Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and her Vietnamese counterpart, Le Minh Hung, agreed Saturday to position economic security cooperation as a pillar of their countries' bilateral relations, including Japan's public-private support for Vietnam's crude oil procurement.

Japan will provide support for the Nghi Son oil refinery in northern-central Vietnam as the first project under the "POWERR Asia" initiative, which will provide a total of around 10 billion dollars in financial aid.

 

During their 50-minute meeting in the Vietnamese capital, the two leaders also agreed to work together to strengthen supply chains for critical minerals, including rare earths.

At a joint press conference after the meeting, Takaichi said that she and Hung confirmed "cooperation to jointly make Japan, Vietnam and the Indo-Pacific region stronger and wealthier." Hung expressed his expectation for economic security cooperation with Japan.

 

The leaders adopted a list of priority items for economic security cooperation in four areas--science and technology, semiconductor research and development, artificial intelligence and agricultural and food security.
 
 

 

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.7 jolted western Japan on Saturday, but no tsunami warning was issued, the country's weather agency said.

The quake, which struck at 6:28 p.m., registered 4 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in the prefectures of Mie, Nara and Wakayama and occurred at a depth of 70 kilometers in Nara, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
 
 

The end of April and beginning of May is a time when Japanese people can enjoy some free time and relax thanks to a succession of national holidays that, grouped together, are called Golden Week.

April 29 (Showa Day), May 3 (Constitution Memorial Day), May 4 (Greenery Day) and May 5 (Children’s Day) make up Golden Week and while April 30 and May 1 and 2 are not holidays, many Japanese add in those days to make a long holiday.

Showa Day celebrates the birth of Emperor Showa, who is better known in the West as Emperor Hirohito. 

Constitution Memorial Day marks the implementation of Japan’s post-war constitution on May 3, 1947. While it is Japan’s constitution, it was largely written by the occupying American forces after the war and has elements that some Japanese want to see changed.

Greenery Day came into being as a substitute for Emperor Hirohito’s birthday, which fell on April 29. Originally, Greenery Day was celebrated on the same day but in 2007 was moved to May 4.

The original idea behind Greenery Day was to celebrate Emperor Hirohito’s love of plants. Now, it is a general appreciation of nature.

Originally, there was a Boy’s Day and Girl’s Day in Japan but this, too, was changed after the war. 

Boy’s Day has its origins in 12th century Japan as a day to ward off evil spirits for samurai boys. Many Japanese municipalities hang huge carp streamers (koinobori) in parks and other places to celebrate the day.

The Koinobori Festival showcases an impressive array of carp-shaped streamers flown across the nation from April to early May in honor of Children’s Day on May 5. This tradition serves as a symbol of strength and success for children

In modern Japan, less attention is paid to the meanings of the holidays and more to having a break from work. Golden Week is one of three major holidays in Japan, along with New Year and Obon, which takes place in August and, while universally recognized, is not an official public holiday.

Japan shuts down for Golden Week, and the people take the opportunity to visit their hometowns, travel abroad or just relax at home. 

If you’re planning on traveling in Japan during Golden Week, plan early. Bullet trains and flights are all full during the holiday period and the highways are heavily congested. 

While banks and public offices are closed, shops and restaurants do a good trade, although some restaurants also take the week off. There will be heavy foot traffic in Japan’s main tourist spots and airports will be very busy.

The term “Golden Week” was coined in 1951 by the managing director of a film company when he saw how sales spiked during the holiday period.
 
 

Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi is planning to visit South Korea in late June to hold talks with his South Korean counterpart, Ahn Gyu-back, it was learned Thursday.

This will be Koizumi's first visit to South Korea since he assumed his post last October. When Ahn visited Japan in February, the two confirmed their countries' policies to deepen their national security cooperation through mutual visits.

At their upcoming meeting, Koizumi and Ahn are expected to discuss bilateral cooperation, including interaction between Japan's Self-Defense Forces and the South Korean military, and the situation surrounding North Korea, which is continuing its nuclear and missile development, according to sources in both governments.

Koizumi is also considering visiting the Joint Security Area in Panmunjom, located on the border between South Korea and North Korea, the sources said.

North Korea has repeatedly launched ballistic missiles, posing a threat to South Korea and Japan.
 
 

Japan's industrial output in March edged down 0.5 percent from the previous month, pressured by the Middle East conflict that affected output of chemical products due to disruptions in imports of their raw materials, government data showed Thursday.

The decrease followed an upwardly revised decline of 2.0 percent in February. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry kept its basic assessment of industrial production the same as the previous month, saying it "fluctuates indecisively."

Supplies of naphtha, which is necessary to produce chemicals widely used in manufacturing products such as plastics and critical medical supplies, have been disrupted due to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, following the U.S.-Israeli attacks against Iran on Feb. 28.

For the reported month, the inorganic and organic chemicals sector was the largest contributor to the decline, falling 8.6 percent from the previous month due to decreases in polyethylene, synthetic rubber and ethylene.

A ministry official added that regular inspections of naphtha cracking furnaces, which caused domestic production capacity to fall by nearly 40 percent in March, also led to weakness in ethylene output.

Despite the decline in the sector, the official said, "By utilizing inventories, the shipments of major petroleum chemical products are unchanged from levels of the previous year, and supply levels are maintained."

Manufacturing of petroleum and coal products, including gasoline, diesel and naphtha, also fell 7.7 percent, but officials said the decrease was due to "technical" factors stemming from seasonal adjustments, denying the impact of the Middle East crisis.

Auto output fell slightly among other sectors due to a downturn in exports, as earlier released trade statistics showed a cutback in cars bound for the Middle East region.

"We do not see that overall industrial output is weak after the average for the January-March quarter logged a gain and manufacturers' production plans showed that the index will rise both in April and May," the ministry said, adding that the Middle East situation is uncertain and warrants attention.

The seasonally adjusted index of production at factories and mines stood at 101.9 against the 2020 base of 100, the ministry said in the preliminary report.

According to a poll of manufacturers, output is expected to rise 2.1 percent in April and 2.2 percent in May, the ministry said.

Economists expect the upcoming April results for industrial production to further reflect the impact of the Middle East, with the strait remaining effectively closed, and supply issues for crude oil, naphtha, and fertilizers persist, forcing some manufacturers to stop taking orders.

The Japanese government says it can stably secure crude oil by releasing domestic stockpiles and by tapping alternate sources, but there could be "significant downward pressure" on production activities going forward, with the full resumption of shipping through the strait still unclear, according to Takeshi Minami, chief economist at the Norinchukin Research Institute.

In fiscal 2025, industrial output dropped 0.2 percent from the previous year to 101.2, marking a decline for the fourth straight year, reflecting the impact of the higher tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, the official said.
 
 

Animal rights group PETA has expressed concern that any dragon offspring born in Japan will be "condemned to a lifetime of confinement".

Indonesia will lend a breeding pair of endangered Komodo dragons to Japan under an agreement signed on Wednesday (Apr 29) between zoos from the two countries that emphasised the project's conservation merits.

The five-year renewable deal, criticised by animal rights group PETA, will in turn see Indonesia's Surabaya Zoo receive a pair of red pandas, a pair of giraffes, four Aldabra giant tortoises and two female Japanese macaques from iZoo in Kawazu in Japan's Shizuoka prefecture, officials said.

"This is not just animal exchange. This is a bridge between our two countries, Japan and Indonesia," iZoo director Tsuyoshi Shirawa said at the signing ceremony.

Indonesia's environment ministry said in a statement this month the programme's main objective was "long-term conservation".

PETA Asia has expressed concern that any dragon offspring born in Japan will be "condemned to a lifetime of confinement".

"True conservation protects Komodo dragons where they belong - in their natural habitats - not by exporting them for political optics or public‑relations gains," PETA Asia president Jason Baker said in a statement.

The ministry said conservation of the dragons in their natural habitat remained "the main priority".

"Through this cooperation, it is hoped there will be more Japanese people and tourists coming to Indonesia, particularly to the Komodo National Park ... to witness Komodos in their natural habitat," Indonesian forestry official Ahmad Munawir said at Wednesday's event.

