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DOGE, the U.S. government reform project, embodies America's brash, fast-paced approach to change, while Japan’s cultural norms emphasize slower, more deliberate decision-making rooted in consensus.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 2, 2025

The DOGE solution? 'No thanks,' says Japan, with reason

I can’t imagine a DOGE-like beast in Japan. No one can. It is utterly alien to every tradition, precedent or cultural inclination in this country.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte plans to visit Japan on Tuesday and Wednesday — his first to the Indo-Pacific region since taking office in October, as he seeks to implement lessons from the ongoing war in Ukraine.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 5, 2025

‘Let’s make it practical’: NATO chief eyes greater defense-industrial ties with Japan

Japan and NATO plan to take their partnership to the next level by stepping up information-sharing and defense-industrial cooperation, Secretary-General Mark Rutte said.
Japan will take a leading role in U.S.-Japan defense cooperation during a Taiwan conflict and could eventually join AUKUS, expert says.
JAPAN
Apr 6, 2025

Japan to play major defense role during Taiwan conflict, U.S. expert says

"Japan's own self-interest is much more at stake in a Taiwan contingency or in a Japan contingency than the United States is," Weinstein said.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte speaks after touring the Maritime Self-Defense Force's Mogami frigate at the Yokosuka Naval Base in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 8, 2025

NATO chief makes Japan debut with focus on defense industry tie-ups

Rutte will speak with defense industry representatives to get their assessment on “what they do to ramp up production and how we can better work together.”
George Glass, U.S. President Donald Trump's pick to be ambassador to Japan, attends a Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing in Washington on March 13.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 9, 2025

Japan gets a new U.S. ambassador — and he has his work cut out for him

The U.S. Senate has voted to confirm George Glass, whose top agenda items include resolving the tariff row and getting Tokyo to spend more on defense.
Masatoshi Asari is one of Japan’s foremost living authorities on cherry trees and their blossoms.
JAPAN
Apr 9, 2025

The man who sent Japan's cherry blossoms out to the world

Masatoshi Asari's trees — symbols of peace and reconciliation — blossom in the U.K., U.S., Poland and China.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance speaks near Elbridge Colby (right) at Colby’s confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee for undersecretary of defense for policy, at the Capitol in Washington on March 4.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 9, 2025

U.S. confirms new Pentagon No. 3 as Japan defense budget in crosshairs

Elbridge Colby is a known China hawk and advocate for Asian allies — including Japan — to spend more on defense.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba at the White House in February
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 11, 2025

Trump calls U.S.-Japan alliance ‘one-sided’ as nations prepare for tariff talks

The U.S. president's remarks rekindled fears that he might use the talks to ask Tokyo to pay more for hosting troops, buy more weapons or further boost defense spending.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte meets with members of an explosives disposal team while inspecting equipment aboard the Maritime Self-Defense Force’s Mogami frigate at the Yokosuka Base in Kanagawa Prefecture on Tuesday.
EDITORIALS
Apr 11, 2025

Japan and NATO strengthen links amid rising security fears

The starting point for the deepening ties is a shared view that security is indivisible and events that create instability in one part of the world will impact other regions.
Japanese Ambassador to NATO Osamu Izawa (left) meets with the alliance's secretary-general, Mark Rutte, at NATO headquarters in Brussels recently.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 13, 2025

Japan’s NATO envoy targets industrial tie-ups to boost defense supply chains

Tokyo's first dedicated ambassador to the alliance says this will also boost interoperability with partners amid the tense regional security environment.
George Glass, then-nominee to be U.S. ambassador to Japan, speaks during a confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on March 13.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 13, 2025

New U.S. ambassador to Japan 'optimistic' about tariff negotiations

Tariffs on vehicles and auto parts are expected to be a key focus of the talks this week, Japanese officials have said.
Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, well regarded in Tokyo as a leading voice in the promotion of U.S.-Japan ties, has died at the age of 79.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 15, 2025

Richard Armitage, ex-U.S. diplomat known for boosting Japan ties, dies at 79

He was a leading voice in the promotion of U.S.-Japan relations even after leaving government service.
A night market in Taipei in April
JAPAN / Society
Apr 16, 2025

Japan is by far the favorite country among Taiwanese: survey

Japan has been the most popular country since the survey began in 2008.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Thursday in Washington.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 16, 2025

Trump calls the U.S.-Japan alliance ‘one-sided.’ Tokyo says otherwise.

