Tag - shigeru-ishiba

 
 

SHIGERU ISHIBA

Supporters of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba take part in a rally across the street from the Prime Minister's Office on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 29, 2025
Why Ishiba refuses to quit even amid intense pressure for him to go
With the U.S. tariff deal not yet implemented, a leadership change now would create a political vacuum and may put the agreement at risk.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba addresses a news conference in Tokyo on Monday. He repeated his pledge to stay on to prevent a political vacuum from forming after his party's poor performance in the Upper House election.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 29, 2025
The LDP struggles to define its future after election flub
The public doesn’t know what it wants — other than “not this” — so indecision by the LDP and other parties is understandable.
Who will buy the cars, SUVs, and trucks like the F-150 Donald Trump has promised to sell in Japan? Who will purchase 100 Boeing jets? And what will the $550 billion Tokyo-backed fund actually look like?
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 29, 2025
Who buys the F-150s, and more Japan deal mysteries
The long-awaited trade deal between the U.S. and Japan has investors celebrating after months of uncertainty. But as the song goes, nagging questions always remain.
Prime Minister and Liberal Democratic Party President Shigeru Ishiba, flanked by LDP Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama (left) and LDP Vice President Yoshihide Suga, speaks at a meeting of party lawmakers and executives at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 28, 2025
At LDP’s post-election meeting, calls intensify for Ishiba’s resignation
The prime minister apologized to his fellow party members over the loss of its majority in the Upper House, but remains determined to stay on.
A supporter (center right) of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba holds up a placard reading "Don't quit Ishiba" as he takes part in a rally across the street from the Prime Minister's Office in central Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 27, 2025
Stay or go? Key events give Ishiba time to ponder his future.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has pledged to stay in office — in defiance of growing calls for him to step down after the LDP's poor showing in the Upper House election.
An electronic board shows the broad Topix index hitting a record high on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 27, 2025
Japan investors brace for BOJ and earnings results after Trump-fueled rally
As the dust settles following the U.S.-Japan trade deal that sent markets on a wild ride, investors are questioning whether the rally was a sign of things to come.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delivers a speech at an event in Karuizawa, Nagano Prefecture, on Friday afternoon.
BUSINESS
Jul 26, 2025
Ishiba rules out joint document on U.S. tariffs as deal's details trickle out
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has faced criticism from the opposition as numerous details about the agreement remain unclear.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in Tokyo on Friday
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 26, 2025
'#Ishiba don't quit': Unlikely support grows for embattled PM
Despite Ishiba insisting that he has not discussed his resignation with members of his Liberal Democratic Party, multiple reports say that it is just a matter of time.
Opposition party policy chiefs discuss a gas bill in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 25, 2025
Move to abolish gasoline tax is LDP-Komeito coalition’s first post-election test
The minority government of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is under pressure to quickly decide on how to respond to the opposition push.
The Liberal Democratic Party’s historic Upper House defeat leaves the party fragmented and searching for a capable leader who can reunite conservatives, modernize its appeal, deliver real policies and rebuild its internal power structure.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 25, 2025
Who will save the Liberal Democratic Party?
The LDP is now faced with two fundamental questions: what tasks must it accomplish to restore its political dominance and who is actually capable of accomplishing them?
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to reporters on Thursday at the Prime Minister's Office.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 25, 2025
Various tactics to force Ishiba out of power emerge within the LDP
The LDP has been thrown into a political power game between those who want Ishiba ousted immediately and those supporting him staying on.
Japan’s ruling LDP-Komeito bloc lost big, smaller parties gained ground and the country now faces a more fractured, uncertain political future.
EDITORIALS
Jul 25, 2025
Voter revolt shatters Japan’s ruling coalition and empowers smaller parties
The big winners were smaller, newer parties on the right, Sanseito and the Democratic Party for the People.
Japan’s ruling coalition is weakening as rising populist parties like Sanseito gain support, raising concerns that Japan could shift toward unstable multiparty coalition politics similar to Israel’s fragmented Knesset.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 25, 2025
Is Japan drifting toward fragmented and ineffective politics?
In a system with many small parties, even minor players can hold the balance of power in forming coalitions.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who is also president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, walks past a poster after meeting with party executives at the LDP headquarters in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 24, 2025
Political turmoil continues as Ishiba’s fate hangs in the balance
While there are demands for the ruling party's leadership to resign, the weakening of past factional ties makes it hard for those opposing the prime minister to join forces.
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.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s last-minute trade deal with the U.S. may calm tariff fears but has cost him politically, leaving Japan’s ruling party divided and his leadership on the brink.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 24, 2025
‘Mr. Japan’ bends the knee — and falls on his sword
Shigeru Ishiba’s trade deal with Donald Trump will be his last act as leader
U.S. President Donald Trump gestures after signing executive orders in Washington on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 24, 2025
Trump says Tokyo agreed to buy U.S. defense gear, but questions remain
Touting the surprise trade agreement with Japan, the U.S. president claimed that Tokyo agreed to buy billions of dollars in defense equipment.
European Council President Antonio Costa (left) and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (right) join hands with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba prior to a meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 23, 2025
Japan and EU launch trade ‘alliance’ amid concerns over U.S. and China
The new agreement will expand bilateral trade ties, promote business cooperation and explore ways to diversify critical mineral supply chains.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba looks on after meeting with the Liberal Democratic Party executives at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 23, 2025
Ishiba denies reports he will resign next month, leaving his fate unclear
Some media outlets had reported that the prime minister was poised to step down in the coming weeks.
Prime Minister and Liberal Democratic Party President Shigeru Ishiba speaks at a news conference at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Monday, a day after the Upper House election.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 22, 2025
Frustration simmers in LDP as Ishiba clings to post after election defeat
The Liberal Democratic Party is expected to have a meeting on July 31 where the key focus will be on whether the party's leadership can dispel concerns about staying on.

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