Under the rules of the CITES pact that governs international trade in endangered species, transfers like this one are allowed for non-commercial breeding programmes.

The zoo in Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city, over 700km from the dragon's natural habitat, has bred dozens of the dragons in recent years in conditions that mimic their natural home.

In the wild, the world's largest living lizards are found only in the World Heritage-listed Komodo National Park and on neighbouring Flores island.

According to the International Union for Protection of Nature, the global population was about 3,458 adult and juvenile Komodo dragons at the last count in 2019.

The fearsome reptiles, which can grow to 3m in length and weigh up to 90kg, are threatened by human activity and climate change destroying their habitat.

In some places, they are losing natural prey to human hunters, and they sometimes die in conflict with humans over livestock.

Some are captured and illicitly traded to zoos or as pets.

There have been legal transfers of Komodos to other zoos in the past, including London and Singapore.

The Indonesian and Japanese governments signed a Memorandum of Understanding last month to make the exchange with Japan possible.
 
 

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Wednesday her government will do its utmost to help ensure continued wage hikes as the head of the country's umbrella group for labor unions underscored the need for increased pay amid inflation.

Takaichi attended a May Day gathering in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward -- an event where workers advocate for their rights -- making it the fourth consecutive year that a sitting Japanese prime minister has attended the event.

"We will do everything at our disposal to set conditions for (companies) to raise wages," Takaichi said at the gathering. "I ask for your support so we can see continued wage growth that outpaces inflation."

Japanese companies have accepted demands from labor unions to raise wages amid the rising cost of living. Labor unions under the Japanese Trade Union Confederation known as Rengo saw pay hikes of around 5 percent on average during their annual negotiations with management this spring.

Still, Rengo chief Tomoko Yoshino said the momentum should accelerate. "More is needed for real wage growth to remain positive as a trend," she said.

Rengo has around 6.78 million members and the Democratic Party for the People, an opposition party, has received support from the organization.
Yoshino noted that the tense situation in the Middle East has begun to affect its member labor unions' negotiations with management.

Takaichi's attendance came at a time when surging crude oil prices and energy supply disruptions cast a shadow over resource-scarce Japan. A weak yen raises import costs and fuels inflation concerns.

Disagreements remain between Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party and Rengo, including over the issue of whether to allow married couples to have different surnames. The Rengo chief was not invited to the ruling party's convention this year.

Still, the party aims to promote dialogue with Rengo and other "friendly" labor unions to expand its support base in its action plan for 2026.
 
 

Japan will seek to play an active role in finding common ground between nuclear and nonnuclear states at a review conference for the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, which opened Monday, Japanese State Minister for Foreign Affairs Ayano Kunimitsu said Tuesday.

Kunimitsu, who took part in the conference, made the comment during her talks with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at the U.N. headquarters in New York, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry. The NPT review conference will run through May 22.

Guterres expressed his gratitude for Japan's longstanding support for the United Nations.

Also in their talks, Kunimitsu and Guterres confirmed that they will work closely together on issues related to North Korea.
 
 

 

The government is considering creating programs teaching Japanese language, culture and social rules to foreign nationals and making attendance of the programs a factor in residency screenings, sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

The government plans to begin the programs on a trial basis in fiscal 2028, the sources said.

This comes in response to calls from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party for measures to address problems between Japanese and foreign residents.

The programs will be tailored to participants' home countries and regions as well as their life stages, according to the sources.

The government will consider allowing foreign nationals to take the programs before coming to Japan, as well as the possibility of making children's attendance at school a factor in their parents' residency screenings and making participation in the programs a requirement for permanent residency, the sources said.

Outlines of the study programs will be drawn up within fiscal 2027, and the government will develop a system to track participation.

On Tuesday, Kimi Onoda, minister in charge of harmonious coexistence with foreign nationals, reported on the progress made in developing the envisaged programs to Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

In a post on X, Takaichi said, "I aim to establish an orderly inclusive society by taking resolute actions against problematic behavior, in order to protect foreigners who abide by laws."
 
 

Japan Airlines (JAL) will start using humanoid robots in ground handling tasks at Tokyo's Haneda airport from May, in a two-year trial it said is aimed at easing employees' workload.

For a start, the Chinese-made robots will be deployed to load and unload cargo containers, JAL and GMO AI & Robotics, its partner in the project, said in a demonstration to the media on Monday.

Japan's aviation industry is wrestling with a labour crunch brought on by an increase in inbound tourism and a declining working-age population, said JAL, which employs some 4,000 ground handling staff.

The carrier hopes that these robots can also be used to clean cabins and operate ground support equipment in future.

Robots are already being used in some airports across Japan, including for security patrol and retail.

Japan welcomed more than seven million foreign visitors in the first two months of this year, according to statistics from JTB Group, which runs Japan's largest travel agency.

 

"While airports appear highly automated and standardised, their back-end operations still rely heavily on human labour and face serious labour shortages," GMO AI & Robotics' president Tomohiro Uchida told reporters.

Using robots for physically demanding tasks will "provide significant benefits to employees", Kyodo news agency quoted Yoshiteru Suzuk, the president of JAL's Ground Service, saying.

But he noted that some duties, including safety management, can only be handled by humans.
 

Private-sector members of a key Japanese government panel have called for a review of an indicator used to assess the appropriateness of public works projects in order to encourage long-term infrastructure investment by local governments and other entities.

“We need to build a strong regional economy in order to make the Japanese archipelago strong and prosperous,” Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said at Monday’s meeting of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy.

Takaichi instructed relevant cabinet ministers to strengthen crisis management investment to make the Japanese homeland more powerful.

 

Members of the panel, chaired by Takaichi, discussed reforms to secure necessary public investment to build a sustainable regional economy, at a time when aging social infrastructure such as roads and bridges is becoming a problem in Japan.

Private-sector members called for effective preventive maintenance and prioritized budget allocation.
 


 

Nearly 40% of municipalities subject to a subsequent earthquake advisory for Hokkaido and the Sanriku coast region, which was issued following a powerful earthquake on April 20, had yet to formulate response plans outlining procedures to be taken after such an advisory, according to a Cabinet Office survey.

The survey targeting 182 cities, towns and villages in seven prefectures was conducted in October, and its results were compiled in March. It found that 69 municipalities, or 38% of those surveyed, had no plans in place regarding their response to the issuance of a subsequent earthquake advisory.

The survey findings have raised concern over possible delays in the municipalities’ initial response to a subsequent earthquake, such as disseminating information to residents. The Cabinet Office has urged municipalities to formulate their plans as soon as possible.

The subsequent earthquake advisory system was launched in 2022. The Japan Meteorological Agency issued this advisory for the first time after a powerful earthquake struck off the eastern coast of Aomori Prefecture in December last year. The advisory issued after the earthquake off the Sanriku coast on April 20 was the second of its kind.

According to a tally by The Yomiuri Shimbun, evacuation orders were temporarily issued for 46 municipalities in five prefectures following the April 20 earthquake, and more than 11,000 people took shelter in evacuation centers and other locations.

According to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency of the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry, two people were seriously injured and eight others sustained minor injuries in Hokkaido and the prefectures of Aomori and Iwate.

After a subsequent earthquake advisory is issued, local governments must promptly provide information to residents, tourists and other people and urge them to prepare for subsequent earthquakes such as by securing furniture and confirming evacuation routes.

Under the relevant law, local governments are required to make efforts to specify response procedures in their disaster preparedness plans, which outline detailed steps to be taken in the event of a major earthquake such as setting up evacuation shelters.

In another survey conducted to assess responses to the advisory issued in December, 89% of municipalities that had already formulated response plans said their response was “generally smooth,” while 79% of those without such plans gave that answer.

The municipality of Imabetsu, Aomori Prefecture, is among the municipalities that have not devised a response plan. “We have only one staff member in charge of this matter, but as the advisory has already been issued twice, we need to prepare it quickly,” said a person in the municipality’s general affairs and planning division.