Some observers believe the U.S. president’s worldview is stuck in the 1980s, a time when trade deficits with Japan captured the attention of U.S. policymakers.
U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass speaks to reporters on Friday in Tokyo just after he arrived at Haneda Airport.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 18, 2025

New U.S. envoy arrives in Japan with focus on trade, defense and reining in China

Ambassador George Glass said Washington will aim to deepen cooperation with Tokyo on pushing back against China's economic and military moves.
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

Gen Nakatani said that spending “is appropriately shared between the Japanese and U.S. governments based on mutual agreement, with a set time frame.”
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

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.
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

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.
The logo of Jetstar Airways on an aircraft parked outside a maintenance hangar in Melbourne, Australia, on Feb. 27.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 22, 2025

Jetstar Japan fined for failing to provide adequate cabin crew breaks

This is the first time a ruling has been handed down in Japan regarding flight attendants' rest time, according to the plaintiffs.
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.

Disentangling the two will prove a challenge as U.S. President Donald Trump continues to voice long-held complaints about the alliance’s fairness.
Japan Post conducted a nationwide survey after it was revealed in January that a post office in Hyogo Prefecture had neglected to perform the required checks.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2025

Improper alcohol and health checks on drivers found at 75% of Japan Post offices

The irregularities included fabricating records without conducting the checks.
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

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.
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

Many nations are looking to negotiate with the U.S. over the Trump administration’s reciprocal tariffs, which could undermine security in the region.
Prime Minister Shigaru Ishiba and CDP head Yoshihiko Noda at a parliamentary session in Tokyo on April 23.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 30, 2025

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.
Fuhin, one of the giant pandas at Adventure World in Wakayama Prefecture, when she was a baby
JAPAN
Apr 30, 2025

Chinese official positive about new giant panda contract with Japan

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said Tuesday that Beijing welcomes Japan's continued interest in international cooperation on giant panda conservation.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to reporters about Japan-U.S. tariff negotiations at his official residence on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
May 5, 2025

Tariff talks with U.S. seen influencing Japan's Upper House election

The outcome of the ongoing bilateral negotiations will have a major impact on this summer's election in the Upper House.
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani (right) stands alongside his Indian counterpart, Rajnath Singh, during a ceremonial reception in New Delhi on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 6, 2025

Japan and India to set up new consultation defense cooperation framework

The two countries' defense chiefs have also agreed on a plan to look at how Japan can help India develop fighter jets and tanks, including by exporting engines.
Takaji Wakita, deputy head of the Japan Institute for Health Security, speaks during an interview on April 21 in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward.
JAPAN / Science & Health
May 8, 2025

Japan bolsters pandemic readiness with new health crisis institute

The Japan Institute for Health Security represents the centerpiece of a strengthened framework designed to apply lessons from the early missteps of the COVID-19 crisis.
Joseph S. Nye (center), an advocate of stronger U.S.-Japan relations and father of "soft power," died Tuesday at the age of 88.
JAPAN / Politics
May 8, 2025

Joseph Nye, advocate of stronger U.S.-Japan relations, dies at 88

The former U.S. assistant secretary of defense, known for coining the term "soft power," coauthored reports that influenced the direction of U.S.-Japan ties.
A Japan Coast Guard vessel sails in front of the Uotsuri islet, one of the Japanese-controlled Senkaku Islands. Concerns are growing in Tokyo after a Chinese government helicopter violated Japan's airspace around the uninhabited islets.
JAPAN / FOCUS
May 12, 2025

Escalation fears rise in Japan following Chinese moves near Senkakus

Beijing sent a government helicopter to the area for the first time, while Chinese government ships have been spotted in the area for more than 170 straight days.

Longform

The byzantine process for converting a foreign driver’s license into a Japanese one entails mountains of paperwork and significant stamina — unless you're a lucky license holder from a country or region where these requirements are waived.
Driving in Japan isn’t hard. Getting the license is.