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October 13, 2025
 

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DEFENSE

A Chinese JH-7 fighter-bomber flies close to an Air Self-Defense Force YS-11EB intelligence-gathering surveillance aircraft over the high seas in the East China Sea on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jul 13, 2025
China says Japanese ‘harassment’ behind close encounter with ASDF spy plane
The Defense Ministry in Beijing said “close-in reconnaissance and harassment” by the Japanese side was “the root cause” of the latest incidents.
The USS Warrior arrives in the city of Niigata on Saturday as part of moves to enhance bilateral cooperation.
JAPAN
Jul 13, 2025
U.S. minesweeper makes port call in Niigata
It is the first time since 2018 that a U.S. warship has visited Niigata.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s regime is supplying up to 40% of Russia’s ammunition, along with other military equipment, for Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine, according to Ukraine's intelligence service.
WORLD
Jul 13, 2025
Ukraine spy chief says 40% of Russian ammunition is North Korean
Kim Jong Un’s regime is also sending other weapons to Russia, including ballistic missiles and artillery systems.
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.
U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine speaks during a trilateral defense meeting with Gen. Yoshihide Yoshida, the chief of staff of the Self-Defense Forces’ Joint Staff, and South Korean Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Kim Myung-soo at the Defense Ministry in Seoul on Friday.
JAPAN
Jul 11, 2025
South Korea, Japan and U.S. conduct air drill as defense chiefs meet
The three countries' defense chiefs also held an annual meeting in Seoul on Friday, where they recognized the importance of close trilateral cooperation.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s escalating tariffs, erratic trade threats and linkage of economic and defense issues are undermining trust in America and pushing allies like Japan to rethink their dependence on Washington.
EDITORIALS
Jul 11, 2025
Trump declares war on the international economic order
Trump has a simple understanding of international relations. In his mind, might makes right.
A police officer at the site of a Russian airstrike which hit a residential building in Kyiv on Thursday
WORLD
Jul 11, 2025
Trump says U.S. to supply weapons to Ukraine via NATO
The U.S. president also said that he would make a "major statement" on Russia on Monday, though he declined to elaborate.
A Chinese JH-7 fighter jet makes an near an Air Self-Defense Force YS-11EB surveillance aircraft over the East China Sea this week in this image released Thursday.
JAPAN
Jul 10, 2025
Chinese fighters came within 30 meters of Japanese spy aircraft, Tokyo says
Chinese fighter jets twice risked collisions with ASDF surveillance aircraft over the East China Sea on Wednesday and Thursday, the Defense Ministry in Tokyo said.
A U.S.-made M1A2T Abrams tank takes part in live-fire exercises in Hsinchu, Taiwan, on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 10, 2025
Taiwan shows off new U.S. Abrams tanks during annual military drills
Analysts say Taiwan's first new tanks for 24 years would need to be protected against drones in any future conflict given lessons from the Ukraine war.
The JS Suzunami, a Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer, docks off Manila for a port call last month. The Japanese government plans to spend about ¥43 trillion in the fiscal 2023-27 period to drastically strengthen defense capabilities.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 10, 2025
Parties divided on defense spending increase
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to ask Japan and other Asian allies to increase their defense spending.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks as Attorney General Pam Bondi (left) and Secretary of State Marco Rubio (center) look on during a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 9, 2025
Trump signals continuing trade-defense link as tariff talks drag on
The U.S. leader has again alleged that Seoul is taking advantage of Washington on defense spending and burden-sharing — a worrying sign that may also have implications for Tokyo.
U.S. F-35 stealth fighters fly side by side with South Korean F-35s as part of a bilateral exercise over the Yellow Sea in July 2022. The U.S. Air Force is grappling with whether to prioritize air superiority or air denial in response to lessons from Ukraine and the growing threat from China.  
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Jul 9, 2025
Air superiority vs. air denial: Redefining U.S. airpower strategy
The strategic debate is centering on whether to prioritize offensive or defensive airpower. The decision will determine how U.S. air resources are allocated.
Reservists receive training ahead of the annual Han Kuang military exercises in Taoyuan, Taiwan, on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 9, 2025
Taiwan simulates attacks on military command in annual war games
Over the next 10 days, the Han Kuang drills will expand to assess Taiwan's combat readiness against a full-scale attempt to seize the island.
A concept model of the Global Combat Air Program (GCAP) fighter jet is displayed during the DSEI Japan forum in the city of Chiba in May.