The municipality of Tomakomai, Hokkaido, formulated its response plan in March after the Cabinet Office’s surveys. Through discussions when creating the plan, the municipality said its staff had developed a deeper understanding of potential scenarios, leading them to give residents specific advice this time, such as securing furniture and checking emergency supplies.

“Since an advisory is issued suddenly, local governments need to prepare plans and conduct drills repeatedly,” said Tsukasa Morikubo, a director at the Cabinet Office.
 
 

ChatGPT scored the highest marks in this year's entrance exams of the University of Tokyo and Kyoto University, two of Japan's top universities, surpassing those of the actual top scorers, an AI venture said Monday.

According to LifePrompt Inc., the generative AI chatbot scored 50 points higher than the top test-taker on the University of Tokyo's most competitive Natural Sciences III medical track exam and received a perfect score in mathematics.

The achievement follows the AI's failure to pass all of the school's entrance exams in 2024.

The company tested using OpenAI's ChatGPT 5.2 Thinking model, having it take the two universities' undergraduate entrance exams, feeding it the exam questions converted into image data.

Since the answers included essay responses, they were graded by teachers from major cram school Kawai Juku.

ChatGPT also answered this year's unified university entrance examinations, and the Tokyo-based venture totaled the scores.

ChatGPT scored 452 points out of a possible 550 on the University of Tokyo's Humanities and Social Sciences exam and 503 points out of a possible 550 on the Natural Sciences exam.

Both scores surpassed the highest scores of successful applicants announced by the university at 434 points for Humanities and Social Sciences III and 453 points for Natural Sciences III.

On the other hand, the AI scored 90 percent on the English exam but only 25 percent on essay-style questions in subjects like World History.

As for Kyoto University's examinations, the AI scored 771 points in the Faculty of Law exam, exceeding the highest passing score of 734, and 1,176 points in the Faculty of Medicine exam, above the top scorer's 1,098.

In 2024, LifePrompt used OpenAI's latest model, ChatGPT 4, to have AI solve the University of Tokyo's entrance exam, but it failed to reach the minimum passing score. The following year, LifePrompt tested the newest model, o1, which successfully cleared the passing threshold for the first time.

"The AI's capabilities have been well documented. Given the rapid pace of AI evolution, companies will need to adopt AI with an eye toward how business operations will look in 10 to 20 years," said Satoshi Endo, head of LifePrompt.

Satoshi Kurihara, a professor at Keio University and the head of the Japanese Society for Artificial Intelligence, argued that humans and AI should not compete on the same playing field because AI excels at absorbing vast amounts of existing data.

"Just as calculators can perform calculations faster and more accurately than humans can, it is only natural for AI to earn high scores," said Kurihara, adding that humans remain superior when it comes to creating new value.

He went on to say that it is time to rethink entrance exams that currently focus on testing knowledge retention and calculation capabilities.
 
 

 
A record 318 foreign nationals were forcibly deported with an officer escort in 2025, having refused to leave Japan voluntarily after being found to be staying illegally in the country, according to data compiled by the Immigration Services Agency.

A record 318 foreign nationals were forcibly deported with an officer escort in 2025, having refused to leave Japan voluntarily after being found to be staying illegally in the country, according to data compiled by the Immigration Services Agency.

The number is believed to have increased because the agency has expressed its intention to proactively deport foreign nationals who stay illegally.

In the morning of March 11, a handcuffed man from an East Asian country yelled and fiercely expressed his dissatisfaction in a room at the Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, after an agency official informed him that he would be forcibly deported to his home country.

After multiple illegal entries and stays, the man was issued a fourth deportation order in 2022. However, he refused to leave voluntarily despite repeated attempts by agency officials to persuade him, saying he wanted to stay with his Japanese wife.

The agency deemed this a “serious offense” and decided to forcibly deport him, with multiple officers escorting him.

On the day the decision was made, the man was deported from Tokyo’s Haneda Airport along with an East Asian woman who had been given a deportation order. He was surrounded by the officers inside the cabin, according to the agency.


‘Zero illegal immigrants’

Illegal immigrants are deported to their home countries or other destinations based on the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law and a total of 7,563 people were deported in 2025.

The Immigration Services Agency encourages voluntary return and, according to the agency, 90% of those deported choose to return at their own expense.

Some illegal immigrants reportedly refuse to return, citing their family and other reasons. In cases when illegal immigrants refuse to accept voluntary return, the agency forcibly deports them with an escort of its officers at its expense.

In 2018, the earliest when the agency’s data is available, 216 were forcibly removed from the country. This number decreased to 15 in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It reached 318 in 2025 after reaching 119 in 2023 and 249 in 2024. By nationality, Turks are the largest number at 71, followed by Filipinos at 46.

The agency has set a goal of reducing the number of illegal immigrants to zero to realize an “inclusive society” although they are estimated to be around 68,500 as of January.

One of its measures to realize the goal is the forcible deportation of illegal immigrants escorted by the agency’s officers.

The agency plans to actively enforce the measure to deport individuals who commit serious crimes and plans to increase the number of forcibly deported illegal immigrants to 500 by 2027. An agency official said, “It’s only natural to take firm action against foreign nationals who don’t follow the rules.”


Human rights concerns

The Japan Federation of Bar Associations (JFBA) released a president’s statement against the agency’s zero illegal foreign residents plan in July 2025.

The statement said that human rights could be violated because those who should be recognized as a refugee could also be forcibly deported. It also said the plan “is likely to cause anxiety, prejudice and discrimination against foreign nationals.”

Kazuya Namerikawa, a lawyer handling foreign residents’ human rights issues at the JFBA, said, “The agency should carefully consider whether it is necessary to forcibly deport foreign residents on a case-by-case basis instead of just pursuing the numbers.”

It is assumed that it is not uncommon for children who are not responsible for their circumstances to be forced to leave due to their parents’ immigration status.

Susumu Takahashi, chairman emeritus of the Japan Research Institute, said if foreign nationals who don’t follow the rules aren’t penalized, all foreign residents could be viewed with prejudice.

“When the measures are implemented, the government needs to give the most possible consideration to human rights and provide a detailed explanation of why it decided to forcibly deport foreign nationals with an immigration officer escort.”
 


 

A strong earthquake rattled Hokkaido early Monday, the U.S. and Japanese meteorological agencies reported, the latest in a series of powerful tremors to hit Japan.

The magnitude 6.2 quake struck shortly before 5:30 a.m. in Hokkaido’s southern region, at a depth of 83 kilometers, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) reported.

The quake registered an upper 5 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale in the town of Urahoro, Hokkaido, and a lower 5 in the town of Niikappu, also in Hokkaido, according to the JMA.

No tsunami alert was issued, and U.S. Geological Survey predicted that damage to property and threat to life was minimal, given the limited population in the region some 200 km east of Sapporo.

Ayataka Ebita, a JMA official who briefed reporters early Monday, said the latest quake is unrelated a the JMA’s special advisory warning of the increased risk of a megaquake — magnitude 8.0 or stronger — after last Monday’s magnitude 7.7 earthquake off Iwate Prefecture.
“It is a one-off earthquake,” he said.

But “in areas that experienced strong shaking, the danger of falling rocks and landslides has increased,” the JMA official told reporters.

Six people were reported injured as a result of last week’s quake, which shook large buildings in Tokyo, hundreds of kilometers from the epicenter.

In addition, 80-centimeter tsunami waves lashed a port in Iwate, while small waves also hit elsewhere in northern Japan.

The special advisory — which covers 182 municipalities from Hokkaido to Chiba Prefecture — expires at 5 p.m. Monday, though this doesn’t mean the risk will be entirely gone once it is lifted.

It’s the second time the JMA has issued such an advisory, which was created in 2022. It was first used in December following a magnitude 7.5 quake that struck the Sanriku coast.

Authorities are urging people to be ready to evacuate at any time, with a checklist to keep in mind.

Japan is one of the world’s most seismically active countries, sitting on top of four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the Pacific “Ring of Fire.”

The archipelago, home to around 125 million people, typically experiences around 1,500 jolts every year and accounts for about 18% of the world’s earthquakes.

