarm over China-linked cyberattacks

Analyses of the targets and methods and malware used by the hackers suggested that the attacks were an organized activity with a suspected link to the Chinese government.
Former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga (right) and Sen. William Hagerty, former U.S. Ambassador to Japan, hold talks in Washington on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 9, 2025

Japan to deepen U.S. alliance, former Prime Minister Suga says in Washington

Former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga spoke during a meeting with Sen. William Hagerty, who served as U.S. ambassador to Japan during the first Trump administration.
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.
Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya speaks at the Foreign Ministry in December.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 10, 2025

Japan's top envoy to visit the Philippines next week

The Philippines and Japan are longtime allies of the United States, which has been strengthening its alliances with regional partners in recent years.
Incoming Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya arrives at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Nov. 11 after lawmakers voted in parliament to reappoint Shigeru Ishiba as the country's prime minister.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 11, 2025

Japan foreign minister to attend Trump Jan. 20 inauguration

Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya would be the first Japanese Cabinet member to attend the swearing-in of a U.S. president.
Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya (left) and his South Korean counterpart, Cho Tae-yul, shake hands during their meeting at the Foreign Ministry in Seoul on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 13, 2025

Japan top diplomat visits South Korea amid political turmoil in Seoul

The talks on bilateral and trilateral cooperation also came just a week before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is due to take office.
People hold an anti-Japan rally in Seoul in July 2019 following Tokyo's decision to tighten controls on exports to South Korea.
JAPAN
Jan 14, 2025

North Korea incited anti-Japan sentiment in the South

North Korea aimed to fan the flames of anti-Japanese sentiment over issues like wartime labor and the release of treated radioactive water from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant.
Hiroshi Moriyama, secretary-general of the Liberal Democratic Party (left), and Komeito Secretary-General Makoto Nishida (right) meet with Liu Jianchao, head of the International Department of China's Communist Party, in Beijing on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 14, 2025

LDP executive urges China to resume fishery imports from Japan

Hiroshi Moriyama, secretary-general of the LDP, also requested Beijing to secure the safety of Japanese nationals in China.
Members of the Eastern Theater Command of the Chinese People's Liberation Army were visiting their Japanese counterparts and senior Japanese defense officials from Monday through Friday, Yoshimasa Hayashi said on Tuesday during a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 14, 2025

Japan hosts Chinese military delegation in rare visit

The trip was organized after the Japanese and Chinese defense ministers met in November in Laos.
Japan's first COVID-19 case was confirmed on Jan. 15, 2020, and there have been reports of cases of prolonged COVID-19 aftereffects having impact on social life.
JAPAN
Jan 15, 2025

Caution still needed five years after Japan's first COVID-19 case

Waves of infections have continued even after Japan lowered the classification of COVID-19 under the infectious disease law in May 2023.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang (center) with Komeito Secretary-General Makoto Nishida (left) and Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama in Beijing on Wednesday
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 15, 2025

Japan ruling party execs and Chinese premier agree to seek stable ties

Chinese Premier Li Qiang said that China-Japan relations are currently in a critical period for improvement and development.
Tourists take photos at Sensoji temple in Tokyo's Asakusa district on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jan 15, 2025

Japan saw a record 37 million visitors from abroad in 2024

The full-year number in 2024 represents a 47.1% year-to-year increase and was up 15.6% compared with 2019.
The air-to-surface standoff missiles have a range of about 900 kilometers, enabling strikes from beyond enemy firing ranges.
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2025

U.S. approves sale of air-to-surface missiles to Japan

The move comes in response to the Japanese government's request to purchase up to 16 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles with Extended Range.
U.K. Secretary of State for Defence John Healey (center left) shakes hands with Defense Minister Gen Nakatani (center right) at the Ministry of Defence in London on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 16, 2025

Japan and U.K. defense chiefs talk of deepening ties as fighter program progresses

Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and his British counterpart backed the quick formation of a joint venture for developing their new fighter jet with Italy.
Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya speaks to reporters at the Prime Minister's Office on Friday following talks with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 17, 2025

Top Japan diplomat to highlight investment and defense spending at Trump inaugural

Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya will be the first senior Japanese official to meet members of the incoming president's governing team.
Supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump in Tokyo march ahead of the inauguration of then President-elect Joe Biden on Jan 20, 2021.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 17, 2025

Japan has nothing to fear from Trump — except in maybe one area

Japan is far better positioned in the areas most important to Trump than many other countries. If Shinzo Abe were still alive, Japan would be in a great place.
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani speaks during a news conference at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN
Jan 18, 2025

Japan conveys serious concerns during rare visit by Chinese military delegation

The visit by the group from the Chinese military's Eastern Theater Command, which covers Taiwan and other areas in the East China Sea, was the first in five years.
A training session for a new reporting system that the Japan Coast Guard began operating on Saturday
JAPAN
Jan 18, 2025

Japan Coast Guard launches emergency video reporting system

The coast guard hopes the new system will improve life-saving measures in the event of emergencies at sea.

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Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.