With hazy plan for SDF dispatch to Mideast, is Japan pursuing contradictory goals?
It was an unusual meeting starting at around 7:30 a.m. at the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's headquarters in Tokyo on Oct. 23, hastily organized so government officials could get lawmakers up to speed. In the week before, the government had abruptly announced plans to dispatch ...
Japan rushes to establish LNG bunkering hub as environmental rules push global fleet to natural gas
A U.N.-led call for action to tighten sulfur oxide emissions may also be a trigger accelerating a shift to natural gas as fuel for the global shipping fleet, and Japan is wasting no time trying to establish a refueling hub in Asia. Some 80,000 vessels ...
Japan's SDF to head for Mideast waters, but Tokyo steers clear of U.S.-led coalition
Self-Defense Forces ships and planes will patrol the Gulf of Oman and other areas but avoid the U.S.-led coalition protecting shipping interests in the strategic waters.
Tanker costs surge as Chinese firms face sanctions over Iran oil
Oil tanker costs are surging after the U.S. slapped sanctions on Chinese companies it accused of hauling Iranian crude on Wednesday, prompting a scramble in freight markets to secure alternative vessels. Rates for ships hauling 2 million-barrel cargoes of Middle East oil to Asia have ...
Abe expresses 'strong concern' over Middle East tensions and urges constructive role for Iran
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday told Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that Japan expects Iran to play a constructive role in stabilizing the Middle East, in the wake of attacks on Saudi Arabia's oil facilities. Abe also urged Iran to fulfill its responsibility as a ...
Iran says legal steps for U.K. tanker release have been completed
An Iranian government spokesman said on Monday that all legal steps had been completed for the release of the detained British-flagged tanker Stena Impero but that he did not know when the vessel would be released, Iranian media reported. The July 19 seizure of the ...
Transportation by boat for visitors attending 2025 World Expo in Osaka to be considered
Water transport will be considered to facilitate the movement of visitors to and from Osaka's 2025 World Expo for improved accessibility, Hiroyuki Ishige, a senior official of its organizing body, said in a recent interview. A panel of officials from both the public and private ...
Iran seized a boat and arrested 12 Filipinos as it busted a "fuel-smuggling ring" in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, the semi-official news agency ISNA reported. "A foreign tugboat was confiscated as well as 283,900 liters (75,000 gallons) of petrol worth 233.71 billion rials ...
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday ordered all limits on nuclear research and development to be lifted — the country's third step in scaling down its commitments to a 2015 deal with world powers. His announcement came shortly after the U.S. hit the Islamic Republic ...
Japan won't join U.S.-led maritime coalition but may send MSDF to gulf separately, report claims
Japan will not join a U.S.-led security mission to protect merchant vessels passing through key Middle Eastern waterways, but will consider deploying its naval force independently, the Yomiuri newspaper reported Tuesday. Though the United States is Japan's most important ally, Tokyo has fostered economic ties ...
Trump floats meeting with Iranian leader in echo of his North Korea outreach
U.S. President Donald Trump signaled he's open to making a dramatic shift in U.S. policy toward Iran, extending his most expansive offer yet to meet with President Hassan Rouhani and perhaps to ease restrictions so the Islamic Republic can use some of its oil ...
Australia's decision to join U.S.-led maritime mission off Iran likely to heighten pressure on Japan
Australia’s prime minister announced his country will join the U.S.-led mission to protect shipping in the Strait of Hormuz amid ongoing tensions with Iran, albeit under Australia’s operational control.