Japan is haunted by the memory of a massive magnitude 9.0 undersea quake in 2011, which triggered a tsunami that killed or left missing around 18,500 people and caused a devastating meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear plant.
 

 

Experts commissioned by the Japan Tourism Agency met on Monday to launch a review of dual pricing for tourist sites, in which charges for nonresidents, including inbound tourists, are set higher than those for residents.

Based on their discussions, the agency plans to draw up guidelines as early as this fiscal year that will assist local governments and businesses in setting charges.

"In recent years, there has been a trend toward revising fees to help maintain and enhance tourism content and address overtourism," JTA Commissioner Shigeki Murata said at the meeting.

"Such cases can be used as references for other tourism facilities and services."

In March, the Himeji city government in the western prefecture of Hyogo raised the entrance fee for Himeji Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage site, to 2,500 yen for nonresidents, while keeping the price for residents unchanged at 1,000 yen.
 
 

There is a wide gender gap in perceptions of workplace equality among male and female workers at newspapers and press agencies, a survey by the Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association showed Thursday.

The survey "highlights challenges facing the industry and calls for change among workers," said the association, or Nihon Shinbun Kyokai.

The online survey was conducted in November and December 2025. This is the first large-scale survey on the subject in the newspaper industry.

It covered about 36,000 employees or executives of member companies of the association. Valid responses came from 9,630 people, including 6,823 who identified as men and 2,755 as women.

In the survey, the proportion of respondents who said that men and women had equal status in their workplaces stood at 40.7 pct among male respondents, compared with 26.0 pct among female respondents.

When asked about situations in which they feel inequality, many respondents said that men are more likely to be appointed to managerial positions and that their opinions are more strongly reflected in editorial decisions.
 
 

A draft law to establish a national intelligence committee was passed in Japan's House of Representatives on Thursday, as part of efforts to bolster the government's information-gathering capabilities, Kyodo reports.

The legislation comes as Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi aims to centralize the country's intelligence capabilities under one council in the face of increasingly sophisticated overseas threats, including those related to economic security and foreign espionage.

Backed by opposition parties, the bill -- submitted by the ruling bloc of the Liberal Democratic Party and its junior partner, the Japan Innovation Party -- cleared the powerful lower house a day after a supplementary resolution to protect personal information was adopted.

With the support of the largest opposition party in the lower house, the Centrist Reform Alliance, as well as the Democratic Party for the People and other parties, the legislation is expected to be enacted after passing the House of Councillors, where the governing coalition does not hold a majority.

Following enactment, Takaichi's LDP and JIP aim to launch the committee by summer.

Devised in response to national security concerns, including election interference via social media disinformation, the committee will be chaired by the prime minister and composed of nine other Cabinet members, including the chief Cabinet secretary and foreign minister. It will consolidate a fragmented intelligence apparatus into a central command.

The bill states that the committee's secretariat will "comprehensively coordinate" intelligence collected by the National Police Agency, the Foreign Ministry, the Defense Ministry, and other organizations, with the authority to ask them to share information.

During parliamentary debate on the bill, opposition parties voiced concerns about the new body's potential privacy threats and ability to remain politically neutral.

The nonbinding supplementary resolution was put forward in response to calls for the law to protect private data. It states that information on politicians or electoral activities will not be collected for the purpose of benefiting or disadvantaging specific political entities.

Earlier, Japan eased arms export rules to enable weapons sales.
 
 

After a 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck off Sanriku, Japan on Monday, officials are preeminently preparing for aftershocks and tsunamis by evacuations.

On Monday, Japan was rocked by a 7.7-magnitude earthquake.

And officials fear that things are heating up, that the initial tremor was just the beginning. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) issued a “subsequent quake advisory,” and as a result, tourists in coastal regions are currently preparing to evacuate – just in case.

The initial earthquake fortunately caused minimal damage – injuries were reported, buildings were damaged, and roads were ripped up. It also created a tsunami. Nothing too crazy, however.

Waves up to 80 cm (2.6 feet) were recorded at Kuji Port in Iwate Prefecture. And footage from the tsunami waves can be seen below. As for what is (potentially) to come, Japan is playing the game of “better safe than sorry.”

As evacuations begin, The Japan Times reports:

“Following an earthquake and the issuing of a subsequent earthquake advisory for Hokkaido and the Sanriku coast region on Monday, preparations are underway at tourist sites and other locations in the affected areas to ensure that even those unfamiliar with the local geography, such as foreign visitors, can evacuate safely in an emergency.

“The magnitude 7.7 quake hit the Tohoku region and Hokkaido on Monday afternoon, triggering tsunami warnings and advisories and evacuation orders, which were later lifted.

Following the quake, the subsequent earthquake advisory was issued, instructing people in the area to remain ready to evacuate at any moment until April 27, due to the increased likelihood of large aftershocks.”

Japan, of course, exists in the notorious “Ring of Fire” – the 25,000-mile, horseshoe-shaped belt around the Pacific Ocean, which is a literal hotbed for seismic activity. It is home to over 75 percent of the world’s active volcanoes and 90 percent of its earthquakes.

The last major tremor that struck Japan was in 2011, when a 9.0 megathrust hit off the Oshika Peninsula, and triggered a devastating tsunami that resulted in the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Nearly 20,000 people died during that catastrophic event.

Now, Japan is taking no chances.
 
 

The Japanese government entered the lethal weapons export business after lifting the ban on April 21 by revising the Three Principles on the Transfer of Defense Equipment and Technology.

The next day, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi started pitching military equipment. 

Takaichi held a phone conference with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon on April 22. When Takaichi explained that Japan had dropped its ban on arms exports, Luxon reportedly welcomed the move.

During the talks, both leaders spoke about the improved version of the Mogami-class frigate based on vessels currently operated by Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force.

The Australian navy plans to introduce the upgraded version to its fleet; Luxon also showed interest in the model, according to sources close to the Foreign Ministry.

Takaichi had expressed previously that defense equipment transfers would enhance the capabilities of like-minded countries. She intends to actively pursue sales talks with other nations. 

The transfer of used MSDF Abukuma-class destroyer escorts to the Philippines is widely seen as what will likely be the first export deal following the removal of the five-category restrictions.

For Japan, exporting weapons to like-minded countries in the South China Sea is also aimed at strengthening cooperation with an eye on China.

At a news conference on April 21, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said he wants to “further strengthen top-level sales efforts” toward other countries, and is scheduled to visit the Philippines and Indonesia in early May.

On the same day, Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro issued a statement welcoming the move, saying that defense cooperation with Japan had “entered a new era.”

According to multiple Japanese government sources, arrangements are also being made to invite Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to Japan as a state guest as early as late May.

The U.S. State Department also welcomed Japan’s lifting of the ban on the same day, calling it “a positive move for the Japan-U.S. alliance and international stability.”

U.S. weapons export deliveries to allies and partners have been routinely delayed due to the country’s production capacity constraints and becoming a problem.

Countries that have been forced to wait for deliveries have expressed hopes for a greater role by Japan.

Meanwhile, South Korea’s Foreign Affairs Ministry issued a statement the same day, saying it hoped the move would be carried out “in a manner that maintains the spirit of Japan's pacifist Constitution while contributing to peace and stability in the region.”
 
 

Wildfires that broke out on Wednesday in two locations in the northeastern Japan town of Otsuchi, Iwate Prefecture, continued into Thursday, burning a total of about 200 hectares, according to the town government.

The town government has advised a total of about 2,600 people in 1,200 households to evacuate. About 220 people are staying in evacuation shelters. One woman in her 60s was injured after slipping at an evacuation shelter.

Despite ongoing firefighting efforts, there is still no clear prospect for when the fires will be extinguished.

 

The Iwate prefectural government has set up a disaster response headquarters and decided to invoke the disaster relief law.

At around 1:50 p.m. Wednesday, an emergency call reported a fire on a mountain slope in the Kozuchi district of Otsuchi.

 

According to the prefectural government, seven houses and buildings were destroyed, and surrounding forest areas were also burned.
 
