The Sakuranesia Foundation is strengthening cultural ties between Indonesia and Japan through a cultural dialogue at the 2025 Osaka Expo at the Indonesia Pavilion in Kansai, Japan.

Founder of Sakuranesia Foundation, Tovic Rustam, confirmed in Jakarta on Friday that the event featured renowned makeup artist and creative director of Jember Fashion Carnival (JFC), Bubah Alfian, alongside contemporary Japanese painter Inoue Bunta.

The cultural dialogue was supported by Indonesia's National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas), the Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo, and various industrial and cultural partners from both countries.

"The event also featured President of the Republic of Indonesia Prabowo Subianto’s pet cat, Captain Bobby, as the cultural dialogue icon," Tovic said, who attended the event alongside fellow Sakuranesia founder, Sakura Ijuin.

Tovic emphasized that Sakuranesia, as a social foundation, aims to deepen Indonesia-Japan relations through diverse arts and cultural activities. The Indonesia-Japan cultural exchange event was titled “Friend-Ship: Indonesia–Japan Cultural Dialogue.”

Bubah and Bunta engaged in an active dialogue discussing traditions and innovations shaping creativity and culture in both nations during a session called "Essence of Life: Clothing, Food, and Shelter." Bubah wore an Indonesian handcrafted batik styled as a traditional Japanese kimono.

"This is the first time I have worn a kimono-style outfit. It is very comfortable, suitable for various occasions, and quite delightful," Bubah remarked.

Bubah shared that this experience reflected the beauty of cultural fusion, which is not only visually captivating but also functional in everyday life. Bubah also invited international painter Inoue Bunta to attend the Jember Fashion Carnival (JFC) on August 8-10, 2025.

Bubah and Bunta plan to collaborate on a performance blending traditional arts from both Indonesia and Japan, delivering a message of world peace at JFC 2025.

The two figures also signed a limited-edition T-shirt featuring Captain Bobby as a souvenir, with Bunta gifting Bubah an art book.

In addition, Bunta performed spontaneous live painting, completing a rose in just three minutes, which was warmly received by guests and attendees.

The session also featured Japanese music group NEW STANDARDS and idol group Shiritsu Ebisu Chugaku, who energized the event with youthful spirit from both countries.

Renowned young Japanese photographer Kenta Karima documented the event, while Indonesian student representative in Japan, Muhammad Rizal Pabuarany, symbolized youth exchange between the two nations.

Meanwhile, Ambient provided costumes for the performers and Leins Entertainment produced T-shirts featuring Captain Bobby, highlighting the close collaboration between creators from Japan and Indonesia.

Japanese influencer Nanako Shibasaki, who served as the event's host, facilitated a communicative presentation that naturally bridged cross-cultural interaction.
 

There are growing discussions within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party about how to tax the rapidly increasing number of foreign visitors to Japan more effectively. The LDP argues that abolishing the consumption tax exemption and raising the International Tourist Tax (departure tax) would also help to combat overtourism.

A group of LDP lawmakers on Thursday handed proposals to Itsunori Onodera, chairperson of the LDP’s Policy Research Council, and Yoichi Miyazawa, chairperson of the party’s Research Commission on the Tax System, calling for the abolition of the consumption tax exemption.

Introduced alongside Japan’s consumption tax in 1989, the exemption is based on the international principle that consumption tax is levied at the point of consumption.

However, there have recently been an increasing number of cases of abuse of the system, with large quantities of tax-exempt goods being purchased and resold for profit.

In response, the government plans to revise the current system of selling goods without consumption tax being imposed at duty-free shops and instead implement a “refund system” from November next year, whereby consumers will receive the amount paid in consumption tax at the time of departure. If abuse occurs, the refund will not be paid.

Nevertheless, the lawmakers argue that abuse cannot be prevented if duty-free shops and international visitors collude, and therefore the tax exemption should be abolished.

“Offering a 10% discount (by not imposing the consumption tax) to encourage people to buy overseas brand-name goods (in Japan) is not the vision of a tourism-oriented country that we are aiming for,” said Kenji Nakanishi, a member of the House of Representatives.

The government and the LDP are also considering increasing the departure tax. Introduced in 2019 as a source of revenue for tourism promotion, the tax imposes a ¥1,000 levy on passengers departing from Japan, regardless of nationality. The tax is added to airline and cruise ship ticket prices.

