NEWSWORTHY
At SDF ceremony, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe renews pledge to revise Japan's pacifist Constitution
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe renewed his pledge Sunday to push for a revision to the country's war-renouncing Constitution, in which he wants the Self-Defense Forces explicitly mentioned. Speaking before a field of about 4,000 personnel during the Self-Defense Forces Day at Asaka Base in Asaka, ...
GSDF amphibious unit, U.S. Marines hold first drill in Japan to retake remote islands
The Ground Self-Defense Force's amphibious troop unit conducted its first joint exercise in Japan with U.S. Marines on Sunday in Kagoshima Prefecture, part of training for operations to retake control of enemy-held remote islands. The drill, held on the island of Tanegashima, was aimed at ...
Number of SDF scrambles to warn Chinese planes hits second-highest mark for April-September period
Self-Defense Forces aircraft were scrambled to warn Chinese planes that neared Japanese airspace 345 times from April to September — the second highest figure ever recorded during the period — the Defense Ministry has announced. The figure for the first half of fiscal 2018 was ...
SDF member taking part in joint drill with U.S., Philippine troops, dies after crash
A Ground Self-Defense Force member dies after being injured in an automobile accident while participating in a joint exercise with U.S. and Filipino soldiers in the Philippines.
Abe versus Japan's 'invisible hand'
Will public opinion thwart Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's effort to amend the Constitution?
Japan's biggest warship visits Sri Lanka amid rise in Chinese military clout
Japan's largest warship, the Kaga helicopter carrier, sailed into Sri Lanka's Colombo harbor this weekend, marking Tokyo's highest profile salvo in a diplomatic battle with China for influence along the region's vital commercial sea lanes. Japan has long provided low-interest loans and aid to Sri ...
Japan and Britain hold joint military exercise in central Japan
Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force on Tuesday showed to the media its first joint military exercise with the British Army in central Japan following an agreement by the two countries last year to strengthen bilateral security ties. The drill began at a GSDF training school in ...
Japan will raise the Rising Sun flag at an international naval review in South Korea despite its Asian neighbor's request, Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera said Friday. "As a matter of course, we will raise it," Onodera told a news conference. The maritime ensign is regarded by ...
Shrinking applicant pool: Japan's Self Defense Forces struggling to recruit amid population crisis
As a Self-Defense Forces recruiter sat patiently at a booth outside a supermarket in Tokyo one recent weekend, she welcomed a rare visitor, high school student Kazuaki Matsumura. But Matsumura, who plans to go to university, wasn't there to sign up. He was just curious. "There ...
The Defense Ministry plans to use artificial intelligence for the management of public records, drawing lessons from the mishandling of daily Self-Defense Forces activity logs, according to officials. Under the project, AI algorithms will "learn" the content of public records and ensure that every related ...
Is constitutional reform the key to securing the Indo-Pacific?
How interrelated are the issues of Japan's constitutional reform debate and ongoing questions about preserving Asia's status quo?
China-Japan maritime crisis would undermine 'Belt and Road' initiative: PLA document
A maritime military crisis between China and Japan will seriously undermine Beijing’s “Belt and Road” initiative, an article in a People’s Liberation Army magazine says.