 

The Japanese government will ban the use of power banks on aircraft starting 24 April. The policy has been issued by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism in response to a rise in fire incidents involving lithium-ion batteries.

As reported by The Straits Times, under the new rules passengers will no longer be allowed to charge mobile phones or other devices using power banks during flights. The use of power banks connected to cabin power outlets is also prohibited.

In addition, the number of power banks that can be carried into the cabin is limited to a maximum of two units per passenger. Violations of these provisions may result in penalties.

The ministry stated that the revision was made following discussions with international bodies that regulate civil aviation safety. The changes are set out in updated provisions under Japan’s Civil Aeronautics Act.

On 14 April, cabin crew and ground staff from domestic airlines under the Scheduled Airlines Association of Japan distributed leaflets at Haneda Airport in Tokyo to inform passengers about the new policy and seek their understanding.

Previously, according to The Independent, data from Japan’s national technology agency showed there were 123 incidents involving mobile batteries in 2024, an increase of 160% compared with 47 cases in 2020.

At the global level, the International Civil Aviation Organization is currently discussing possible changes to rules regarding the use of power banks on flights.

This tightening of regulations follows a series of fire incidents involving power banks on aircraft.

In January 2025, Air Busan banned the storage of power banks in overhead compartments after a major fire destroyed one of its aircraft on the runway.
 
 

The Tokyo Metro Ginza Line, which had undergone a partial service suspension following a report of smoke at Asakusa Station in Tokyo early Wednesday morning, resumed full-line service 13 hours later at around 7:20 p.m.

At around 6:20 a.m., smoke was detected at Asakusa Station, and service was suspended along the entire line.

At 6:35 a.m., service resumed between Mitsukoshimae and Shibuya stations, but it took a long time for service to resume between Asakusa and Mitsukoshimae stations.

The smoke was reportedly caused by damage to a cable that was part of the equipment at Asakusa Station.
 
 

A 24-year-old worker died on Tuesday after being caught in an amusement park attraction in Tokyo during an inspection, according to the Metropolitan Police Department and other sources.

An emergency call was made at around 11:55 a.m., reporting that a worker was stuck in the equipment at Tokyo Dome City Attractions in the capital's Bunkyo Ward. 

Hina Kamimura was pulled out of the place where she was trapped about five hours later, she was pronounced dead at a hospital.

According to the MPD and others, the accident occurred at the Flying Balloon attraction, which features 12 seats around a pole that rise to a height of 10 meters.

Kamimura and five others had been conducting routine maintenance from 10 a.m. on the day of the incident.

She was inspecting the inside of the pole when the seats, which were fixed at the top of the pole, dropped for reasons that have yet to be confirmed.

Her body was trapped between the pole and the plate that supports the seats.
The amusement park was closed for the day due to the accident.
 
 

A 7.7 magnitude earthquake Monday off northern Japan sparked a short-lived tsunami alert and an advisory of a slightly higher risk of a possible megaquake for its coastal areas.

The Cabinet Office and the Japan Meteorological Agency said there was a 1% chance for a megaquake, compared to a 0.1% chance during normal times, in the next week or so following the quake near the Chishima and Japan trenches.

Officials said the advisory was not a prediction but urged residents in 182 towns along the northeastern coasts to raise their preparedness while continuing their daily lives.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi urged residents to confirm their designated shelters and evacuation routes and to check emergency food and grab bags so they can run immediately when a megaquake hits. “The government will do our utmost in case of an emergency,” she told reporters.

It was the second such advisory for the region in recent months. One was issued following a 7.5-magnitude quake in December but no megaquake occurred.

Still, Monday’s earthquake and tsunami were a reminder to the quake-prone area of the March 2011 disaster that ravaged large swaths of the northern coast, triggering a nuclear crisis in Fukushima.

NHK television footage showed hanging objects swaying and people squatting at a shopping center in Aomori, as authorities told people to seek higher ground and avoid coastal areas.

The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said two people, one in Aomori and another in Iwate, were injured after falling.

Shinkansen bullet trains connecting Tokyo and northern Japan were temporarily suspended, leaving passengers in cars and on platforms waiting for service to resume.

 

The quake occurred off the coast of Sanriku at around 4:53 p.m. and was about 19 kilometers (11 miles) deep, JMA said. The U.S. Geological Survey measured the quake’s strength as 7.4 magnitude.

A tsunami of about 80 centimeters (2.6 feet) was detected at the Kuji port and a smaller tsunami of 40 centimeters (1.3 feet) was recorded at another port, both in Iwate prefecture, before Japan lifted all tsunami alert and advisories.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority said nuclear power plants and related facilities in the region were intact and no abnormalities were detected.

It’s been 15 years since a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and massive tsunami on March 11, 2011, ravaged parts of northern Japan, causing more than 22,000 deaths and forcing nearly half a million people to flee their homes.
 

Japan has unveiled a new name for days that reach 40C (104F) or above, after the country experienced its hottest summer on record last year.

The term - kokushobi - has been translated as "cruelly hot", "brutally hot" or "severely hot" day by Japanese and international media.

The name emerged as the most popular in a national online survey, with "super extremely hot day" in second place.

Extreme weather events like heatwaves are becoming more common and more intense around the world, fuelled by human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels.

The description, introduced by Japan's Meteorological Agency (JMA) on Friday, uses koku - meaning harsh or cruel - to describe the heat, the Japan Times newspaper reported.

The survey was conducted in February and March and received roughly 478,000 responses, in which people picked their preferred term among 13 options to describe the hottest day.

Japan already has terms for days over 25C, 30C and 35C.
The new word for even hotter weather comes after record-shattering heat hit Japan last year.

Summer 2025 was the hottest since records began in 1898 - with average temperatures nationwide 2.36C above average.

Temperatures reached 40C-plus on nine days between June and August, with a new national peak of 41.8C in the city of Isesaki.

The cumulative number of extremely hot days also surpassed the previous record set in 2024.

For example, Tokyo recorded 25 days over 35C, compared with an average of just 4.5 days. Kyoto logged 52 days above the same temperature, compared with an average of 18.5 days.

This summer, JMA forecasts a high probability of above-normal temperatures in Japan from June to August.
 

 

Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and his Australian counterpart, Richard Marles, on Sunday urged all parties concerned to observe the ceasefire over the fighting between Israel and Lebanon.

In a joint statement released on the day to sum up their talks in Tokyo the day before, the two ministers said, "We welcomed the U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, and called on all parties to the conflict, including (Lebanese Shia Islamic group) Hezbollah, to adhere to it."

The 10-day ceasefire, which took effect Friday, is "an important contribution to realizing peace and stability in the region," they said.

They stressed "the need for continued negotiations" for the resolution of all the conflicts in the Middle East and "unimpeded and safe navigation" in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical oil transport chokepoint.

Apparently with China in mind, Koizumi and Marles said, "We reaffirmed our strong opposition to any unilateral actions, including by force or coercion, which escalate tensions and undermine regional peace and stability."
 
 

Japan's Olympic figure skating pairs champions Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara announced their retirement on Friday, saying they were ending their careers with "no regrets".

Miura and Kihara claimed their country's first Olympic pairs medals in dramatic style at the Milan-Cortina Games in February, recovering from a disastrous short program to take gold.

Miura, 24, and Kihara, 33, were also crowned world champions twice.
"Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara have decided to retire from competition at the end of this season," the pair said in a statement on social media.

"A big thank you to everyone who has offered their support since the day they got together."

Miura and Kihara, popularly known collectively in Japan as "Rikuryu", went into the decisive Olympic free skate in fifth place after errors in their short program.

Kihara said he had been "feeling really down" and blamed himself for the slip-up, conceding: "We did not think we would win."

Instead, they spectacularly turned things around and topped the podium with personal-best scores.

The win was loudly celebrated in Japan, with government spokesman Minoru Kihara saying it had "moved so many people".

American gymnastics legend Simone Biles, who was in the arena to watch the action, said she was "pretty sure that was perfection".

Miura and Kihara, who skipped last month's world championships in Prague, said they would embark on a "new challenge" away from competition.

"We are ending our competitive careers but we feel that we have given everything and there are no regrets," they said.
 
