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Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand shakes hands with Japan's top diplomat, Takeshi Iwaya, at the end of a signing ceremony for an information security agreement, after bilateral talks in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 9, 2025

Japan and Canada ink key intel-sharing deal

The agreement is another important step toward deepening ties with individual members of the Five Eyes intelligence grouping.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to reporters during Association of Southeast Asian Nations-related meetings in Kuala Lumpur on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 11, 2025

Rubio says Japan defense spending hike less about money, more about capabilities

The comments echoed the view of Ishiba, who has repeatedly said that what is most important is the substance of strengthened defense capabilities — not arbitrary figures.
A Ground Self-Defense Force member conducts a military drill with an anti-ship missiles unit, at the GSDF's base on Miyako Island in Okinawa Prefecture in April 2022.
JAPAN
Jul 14, 2025

U.S. urges clarity on Japan’s role in potential war over Taiwan, report says

The move reportedly caught Japanese officials off-guard, since the U.S. itself maintains a policy of “strategic ambiguity” on whether or not it would defend Taiwan.
A senior member of a Self-Defense Forces honor guard inspects a formation before the arrival of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba for a visit to the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on June 30.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 15, 2025

With China and Trump, Japan defense report says world entering ‘new era of crisis’

The annual defense white paper says that U.S. actions under Trump will “significantly impact” the Indo-Pacific region and “will require continued attention.”
"The odds are high that the U.S. and Japan can come to an agreement," former U.S. Ambassador to Japan William Hagerty said.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 15, 2025

Ex-U.S. envoy William Hagerty optimistic about tariff talks with Japan

"The odds are high that the U.S. and Japan can come to an agreement," Hagerty said in an interview.
Elbridge Colby (center), then-nominee to be the Pentagon's undersecretary of defense for policy, is introduced by U.S. Vice President JD Vance (left), during a Senate Armed Services Committee confirmation hearing in Washington in March.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 16, 2025

Pentagon No. 3 praises Japan defense report, but vows to make alliance more 'equitable'

The Pentagon's top policy official Elbridge Colby labeled the defense white paper “an important, clear-eyed strategic assessment from our close ally."
Members of Japan's Self-Defense Forces stand in formation during a review at Camp Asaka in October 2018. The government’s latest Defense White Paper warns of growing threats from China, Russia and North Korea.
EDITORIALS
Jul 18, 2025

Japan must be ready for an increasingly dangerous world

If there is a complaint to be issued against this year’s Defense White Paper, it is its reluctance to fully address the impact of Donald Trump’s return to the U.S. presidency.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who serves concurrently as  president of the Liberal Democratic Party, delivers a campaign speech in Yokohama on July 6.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 19, 2025

Japan's minority government faces election snub as economic storm brews

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's LDP and its partner Komeito are forecast to lose their majority in a repeat of last year's Lower House election.
An event featuring maiko (young female entertainers) is held at the Hotel Seiryu Kyoto Kiyomizu in the city of Kyoto.
JAPAN
Jul 20, 2025

Experiential tourism key to driving inbound spending in Japan

The consumption patterns of visitors to Japan have been shifting as their enthusiasm for purchasing luxury items appears to be waning.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas attends a meeting in Brussels on July 14.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 23, 2025

China singled out at EU-Japan summit

The two sides reiterated their opposition to “any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion” in the East and South China seas.
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas speaks to The Japan Times at Europa House in Tokyo's Minato Ward on Wednesday, ahead of an EU-Japan summit.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 23, 2025

EU and Japan aim for deeper defense cooperation in high-tech arena

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas says she sees "a lot of room for cooperation" with Tokyo, particularly in technology-driven areas.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade deal opening Japan to U.S. auto exports sounds big but means little in practice because American carmakers don’t make what Japanese consumers want, such as the Honda N-Box, the nation's best-selling model.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 24, 2025

Japan trade deal offers U.S. automakers relief, not new markets

The peculiar tastes of America’s consumers put its vehicles at a disadvantage overseas that tariffs won’t fix.
Indian assistant language teachers pose for a photo with Japanese Ambassador Keiichi Ono (center) at the Japanese Embassy in New Delhi on Friday.
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2025

Japan to regularly accept assistant language teachers from India

This marks the first regular dispatch of assistant language teachers from India under a government initiative to promote exchanges at the regional level.
Researchers from Japan and China take part in a cultural exchange forum in Beijing on Sunday.
JAPAN
Jul 28, 2025

Researchers from Japan and China discuss cooperation

The forum for Japanese and Chinese researchers to hold dialogue to enhance friendship as well as human and cultural exchanges took place for the first time in Tokyo last year.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte looks at military equipment on the Maritime Self-Defense Force's Mogami stealth frigate during a visit to the MSDF's naval base in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, in April.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 29, 2025

Japan and NATO to launch defense-industrial talks, top envoy says

The talks will aim to explore new areas of cooperation and facilitate coordination between the two sides’ defense and security industries.
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun (left) is escorted by Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya at the start of their meeting at the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 30, 2025

