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July 20, 2025
 

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DEFENSE MINISTRY

Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada speaks during a joint news conference with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo in June.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2023
China hacked sensitive Japanese defense networks, report says
Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said Tuesday that Tokyo has not confirmed that top secret information was leaked.
Four Italian Air Force F-35 fighter jets are lined up next to an Air Self-Defense Force F-15 fighter shortly after arriving at Komatsu Air Base in Ishikawa Prefecture on Friday evening in this image posted to the base's official X social media account.
JAPAN
Aug 4, 2023
Japan and Italy to elevate ties with first joint fighter drills
The drills highlight how Rome and Tokyo are expanding defense and security ties as their strategic interests in the Indo-Pacific converge.
A screen displays Chinese leader Xi Jinping, at the Military Museum of the Chinese People's Revolution in Beijing last October.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 28, 2023
China eyes accelerated plan for ‘world-class military,’ Japan says
An annual defense white paper said the world was facing its greatest test since World War II amid China's military buildup and the Ukraine war.
Two F-15 fighter aircraft from the ASDF fly alongside two Rafale jets and an A400M transport aircraft from the French Air and Space Force as the two forces kicked off Wednesday their first-ever joint fighter exercise in Japan
JAPAN
Jul 26, 2023
France and Japan expand defense ties with first joint fighter jet drills
The drills are scheduled to run from Wednesday to Saturday in the airspace around the Kanto region and the ASDF’s Nyutabaru Air Base in Miyazaki Prefecture.
People walk past a television screen showing a news broadcast with file footage of a North Korean missile test at the main railway station in Seoul on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2023
North Korea fires missiles as it gears up for apparent military parade
The launch of two missiles came as the North Korea appeared to be gearing up for an large-scale military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the Korean War armistice's signing.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 22, 2023
Japan fires Type-12 anti-ship missile for first time in Australia
The live-firing was part of joint anti-ship drills presumably held with China in mind, as Japan, the U.S. and Australia look to keep opposing naval forces at bay.
JAPAN
Jul 19, 2023
North Korea fires off two ballistic missiles, with both falling outside Japan's EEZ
The rare early-morning launches of apparent short-range weapons followed a test last week of the North’s Hwasong-18 solid-fueled intercontinental ballistic missile.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 16, 2023
Japan, South Korea and U.S. hold trilateral missile defense drill after North's ICBM launch
The rare exercises come as North Korea’s continued weapons tests push trilateral security ties closer than ever.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 15, 2023
Japan eyes surveillance radar deployment to remote island in Pacific
While Japan has beefed up its forces on the western side of the Nansei island chain, the Pacific side remains a 'blank area' not covered sufficiently by surveillance activities.
JAPAN
Jul 12, 2023
North Korea fires off ICBM-class missile ahead of Kishida-Yoon meeting
Although the missile fell outside Japan's EEZ, the weapon's 74-minute flight was the longest yet for a North Korean missile, the Defense Ministry said.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 11, 2023
Japan to speed up SDF cybersecurity personnel development
According to the ministry, the SDF's cyber unit had only about 890 personnel as of the end of March.
JAPAN
Jul 5, 2023
LDP-Komeito working group agrees on amendment of defense equipment export rules
The proposal would allow Japan to export lethal weapons falling under five categories: rescue, transport, surveillance, vigilance and minesweeping.
JAPAN
Jul 4, 2023
F-35 fighters at ASDF's Misawa base retrofitted to fix engine vibration hazard
A pilot had to eject last year during a predelivery test flight of an F-35B fighter for the U.S. Marine Corps after vibrations caused an engine control pipe to rupture.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 1, 2023
Japan says Russian warships spotted near Okinawa islands and Taiwan
Similarly, Taiwan's Defense Ministry said earlier in the week it had spotted two Russian frigates off its eastern coast and sent aircraft and ships to keep watch.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 30, 2023
Japan's ruling bloc aims to export next-generation fighter jet
The two parties are discussing a proposed easing of self-imposed restrictions on transfers of defense equipment and technology to other countries.
JAPAN
Jun 27, 2023
Self-Defense Forces testing use of Musk's Starlink satellite internet service
Japan already uses satellites in geostationary orbit, but Starlink adds a constellation of low-Earth orbit options to the mix.
JAPAN
Jun 21, 2023
Japan to prioritize domestic supplies of defense equipment
The country is looking to procure domestically made products as much as possible
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 16, 2023
Japanese parliament enacts bill to increase defense spending
The bill was approved by a majority vote at a plenary meeting of the Upper House, with support mainly from the ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 16, 2023
U.S. nuclear sub arrives in South Korea after North sends missiles into Japan EEZ
The 18,000-ton USS Michigan submarine, which can conduct strike missions using Tomahawk cruise missiles, docked at a naval base in Busan as part of a U.S. pledge to bolster deterrence.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 13, 2023
Japan delays possible tax hike period for defense, draft documents show
Japan has set ¥6.8 trillion for defense spending in this fiscal year, jumping from last year’s ¥5.4 trillion.
Japanese markets brace for triple whammy if opposition wins big
A Sanseito campaign van in Shinjuku. The populist party is gaining ground and challenging the more centrist parties.
Sunken WWII Japanese warship Teruzuki found off Solomon Islands
The Solomon Islands. A team from the U.S. nonprofit Ocean Exploration Trust has discovered the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Teruzuki on the deep seabed off the Solomon Islands as the 80th anniversary of the war's end approaches.
Living conditions index hits lowest level in 15 years in Japan
The share of respondents to a Bank of Japan quarterly survey in June who said they have become worse off came to 61.0%, up 5.1 percentage points from the previous survey.
In Upper House race, younger voters in Tokyo turn to DPP for new direction
The Tokyo district has the highest number of candidates in the 2025 Upper House election with 32 people in the running for seven seats.
Concerns grow in Japan over possible Russian interference in Sunday’s election
A think tank researcher said anti-government propaganda by Russian bot accounts was what has made the small far-right party Sanseito so popular leading up to the Upper House election.
Japan's rice farmers are confounded by Shinjiro Koizumi’s policies
Kiyoshi Shibata stands in front of one of the rice paddies in Murayama, Yamagata Prefecture, where he produces the prefecture's signature rice brand Tsuyahime.
From stalking to death threats, female candidates still face harassment
Mayu Ushida, a former NHK newscaster running for election in the Tokyo electoral district on the Democratic Party for the People ticket, signs an autograph for a voter after a public rally at Shinjuku Station in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Kawaii Lab redefines idol pop for the TikTok generation
Misa Kimura is the main producer for Kawaii Lab, a project by entertainment agency Asobisystem whose groups have found success by pairing a social media-first strategy with a fresh perspective on traditional idol-pop tropes.
Craig Mod's life in motion in a disappearing Japan
Mod's memoir “Things Become Other Things” chronicles his walking trips across the Kii Peninsula, surveying “a graceful end to a certain life cycle.”
With China and Trump, Japan defense report says world entering ‘new era of crisis’
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.

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