 

The Japanese government plans to have the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, or JAMSTEC, own and operate the successor to the Antarctic research vessel Shirase, officials said Thursday.

The current vessel, slated to retire in 2034, is operated by the Maritime Self-Defense Force. The aim of the shift is to ease strain on the MSDF as its overall tasks rise while personnel shortfalls persist.

MSDF personnel will continue to support ice navigation and transport on ice to Japan's Showa Station in Antarctica.

JAMSTEC, overseen by the education ministry, long operated the research vessel Mirai in missions in the Arctic Ocean before its retirement last December.

The agency plans to deploy a new Mirai II, capable of breaking ice, to bolster observation capabilities. Taking on the Shirase's successor would extend JAMSTEC's operational area to Antarctic waters.
 
 

Former Japan soccer star Shunsuke Nakamura, 47, will join the coaching staff for Japan’s World Cup team, the Japan Football Association announced Thursday.

The former Japan’s midfielder will accompany the national team to the FIFA World Cup, which will be held in the United States and other countries in June and July.

I share the same aspirations as the players and will strive to contribute to achieving the goals the team has set, he said via the JFA.

Having left Yokohama FC at the end of last year, Nakamura reportedly received an offer from Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu and had been in negotiations with the national team.

Nakamura played for Yokohama F. Marinos, Italian club Reggina and Scottish club Celtic, among others.

He participated in the 2006 World Cup in Germany and the 2010 tournament in South Africa.
 
 

The southwestern prefecture of Kumamoto on Thursday marked the 10th anniversary of a deadly earthquake, the more intensive of a pair of back-to-back quakes that hit the region and claimed the lives of over 270 people.

Families and others observed a moment of silence in remembrance of the deceased at 1:25 a.m., the time when a magnitude 7.3 quake struck a decade ago following a M6.5 temblor two days prior.

A commemoration ceremony aimed at passing on lessons learned from the disaster to next generation and striving for the recovery of local communities was held in the city of Kumamoto, hosted jointly for the first time by the prefectural government and all the prefecture's local municipalities.

"We must never forget the precious lives lost and the many sacrifices made," Kumamoto Gov Takashi Kimura said at the ceremony. "We shall pass these memories on to the next generation, ensuring that they never fade."

Meanwhile, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara pledged at the ceremony efforts to turn the disaster-prone Japan into "the world's most disaster-resilient country" by leveraging the experiences and lessons learned from past disasters.

A total of 278 deaths have been attributed to the quakes in Kumamoto and Oita prefectures, with 223 of them -- about 80 percent of the total -- attributed to indirect causes such as illness and stress stemming from disrupted lives.

More than 43,000 buildings were damaged, and at the peak of the crisis, around 196,000 people were forced to evacuate.

The disaster also shed light on issues like sleeping in cars during prolonged evacuation and its impact on health.

The twin quakes, both measuring the highest reading of 7 on Japan's seismic intensity scale, inflicted serious damage to infrastructure as well, with Aso Ohashi Bridge in the village of Minamiaso collapsing and a JR Kyushu railway line severed.

Shinobu Yamato, 58, visited a site near the bridge where her 22-year-old son Hikaru was killed in a landslide.

"It fills me with such agony and regret to think that he might have made it without passing through here had the timing been slightly different," she said in tears.

Kumamoto Castle, a popular tourist destination, sustained significant damage including to its famous stone walls. Ongoing repair work of the landmark is expected to be completed in fiscal 2052.
 
 

The crews of Japan-linked ships stuck in the Persian Gulf are keeping a close eye on U.S.-Iran talks, a Japanese shipping-sector labor union official has said.

"Right now, there's no prospect (of the crews) getting out of the gulf, and they are patiently watching negotiations between the United States and Iran," Shinichi Tanaka, acting president of the All Japan Seamen's Union, told Jiji Press.

He said that the Japanese government and companies should put crew safety first when deciding whether vessels will sail through the Strait of Hormuz, under the de facto blockade, or whether crew members will disembark from their ships.

Currently, more than 1,000 crew members belonging to the union, including foreign nationals, are on ships stranded in the gulf.

According to Tanaka, they have internet access, so they can contact their families and view news reports about the situation in the Middle East.

"There are no safe places in the Persian Gulf," he stressed. "The biggest concerns for the crews are how long the situation will continue, and whether they will be able to evacuate if the situation worsens."
 
 

Japan’s relationship with NATO is moving beyond broad political dialogue into more “concrete” forms of cooperation across key strategic and security areas, Tokyo’s ambassador to the alliance said in an interview Wednesday.

Following last June’s NATO summit at The Hague, bilateral engagement has entered a more institutionalized phase, Ambassador Osamu Izawa said, highlighting progress made in recent months in defense-industry coordination, emerging technologies and support for Ukraine.

The most significant leap forward, according to Izawa, has been the establishment of a high-level bilateral defense industry cooperation dialogue.

The first meeting was held in late October in Brussels, with a second slated to take place in Tokyo later this year that will include senior NATO secretariat officials.

“This is the first time for Japan and NATO to engage directly to promote industry cooperation,” said Izawa, who assumed his post last year as Tokyo’s first dedicated ambassador to the 32-member alliance.

"Before, we talked about possibilities, but there was no channel, no framework,” he said. “This is an epoch-making development.” 

Unlike traditional government-to-government defense cooperation focused on heavy platforms such as fighter jets, the dialogue also targets “new domains” of warfare.
 
 

The Ministry of Health and the Tokushukai Medical Group of Japan have designated the Harapan Kita Heart and Blood Vessel Hospital (RSJPD) in Jakarta as the largest hub for cardiovascular education and research in Asia.

"We have not only exchanged doctors and knowledge but now also assets, which has increased both the number of doctors and the level of knowledge," Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin remarked on Wednesday.

He hopes that closer cooperation between the two sides will enhance heart health services for Indonesians, given that cardiovascular disease continues to be the biggest expense for the state health insurer, BPJS Kesehatan, amounting to at least Rp17 trillion (US$963 million) in 2025.

Meanwhile, the President Director of Harapan Kita Hospital, Iwan Dakota, said the construction of the new building, a collaboration between the Indonesian government and Tokushukai, will increase the hospital's capacity from around 400 beds to around 800.

"Part of the facility will be used as a private wing (private and exclusive ward) with high-standard services so our people do not need to seek treatment abroad. Furthermore, this building will also function as an education and research center through collaboration with Japan and other countries," he remarked.

The new building will continue to serve BPJS patients, with a proportion of around 70-80 percent, while some of the upper floors will be used for premium services to attract patients who previously sought treatment abroad.

"Furthermore, specialist doctors from Japan and other countries will practice regularly in this new hospital building," Dakota added.

In addition, the Tokushukai Group will also send several doctors and nurses for internship at Harapan Kita Hospital every year.

"They conduct internship here due to the large caseload. Going forward, we will strive to increase not only our educational capacity but also the volume of research. We will increase the number and quality of research collaborations," Dakota said.

Meanwhile, Tokushukai Medical Group CEO Shinichi Higashiue emphasized his company's commitment to make the cardiac education and training center at Harapan Kita Hospital the largest in Asia.

"This building will provide the most advanced cardiovascular services, and we want to make this institution one of the largest cardiac education and training centers in Asia," he stated.
 

The countries do not have formal diplomatic relations, and Pyongyang frequently criticises Tokyo over its colonial rule of the Korean peninsula.

North Korea accused Japan of a "grave provocation" on Wednesday (Apr 15) after Tokyo laid out its opposition to Pyongyang's nuclear programme in an annual diplomatic paper.

The countries do not have formal diplomatic relations, and Pyongyang frequently criticises Tokyo over its colonial rule of the Korean peninsula, which ended with World War II.

The Japanese foreign ministry released its annual bluebook last week, detailing Tokyo's official diplomatic views and repeating its opposition to North Korea having nuclear weapons.

The position is "a grave provocation encroaching upon the sovereign rights, security interests and development rights of our sacred state", an unnamed North Korean foreign ministry official said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency.