Japan-South Korea top diplomats’ meeting shows ties on solid footing

In an unusual move, Seoul’s foreign minister visited Tokyo before Washington, as the Asian neighbors emphasized the importance of maintaining stable relations.
U.S., Japanese and Australian staff work in the JJOC Cooperation Team office at the U.S. Army’s Hardy Barracks in central Tokyo in this image posted to the Australian Embassy's X account on July 25.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jul 31, 2025

Coordination office marks first step in U.S. Forces Japan’s shift to ‘warfighting’ command

The launch of the new joint command team is the fruit of a multiyear effort to reshape and streamline U.S.-Japan operations.
The Maritime Self-Defense Force's Mogami-class frigate Niyodo sails at an undisclosed location in this image released Tuesday.
JAPAN
Aug 5, 2025

Australia announces new warships will come from Japan

Canberra will purchase 11 Mogami-class frigates in what will be Tokyo’s biggest-ever defense contract — a breakthrough for Japan's defense industry.
Tokunoshima, Kametoku New Port. A coast guard patrol boat spotted the Taiwanese vessel conducting the suspicious activity at a point some 335 kilometers west-northwest of the island of Tokunoshima in Kagoshima Prefecture at around 3:50 p.m. Monday, according to the 10th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters.
JAPAN
Aug 5, 2025

Taiwanese vessel suspected of conducting survey in Japan's EEZ for second time

The vessel was seen conducting suspicious activity around 335 kilometers west-northwest of the island of Tokunoshima in Kagoshima Prefecture on Monday.
A model of the upgraded Mogami-class frigate is displayed at the Defense Security Equipment International Japan exhibition at Makuhari Messe in Chiba on May 21.
EDITORIALS
Aug 8, 2025

The Japan-Australia frigate deal is more than a weapons pact

The scale of the agreement is sweeping. Japan has never before won a bid this size.
HMS Prince of Wales arrives into the Port of Darwin, Australia, in July during Exercise Talisman Sabre 2025.
JAPAN
Aug 12, 2025

Britain’s Prince of Wales aircraft carrier makes Japan debut

This is the second time since the late 1990s that a British aircraft carrier has docked in Japan — after the HMS Queen Elizabeth in 2021.
Indian Ambassador to Japan Sibi George speaks during an interview on Aug. 1 in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward.
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2025

Indian ambassador to Japan underscores Quad ties

Japan and India have designated 2025 as an exchange year in the fields of science and technology and innovation.
U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba at the White House in Washington on Feb. 7.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 14, 2025

After serving as bulwark for 80 years, Japan's U.S. ties continue to evolve

Under the U.S. security alliance, Japan has contained potential expansion of the Soviet communist bloc and China's hegemonic ambitions since the end of World War II.
"Japan is our neighbor across the sea as well as an indispensable partner in our economic development,” South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said in a speech commemorating the end of Japanese colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 15, 2025

South Korea’s Lee calls Japan indispensable partner before visit

The South Korean president has spoken harshly of Japan in the past, declaring in 2016 that "Japan is an enemy country.”
Jose Takei, an 82-year-old man of Japanese descent in the Philippines, speaks during an interview on Aug. 8 at the Foreign Ministry.
JAPAN
Aug 15, 2025

Stateless man of Japanese descent in Philippines eager for Japan citizenship

The son of a Japanese man and Filipino woman, Jose Takei never met his father, who left before he was born to join the Japanese military during World War II.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 16, 2025

On anniversary of WWII's end, China urges Japan to make the 'right choice'

"Only by remembering the past can straying onto the wrong path again be avoided," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was quoted as saying.
Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung makes a speech at a news conference for foreign media in Taipei in July last year.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 16, 2025

Taiwan foreign minister's visit puts damper on Japan-China relations

Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-Lung's latest trip has put a damper on bilateral ties, with Beijing canceling a meeting in Japan at the last minute.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba holds a news conference in Tokyo last month.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 16, 2025

Japan to accelerate development of logistics network in Africa

The planned corridor, which will link the inland African country of Zambia and a port in Mozambique, is aimed at enhancing supply chains for mineral resources.
Australia’s decision to select Japan's upgraded Mogami-class warship, seen in this computer-generated image, has been “well received across Japanese industry," a Defense Ministry official said.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Aug 17, 2025

Winning warship bid gives Japan confidence boost as Tokyo eyes more exports

Japan’s successful offer of state-of-the-art warships to Australia is seen as a "model" case for the future export of entire military systems, including to Southeast Asia.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba takes part in an online meeting focused on Ukraine, with leaders from the "coalition of the willing," a group of nations that have pledged support for Kyiv against Russian aggression, late Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 18, 2025

Japan watches nervously as Trump ramps up pressure on Zelenskyy

The U.S. president is pushing the Ukrainian leader to reach a quick peace deal with Russia — an agreement that could have broad ramifications for Japan.

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.