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Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi says the government is  closely monitoring reports about a missing Chinese professor from a Japanese university.
JAPAN
Apr 22, 2024

Japan monitoring reports of professor 'missing' in China

Media reports have said the professor may have been questioned by Chinese authorities before he disappeared.
The trial hearing of Masumi Hayashi, who denied killing four people and poisoning 63 at a festival by lacing a pot of curry with arsenic, was the focus of The Japan Times’ front page of May 14, 1999.
JAPAN / History / Japan Times Gone By
May 1, 2024

Japan Times 1999: Hayashi admits fraud, denies curry murders

The disturbing case of the Wakayama curry killer would continue for years, resulting in the eventual execution of the woman convicted of the crime.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation CEO Summit in San Francisco in November
JAPAN / Politics
May 1, 2024

Work to improve Japan-China relations has stalled

The biggest issue standing between Japan and China bettering their relations is Beijing's blanket ban on imports of Japanese fishery products.
Members of a group representing family members of Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea hold a news conference in Washington on Tuesday.
JAPAN
May 1, 2024

'No objection' from U.S. to Japan ending sanctions if abductees return

The head of an abductees family group said he wanted Tokyo to carry out "strong diplomatic negotiations behind closed doors."
A prayer space for Muslims set up at a commercial complex in Tokyo. The Japan Tourism Agency is set to provide subsidies for the establishment of such prayer spaces.
JAPAN
May 2, 2024

Japan aims to attract more vegetarian and Muslim visitors

Pictograms showing what ingredients are included in restaurant food and souvenirs will be promoted.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks to reporters at Haneda Airport in Tokyo on Wednesday before embarking on a trip to France and South American countries.
JAPAN / Politics
May 2, 2024

Kishida and Attal vow to expand Japan-France ties

Attal also expressed his condolences over the recent death of renowned Japanese manga artist Akira Toriyama.
The National Diet building in Tokyo
JAPAN / Politics
May 4, 2024

Japan says Biden's description of nation as xenophobic is 'unfortunate'

The government said it was "unfortunate that comments not based on an accurate understanding of Japan's policy were made."
Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (right) and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida shake hands during a joint statement at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil, on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 4, 2024

Japan and Brazil vow cooperation in fighting climate change

Kishida and Lula also agreed to work together to maintain and strengthen the international order based on the rule of law.
Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and her Sri Lankan counterpart, Ali Sabry, after a bilateral meeting in Colombo on Saturday.
JAPAN
May 4, 2024

Japan seeks Sri Lanka recovery for regional stability

After talks with her Sri Lankan counterpart, Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa said that Colombo should secure agreements with bilateral lenders.
Former Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (right) speaks at a news conference with then-South Korean President Park Geun-hye and former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe after their trilateral summit at the Presidential Blue House in Seoul in November 2015.
JAPAN
May 5, 2024

Japan, China and South Korea arranging summit for May 26-27

The meeting is expected to bring together Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and Chinese Premier Li Qiang.
On May 2, the streets of Arashiyama, a well-known tourist destination in Kyoto, were filled with tourists, including many from abroad, ahead of the four-day weekend.
JAPAN / Society
May 6, 2024

Excitement returns to tourist spots in Japan one year on

Medical institutions have remained on alert for a possible spread of infections, including during the Golden Week holiday period.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol in Hiroshima in May 2023. Yoon's focus on mending ties with Japan since he took office has seen relations recover from what officials and experts said was the worst since the two countries normalized diplomatic relations in 1965.
JAPAN / Politics
May 10, 2024

Japan-South Korea ties remain on rocky ground over history

The possibility of disagreements over wartime labor in particular poses a constant threat to the dramatically improved relations built up in recent years.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman chairs a session of the virtual Saudi-Bahraini Coordination Council in Riyadh in December 2020.
JAPAN
May 10, 2024

Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to visit Japan

The visit to Japan by Saudi Arabia's de-facto leader, known by his initials MBS, will be his first since 2019.
Hanagasa Ondo folk song performers from Yamagata Prefecture take part in the Japan Parade held in Manhattan on Saturday.
JAPAN
May 12, 2024

New York hosts a Japan Parade

About 100 groups took part in the event where parade-watchers were able to enjoy traditional Japanese culture and food.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi called a South Korean opposition party leader's landing on Takeshima "totally unacceptable."
JAPAN / Politics
May 14, 2024

Japan protests Takeshima trip by high-profile South Korea politician

Former South Korean Justice Minister Cho Kuk on Monday visited the small, rocky group of isles, known as Dokdo by Seoul.
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham speaks to reporters during a news conference in Washington on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 15, 2024