North Korea's "measures for bolstering up its defence capabilities ... belong to the right to self-defence", the statement said.

It described the bluebook as "woven with conventional gangster-like logic and absurdity".

North Korea has insisted that it will not give up its nuclear arsenal, describing its path as "irreversible" and vowing to strengthen its capabilities.
In its bluebook, Japan also expressed its unease that North Korea had sent troops and ammunition to Russia to aid its war against Ukraine.

Tokyo also downgraded its assessment of China for the first time in a decade, calling Beijing an "important neighbour" instead of "one of Japan's most important" partners.

It marked the latest deterioration in ties with Beijing since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi indicated in November that Tokyo could intervene militarily in the event of an attack on Taiwan.

China views the self-ruled island as its territory and has not ruled out taking it by force.
 
 

Police in Kyoto Prefecture, western Japan, have launched an investigation into the suspected abandonment of a corpse after the body of an 11-year-old boy was found in a forest.

Elementary school student Adachi Yuki was found dead in the mountains of Nantan City on Monday. He had been missing since March 23.

Police say a detailed examination of the body failed to determine the cause of death. They believe the boy died in late March, around the time he was reported missing.

Police say he had no noticeable external injuries. But they say the fact that he was not wearing shoes and that his backpack was found elsewhere suggest someone abandoned the body.

They say the body was not covered in leaves, showed no signs of having been hidden and had no major tears in his clothing.

Police are retracing the child's movements before he went missing. They are searching his home and investigating other clues that could shed light on the circumstances that led to his death.
 
 

The transport ministry said Tuesday that tighter portable charger restrictions on flights will be introduced on April 24, following a string of incidents involving such devices.

Under the new rules, each passenger will be allowed to bring no more than two power banks in their carry-on baggage, each with a capacity of 160 watt-hours or less.

Charging the batteries and using them to charge electronic devices such as smartphones during flights will be prohibited.

Other existing rules will remain in force. Portable chargers must be carried on board rather than being placed in checked baggage, and passengers are required to keep them within reach instead of placing them in overhead compartments or other storage areas.

Those charging portable batteries and bringing more than two chargers on board in violation of the new rules could face a prison term of up to two years or a fine of up to ¥1 million.

There have been a series of incidents involving portable chargers on planes in Japan and overseas, such as catching fire and emitting smoke.

The tighter domestic regulations follow the adoption late last month of new international standards by the International Civil Aviation Organization, a specialized U.N. agency that sets global aviation rules.
 
 

A ritual ceremony of carrying timber to Ise Shrine in Ise, Mie Prefecture, was held in the city on Sunday and Monday, in preparation for 2033’s “Shikinen Sengu” — an ancient ritual tradition of completely rebuilding the Shinto shrine complex and transferring the deities to the new shrine once every 20 years.

The timber will be used to rebuild the main structures in both the Naiku inner shrine and Geku outer shrine areas.

The ritual of carrying timber is called Okihiki. On Sunday, timber was carried upstream on a boat on the Isuzu River and brought to the Naiku area.

Towing the timber on the river is called kawabiki, while carrying it on land to the Geku area is called okabiki.

During the okabiki ritual on Monday, local residents wearing happi coats pulled ropes tied to a ceremonial cart loaded with an about 5-meter-long Kiso-hinoki cypress log.

They pulled the cart on the street to the sound of a lively wood-carrying song and shouts of “Enya, enya” in a parade for about 2 kilometers.


 

A government survey in 2025 showed Tuesday that 4.5% of respondents in the country often or constantly feel lonely, up 0.2 percentage point from the previous year.

The share of people who often or constantly feel lonely was higher in their 30s to 50s.

The survey, conducted by the Cabinet Office in December, found that 13.7% said they sometimes feel lonely and 19.5% said they have lonely feelings once in a while.

It also found that feelings of loneliness tend to be stronger among people who seldom eat with someone else.

People who often or constantly feel lonely accounted for 17.3% of those who said they seldom have meals with someone else.

The percentage stood at 5.1% among those who eat with other people one or two days a month and at 3.7% among those who dine with others about once a week.

The mail-based survey covered randomly selected 20,000 people aged 16 or older across the country. Valid responses came from 59.4%.
 
 

The Japanese government is planning to present to a ruling party meeting Wednesday a modified draft of a bill aimed at revising the country's retrial system, it has been learned.

Initially, the government considered proposing the revised draft Tuesday but is now set to delay the presentation by one day, due to a scheduling issue regarding a related meeting of the Liberal Democratic Party.

The envisaged retrial system overhaul is intended to speed up the rescue of victims of false charges.

In the modified draft bill to amend the criminal procedure law, the government plans to set limits on public prosecutors' appeals against court rulings to grant retrials to finalized cases, apparently in an attempt to soothe the LDP.

The original bill continued to allow prosecutors to challenge such rulings, but this drew anger from the ruling party, with many calling for banning such appeals.

At a meeting Monday, the LDP conducted hearings with Hiroaki Murayama and Yumi Kamoshida, both lawyers, and former judge Hiroyuki Nakagawa.
 
 

The International Horticultural Expo 2027, billed “the next World Expo” to be held in Japan, is set to open in Yokohama next March but faces many challenges, such as soaring construction costs amid growing tensions in the Middle East and a lack of public awareness.

The venue for the Green x Expo 2027 spans about 100 hectares of a former U.S. military facility across the city’s Seya and Asahi wards.

It will be adorned with about 10 million flowers and plants and feature exhibits on food, agriculture and other related topics. Tokyo-based Kajima Corp. will construct a 60-meter-tall wooden tower using timber from the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo’s iconic Grand Ring.

The Expo has also drawn the participation of 61 countries and international organizations.Development costs — initially estimated at ¥32 billion in fiscal 2021 — have risen to ¥41.7 billion due to soaring material and labor costs.

There are also concerns that costs could rise further depending on the situation in the Middle East. The Japan Association for the International Horticultural Expo 2027, Yokohama, the organizer, said it would closely monitor future developments.

The venue is 2 kilometers away or an about 30-minute walk from the nearest station. Shuttle buses are planned to depart from four nearby stations and organizers plans to secure parking for 6,500 vehicles, but congestion is still expected.

Yokohama City conducted a public survey in March and found that 81% of Yokohama residents were aware of the event, but only 61.1% of Kanagawa Prefecture residents knew about the event in a prefectural survey conducted in October and November.

Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Minister Yasushi Kaneko, who inspected the venue on Saturday, said, “We need to do more to raise its profile.”

The city and the organizer have run a train wrapped with the Expo’s official mascot Tunku Tunku in Tokyo and been promoting the Expo at flower and greenery-related events.
 
 

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Monday she conveyed her support for Pakistan's mediation efforts in the U.S.-Iran conflict during phone talks with the country's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, after recent peace negotiations between the warring parties in Islamabad yielded no agreement.

Takaichi and Sharif also affirmed that Japan and Pakistan will work toward an early deescalation of the Middle East situation and safe navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for global energy transportation, she told reporters in Tokyo.

Takaichi said she explained to Sharif about Japan's view. "What is the most important is that a final agreement will be concluded early through dialogue," she said, adding that Tokyo will continue to collaborate with the international community.

The United States and Iran agreed on a two-week ceasefire last week but failed to reach a peace deal in two days of negotiations through Sunday in the Pakistani capital.

Following the development, the U.S. military said it will begin blocking all ships entering and leaving Iranian ports and coastal areas from Monday at 10 a.m. in Washington.

Japan relies on the Middle East for more than 90 percent of its crude oil imports. Most transit the strait, which Iran has effectively closed since the United States and Israel began attacking the country in late February.
Japan, a close U.S. security ally, has traditionally maintained friendly relations with Iran.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told a press conference that Japan has made no decision on whether to send its Self-Defense Forces for minesweeping operations in the strait, where Iran may have laid mines to support its de facto blockade.

On Monday, Takaichi also held phone talks with To Lam, leader of Vietnam's ruling Communist Party who doubles as the country's president since last Tuesday.