At the House of Councillors Budget Committee in May, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba stated that visitors to Japan also use Japan’s infrastructure and that “paying appropriate compensation is an obligation that they owe Japanese taxpayers,” indicating his intention to consider raising the tax.

There are countries and regions with higher departure taxes than Japan — Australia imposes a 70 Australian dollar (approximately ¥6,600) levy, while Hong Kong charges 120 Hong Kong dollars (approximately ¥2,200).

According to the Japan National Tourism Organization, the number of foreign visitors to Japan in 2024 increased by 47.1% year-on-year to reach 36.87 million. Visitors are arriving at a record-breaking pace this year, making measures to address overtourism an urgent issue.
 
 

Japan's transport ministry said Friday it has instructed Japanese airlines operating Boeing 787s to inspect them following the fatal crash of an Air India 787-8.

In the instruction dated Thursday, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism called on All Nippon Airways, Japan Airlines and JAL's low-cost subsidiary Zipair Tokyo to check the engines and airframes of the planes. It will not suspend their use, it said.

"We will take necessary measures by collecting information and considering the development of investigations" by Indian authorities, transport minister Hiromasa Nakano said at a press conference.

Air India Flight 171 bound for London crashed shortly after takeoff Thursday in a residential area of the western Indian city of Ahmedabad, killing more than 240 people.
 
 

The Japanese government will hold the first round of annual auctions earlier than usual for rice imported under a minimum market access agreement as part of efforts to stabilize rice prices, agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi said Thursday.

This year’s first auction for rice as staple food will take place on June 27 instead of September as usual, Koizumi told reporters, adding that delivery would be possible in September.

Japan imports up to 100,000 tons of rice as staple food under the minimum access agreement, which is sold through several batches of auctions.

The June auction is expected to cover 30,000 tons, with additional auctions scheduled monthly, ahead of the usual timeline.
 
 

A rescue drill for taking tourists with heatstroke to hospital by helicopter has been held at the Tottori Sand Dunes on the Sea of Japan coast.

About 20 officials from the Tottori prefectural government and personnel from a local fire department took part in Thursday's drill.

It was based on the scenario that a woman and her three-year-old son had developed heatstroke near the beach.

An official playing the role of a tourist found two dummies lying on the sand and used a cell phone to call for help.

Emergency service workers who arrived at the site checked their conditions and determined it would be difficult to transport them by land.
They made a radio call for a helicopter to be dispatched.

Rescuers descended on a rope to airlift the two dummies.
The Tottori prefectural government says 43 people with heatstroke symptoms were taken from the dunes to hospital in the fiscal year that ended in March. It says one of them was transported by helicopter.
 
 

Japan's Princess Kako, on an official visit to Brazil, attended a ceremony on Wednesday marking the 130th anniversary of diplomatic relations between her country and the South American country.

During the ceremony in Brasilia, Princess Kako, the second daughter of Japanese Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko, said in her speech that despite the geographical distance between the two countries, she feels "the distance of hearts is very close." She noted that a samba carnival has been held in Japan.

 

The ceremony was hosted by the Brazilian National Congress. Wearing a traditional Japanese kimono, the princess delivered the speech in the Chamber of Deputies, the lower chamber of the congress.

She expressed gratitude to Brazil, home to the world's largest community of Japanese immigrants and their descendants, totaling about 2.7 million, for "warmly accepting immigrants from Japan."

 

"I envision a future in which (people from the two countries) will continue to interact and remain close to each other as a dear friend and amigo (the Portuguese word for friend)," she said.
 
 

Parliament enacted a bill Wednesday to raise in stages what is called adjustment allowances for public school teachers to 10% of base salaries from the current 4%.

The revised special measures law on teachers' salaries was approved by a majority vote in a plenary meeting of the House of Councilors, the upper chamber of parliament, after its passage through the House of Representatives, the lower chamber, last month.

Following the revision, the adjustment allowances, given instead of overtime pay, will be raised by 1 percentage point annually from next year until it reaches 10% in 2031.

The revision also requires all prefectural and municipal boards of education to draw up and publish plans to manage teachers' workloads, in a bid to resolve the worsening problem of long working hours.

During Lower House deliberations. the bill, originally submitted by the government, was amended as agreed among ruling and opposition parties, namely the Liberal Democratic Party, Komeito, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP), Nippon Ishin no Kai and the Democratic Party for the People.