JAPAN
Jul 8, 2025
Japan, U.K. and Italy open to Saudis joining next-gen fighter program
The three partners have tacitly agreed to such a move — but only once the project is underway and all outstanding points have been cleared.
Ukrainian firefighter and rescue workers carry a victim of a Russian airstrike that hit an apartment building in Karamtorsk, Ukraine, on June 22.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 8, 2025
U.S. to send 'more weapons' to Ukraine, Trump says
Trump's came after Washington said last week that it was halting some weapons shipments to Kyiv, leaving Ukrainian officials scrambling for clarity.
The Maritime Self-Defense Force's Abukuma-class destroyer Chikuma (front) and the Australian Navy's Hobart-class guided-missile destroyer Brisbane sail in formation during a military exercise in the Pacific Ocean in November 2023.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 7, 2025
Japan eyes used warship transfer to Philippines in bid to counter China
Sending the Abukuma-class vessels to Manila would mark Tokyo’s first export of an entire major naval platform in decades.
Despite perceptions of Russian weakness after Israel’s attack on Iran, that conflict has helped Vladimir Putin by diverting U.S. resources, eroding support for Ukraine and possibly setting the stage for the war to shift in his favor.
COMMENTARY
Jul 7, 2025
The U.S. bombing of Iran was a win for Putin
The possibility of another war in the Middle East has sucked attention, energy and resources away from Ukraine.
Andriy Ilkiv, head of the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Department of the National Police in Lviv Oblast, shows his prosthetic leg against the backdrop of the GCS-200 demining complex near the village of Zaliman, Kharkiv region, Ukraine, on May 2.
WORLD
Jul 3, 2025
Demining Ukraine: from drones to risking it with a rake
The drones which have revolutionized the way war is fought in Ukraine may also now become a game-changer in demining the country.
Since U.S. President Donald Trump took office in January, he has softened Washington's position toward Russia and raised doubts about future U.S. military support for Kyiv.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 3, 2025
Ukraine voices concern as U.S. halts some missile shipments
Ukraine said it had called in the acting U.S. envoy to Kyiv to underline the importance of military aid from Washington continuing.
F-35 aircraft on the deck of Britain's Prince of Wales aircraft carrier as it arrives at Marina Bay Cruise Center in Singapore on June 23
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2025
British F-35B fighters could soon land on a Japanese carrier
The latest British carrier deployment could see jets from the Prince of Wales vessel touch down on one of Japan's own de facto aircraft carriers.
University of Tokyo lands its highest spot ever in global higher education ranking
The University of Tokyo in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward
Ghost of Yotei’s bloodstained fun sidesteps Ainu identity
Ghost of Yotei, the follow-up to 2020's smash hit Ghost of Tsushima, is a violent, vengeful and engaging romp through 17th-century Hokkaido that fails to stick the landing on its most sensitive cultural material.
After ruling bloc breakup, CDP and Komeito eye unified PM candidate
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yoshihiko Noda speaks to reporters at the Diet in Tokyo on Friday.
As the Osaka Expo comes to a close, what will its legacy be?
After a run-up marked by apathy, organizers soon found they had the opposite problem as crowd control became a concern.
Why Japan's coalition collapsed — and what's next
Liberal Democratic Party President Sanae Takaichi enters party headquarters in Tokyo on Thursday.
Ghost of Yotei’s bloodstained fun sidesteps Ainu identity
Ghost of Yotei, the follow-up to 2020's smash hit Ghost of Tsushima, is a violent, vengeful and engaging romp through 17th-century Hokkaido that fails to stick the landing on its most sensitive cultural material.
‘Takaichi trade’ starts unwinding as political calculus upended by Komeito exit
Less than a week ago, Sanae Takaichi seemed set to become Japan's first female prime minister.
‘Save the Ring’ calls intensify as Osaka Expo’s end nears
Visitors lounge on the grassy hill on the top of the Grand Ring during the 2025 Osaka Expo in the city of Osaka in May.
A Japanese comedian walks into an Aussie bar … and stays there
Takashi “Waka” Wakasugi stopped by the Tokyo Comedy Bar in Shibuya Ward last month following his stint at Edinburgh Festival Fringe performing his show “Comedy Samurai.”
Chemistry Nobel winner Kitagawa says downtime helped him think up new material
Susumu Kitagawa speaks to reporters at Kyoto University on Wednesday after receiving the news that he had been awarded the Nobel Prize in chemistry the same day.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Rock group The Yellow Monkey played K-Arena Yokohama in June as part of a nationwide tour. Concerts are increasingly popular in the age of social media as users value in-person experiences.
Inside Japan’s arena boom: Sports, sound and city-building
By Patrick St. Michel

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.
We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.

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