Takaichi said the two agreed to strengthen the energy resilience of Asia, whose dependency on oil imports from Middle East is relatively high.
 
 

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara expressed hope for an early U.S.-Iran agreement to end their conflict on Monday, after Washington and Tehran failed to reach an agreement over the weekend.

"We hope they reach a final agreement soon," the top Japanese government spokesman said at a press conference. He noted that the government is closely monitoring the diplomatic efforts of related countries and developments relating to the Strait of Hormuz.

Asked about the possibility of Japan taking part in a U.S. blockade of the strait and mine-clearing operations announced by U.S. President Donald Trump, Kihara said that "nothing has been decided" regarding the deployment of the Self-Defense Forces.
 
 

The government Friday adopted a support program for the so-called employment ice age generation, planning to implement assistance measures intensively over three years through fiscal 2028.

The program focuses on improving working conditions and securing housing in anticipation of the aging of the ice age generation, or those who had trouble finding jobs after graduating from school in the wake of the collapse of Japan's bubble economy in the early 1990s.

Progress will be reviewed annually at meetings of local governments, experts and labor and management representatives, and support measures will be revised as necessary.

Under the program, information on job changes that would lead to wage increases will be provided at Hello Work public job placement offices across the country. Reskilling opportunities will be offered through subsidies to local governments.

To prepare for the aging of the ice age generation, the government will also work to facilitate the provision of low-rent housing and to secure employment opportunities after they turn 65.

The support program was drawn up based on a policy adopted by the government in June 2025.
 
 

Japan Railways Group (JR Group) on Thursday announced that it will raise prices for its Japan Rail Pass, a ticket popular among foreign tourists that allows unlimited travel on trains across Japan, including most shinkansen bullet train services.

Prices for the pass will increase by around five percent to six percent under the first revision in three years, which will come into effect from October 1.

The price of a pass depends on its validity period. An adult seven-day pass will increase by 3,000 yen ($19) to 53,000 yen for travel in standard train carriages, and by 4,000 yen to 74,000 yen for premium Green Car carriages. 

Other price changes for adult passes include an increase of 4,000 yen to 84,000 yen for a 14-day pass (standard carriage), and 5,000 yen to 105,000 yen for a 21-day pass (standard carriage). 

JR Group last revised prices for its Japan Rail Pass in October 2023, when they were hiked by around 70 percent. The group said the latest revision reflects fare adjustments made by some of its member companies since then. 

In March, East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) raised fares on its trains by an average of 7.1 percent in what was the first full-scale hike for the group company since its creation 1987. Under the hike, the base fare of 150 yen for local trains increased to 160 yen. 

The Japan Rail Pass covers travel on trains and shinkansen operated by all six JR Group passenger railway operators.

Services covered include limited express, express, rapid, and local trains, as well as some buses and ferries. Exceptions include the super-express Nozomi and Mizuho shinkansen on the Tokaido, Sanyo, and Kyushu lines, for which pass holders need to pay a supplementary fare.

The pass is available to foreign tourists visiting Japan under the entry status of "temporary visitor."

Travelers can buy passes before arriving in Japan at designated sales offices and through official agents overseas, as well as via the official online platform, Japan Rail Pass Reservation.

To encourage use of the online platform, JR Group said prices for passes purchased this way will remain unchanged for a limited time.  
 


 

The Diet, Japan's parliament, began substantive deliberations Friday on a bill to establish a national intelligence council aimed at enhancing the government's intelligence capabilities.

At the day's meeting of the Cabinet Committee of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the Diet, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Masanao Ozaki said that an agency that would serve as the secretariat of the proposed council is "expected to take effective measures against foreign influence operations."

 

It is "urgent" to take measures against such activities, including the spread of false information, because they are "a security threat and shake the foundations of democracy," Ozaki emphasized.

Yuichi Goto of the main opposition Centrist Reform Alliance requested that the bill stipulate the protection of privacy, including personal information.

In response, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said, "Information will be collected in accordance with the law on the protection of personal information, and we do not see the need to set out separate provisions."
 
 

The number of soft drink vending machines installed in Japan in 2025 fell to 1.95 million, preliminary year-end figures show, dropping below 2 million for the first time in the 30 years for which records are available.

The figure is down about 20 percent from its peak seen in 2014 as a series of price hikes has driven more consumers away from the relatively costly items in the machines. This in turn has prompted beverage makers to remove unprofitable units and begin restructuring their businesses.

According to the institute in charge of beverage marketing and research, the number fell by 90,000 from the previous year, the largest decline on record since the Tokyo-based organization started the survey in 1995.

Sales initially grew on the convenience of being available anytime, making vending machines a lucrative source of revenue. But providing staff for restocking and distribution costs have become a burden, and the machines have lost their appeal as a sales channel, particularly as supermarkets and drugstores are able to offer discounts.

Major soft drink makers, including Coca-Cola Bottlers Japan Inc and Dydo Group Holdings Inc, have been hit by weaker earnings as consumers turn away from vending machines, posting losses or falling into the red.

Coca-Cola Bottlers Japan said it has reduced the number of its vending machines to around 650,000 from about 700,000 over the past few years, while DyDo has indicated plans to cut the number by a further 20,000.

Despite that, the machines are still relatively widespread in Japan compa
red with other countries and they are particularly popular with foreign tourists as a symbol of public safety, as vandalism and theft involving them is rare.
 
 

Japan is considering an additional release of its oil reserves providing 20 days of domestic consumption in May, as uncertainties remain over safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz even with the U.S.-Iran ceasefire, a source close to the matter said Thursday.

The United States and Iran agreed to a conditional two-week ceasefire on Tuesday, shortly before the expiry of U.S. President Donald Trump's self-imposed deadline for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face the destruction of its critical infrastructure.

But it remains uncertain whether the strait will be reopened or operate under the same conditions as it was before the war, with Israel continuing to attack the Iran-affiliated Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon.

The industry ministry is weighing up the extra release on concerns that the effective closure of the strait may continue.

The government started its largest-ever discharge of oil stockpiles in mid-March to ensure a stable oil supply after the U.S.-Israeli launch of attacks on Iran on Feb. 28 left the key energy shipping waterway largely closed.

The government aims to provide a total of about 80 million barrels of oil, equivalent to about 50 days' worth of consumption, to the market from oil reserves held by the state, the private sector and oil-producing Gulf countries.

Of the total, state-held oil covering 30 days is set to be released from 11 bases nationwide by the end of April.

Resource-poor Japan relies on imports for almost all of its crude oil, with over 90 percent of it coming from the Middle East.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi expressed her support for a possible additional joint oil stockpile release by the 32-member International Energy Agency when she met with IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol in Tokyo last month.

IEA countries also started their oil reserve releases in mid-March, totaling over 400 million barrels, the first such coordinated move since 2022 when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
 
 

While the United States and Iran have reached a two-week ceasefire agreement, 42 Japan-linked ships still cannot leave the Persian Gulf due to Iran's de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has suggested that it will allow ships to safely pass through the strait, a key checkpoint for energy shipments, during the two-week period, provided that they coordinate with its military. However, specific procedures remain unclear.

"It'd be good if the remaining ships can leave as soon as possible," said an official from the Japanese Ship Owners' Association. "We're closely monitoring the situation."

In a social media post, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi indicated that vessels would be able to sail through the strait after coordinating with the military and assessing technical constraints.

However, a shipping industry source said that this post contains "no reliable and specific information." A shipping firm official said there has been "no change in the situation."

The 42 remaining ships include 12 crude oil tankers, which can carry oil equivalent to about 10 days of Japan's domestic consumption, as well as chemical tankers carrying liquid products, vehicle carriers, liquefied natural gas ships and tankers carrying petroleum products.

Normally, a two-week period is enough time for these ships to exit the Persian Gulf. However, even if safe passage is guaranteed, shipping companies alone cannot decide on departure because they need to consult with cargo owners.

"We don't even have information for consultations (with cargo owners) at the moment," an industry source said.

Amid the blockade, three Mitsui O.S.K. Lines ships have passed through the strait. The company said that it would continue to prioritize the safety of its ships, crew members and cargo.