Japan concerned over U.S. officials' remarks on atomic bombings

The remarks justifying the August 1945 atomic bombings could put a damper on bilateral ties between Tokyo and Washington.
Lee Hee-sup, secretary-general of the Seoul-based Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat, speaks during an interview in Seoul on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 15, 2024

Summit between Japan, China and South Korea to focus on future cooperation

The leaders of Japan, China and South Korea are expected to meet in Seoul late this month, for the first summit between the three neighbors since 2019.
The Defense Ministry has signed a contract with the United States to jointly develop the so-called Glide Phase Interceptor (GPI).
JAPAN
May 16, 2024

Japan and U.S. sign agreement to develop hypersonic missile interceptor

The plan was first announced in August when the leaders of the two countries met in Camp David outside Washington.
USS Ronald Reagan leaves the U.S. Navy's Yokosuka base in Kanagawa Prefecture on Thursday after nine years of service.
JAPAN
May 16, 2024

Aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan leaves Japan

The aircraft carrier USS George Washington will arrive in Japan later this year to take over.
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel meets with members of the Self-Defense Forces stationed on Yonaguni, Okinawa Prefecture, on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 17, 2024

U.S. envoy to Japan makes landmark visit to front-line island near Taiwan

Rahm Emanuel is the first U.S. ambassador to travel to the far-flung Japanese island, which is home to a Ground Self-Defense Force base and is just 160 km from Taipei.
Philippine Coast Guard personnel work as the 97-meter coast guard multirole response vessel, the BRP Melchora Aquino, arrives from Japan at the international port in Manila in June 2020.
JAPAN / Politics
May 18, 2024

Philippines to buy five patrol boats from Japan amid South China Sea tensions

Deliveries of the just announced five ships are expected to take place between 2027 and 2028.
Subject to the Chinese probes is polyacetal resin, a type of plastic used for automobile parts and other items.
JAPAN
May 19, 2024

China launches anti-dumping probes targeting Japan and others

Subject to the probes is polyacetal resin, a type of plastic used for automobile parts and other items.
Toyama Gov. Hachiro Nitta speaks during an interview in Beijing last week.
JAPAN
May 21, 2024

Amid chilled national ties, regional Japan and China exchanges continue

According to a Japanese source based in China, about 60 governors and mayors from Japan visited China in the previous fiscal year, which ended in March.
A railgun prototype developed by the Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency. A railgun uses electromagnetic force to fire bullets at high speeds, making them harder to intercept, but challenges remain over improving fire accuracy and making the weapon smaller.
JAPAN
May 21, 2024

Japan sends defense official to U.S. Navy for railgun development

The move is aimed at absorbing the know-how of the United States, which long researched railguns, to put the weapon into practical use as soon as possible.
Shigeru Omi, then-Japan's top COVID-19 advisor, speaks to reporters at the Prime Minister's Office in April 2022. A study published this month has shown that many experts who spoke to the media about COVID-19 in Japan were harassed by the public.
JAPAN / Science & Health
May 22, 2024

Many COVID experts in Japan harassed after speaking to media, survey shows

The research conducted by a professor at Waseda University is Japan’s first comprehensive survey on threats targeting COVID-19 experts.
A missile is launched as North Korea conducts a test firing of a tactical ballistic missile on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 23, 2024

Japan underlines qualitative improvement of North Korean nukes

An early draft of Japan's annual defense white paper also expressed a strong sense of crisis over China's military over its activities around Taiwan.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol will hold talks with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Seoul on Sunday and Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 23, 2024

Japan, South Korea and China to hold first summit in four years

A schedule of regular summits had been disrupted by bilateral feuds and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski speaks during an interview in Warsaw on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 24, 2024

Poland and Japan can cooperate over Ukraine reconstruction

The two countries can work together to reconstruct Ukraine, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said in a recent interview.
A P-8 Poseidon flies over the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Benfold as part of information-gathering operations during Valiant Shield 2016 in the Philippine Sea.
JAPAN
May 24, 2024

Japan's SDF to take part in U.S. 'valiant shield' drill for first time

The large-scale military exercise started in 2006 and is held in areas including Guam and involves about 10,000 personnel.
Japan Coast Guard patrol ships try to block the way of a China Coast Guard ship (center) near Uotsurijima in the Senkaku Islands chain on April 27.
JAPAN
May 27, 2024

Japan spots Chinese ships near Senkaku Islands for record 158 days

The territorial dispute over the Tokyo-controlled islets, known as the Diaoyu by China, is a long-running sore point between Japan and China.

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.