As part of the amendment, a target to cut teachers' average monthly overtime by around 30% to 30 hours was added as a supplementary provision. The bill also seeks government support for teachers to deal with parents who make unreasonable demands.

During parliamentary debates, however, some lawmakers called for a more drastic change to the law, saying that the supplementary provision would not eliminate the cause of long working hours as teachers are not paid according to hours worked overtime.

The CDP, which jointly submitted the amended bill in the Lower House, argued for a further review of the law in deliberations at the Upper House education committee, saying, "This revision provides a path to a new revision."
 
 

Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc, whose nuclear reactors have remained offline since the 2011 Fukushima disaster, plans to revise its strategy for restarting reactors in central Japan, sources familiar with the matter said.

TEPCO is now preparing to restart the No. 6 unit of its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa complex in Niigata Prefecture, one of the world's largest nuclear power plants by output capacity, aiming to finish preparations in August, they said.

The company had previously planned to restart the No. 7 reactor even though the unit will have to be halted in October to implement anti-terrorism safety measures. TEPCO expected the No. 7 reactor's operation would help meet an expected rise in power demand during summer.

The change in plans comes as the company's prospects for gaining local consent to resume operation of the plant on the Sea of Japan coast remain uncertain, according to the sources.

Niigata Gov Hideyo Hanazumi has yet to consent to the plant's operation, pending a series of public hearings on the matter this summer.
TEPCO began loading nuclear fuel into the No. 6 reactor on Tuesday, the sources said.

Taking steps to protect nuclear plants from terrorist attacks became mandatory under the stricter safety standards implemented by the Nuclear Regulation Authority after the nuclear disaster at TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi plant triggered by a massive earthquake and tsunami in March 2011.
TEPCO aims to complete anti-terrorism measures for the No. 7 unit by August 2029.

As for the No. 6 reactor, TEPCO has until September 2029 to implement these measures, and it can continue operating until that time, pending local approval.

The utility and the government had planned to have at least one unit in operation at the complex from summer to meet rising electricity demand and lower dependence on fossil fuel power generation.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority imposed a de facto ban on the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant in 2021 after it was found to be vulnerable to unauthorized entry at multiple locations, but the authority lifted the ban after security measures were improved.
 
 

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is set to call on his Group of Seven counterparts to work together to tackle North Korea's cryptocurrency thefts at their summit in Canada later this month, government sources said Wednesday.

Ishiba's decision comes amid allegations that North Korea is using illicitly obtained virtual assets to fund its development of weapons of mass destruction, prompting demands for stronger international cooperation to cut off its financial lifelines.

With Pyongyang bolstering its relations with Moscow in the military field, Japan is also eager to deepen collaboration with European nations supporting Ukraine, which has been under invasion by Russia since February 2022, the sources said.

The G7 countries, meanwhile, plan to establish a task force to review tax exemptions on cross-border e-commerce involving small parcels, the sources said, as retailers flood the markets of member nations with cheap goods.

The three-day summit is scheduled to kick off from Sunday. Canada, this year's rotating president, has sounded out Japan about participating in the task force, the sources added.

The move reflects growing concern among G7 members about the strain that the volume of parcels containing low-value goods puts on customs processing.

The countries also seek to provide some level of protection to domestic businesses subject to sales and consumption taxes, from which products sold by overseas retailers, notably those in China, are exempt.

Under the "de minimis" rule, Japan currently waives trade and consumption taxes on imported items priced 10,000 yen ($69) or less, except for rice, sugar and some other items.

In 2024, approximately 170 million boxes valued under the threshold were imported, accounting for about 90 percent of the total number approved by customs, according to Japan's Finance Ministry.

Chinese e-commerce giants like Shein and Temu have taken advantage of the tax exemption to grow their presence in Japan and other large markets.
The G7 members believe that the surge in these shipments is straining customs operations and weakening border controls against counterfeit products and illicit drugs.

In May, the United States revoked its tax exemption for small parcels from China, citing concerns about the inflow of illegal drugs, particularly fentanyl. Japan is also considering a review of the tax exemption system for such shipments, the sources added.
 

Japan plans to release an additional 200,000 tons of rice from government stockpiles through direct contracts with retailers, Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said Tuesday, as the staple food's price fell for the second consecutive week.

The amount will consist of 100,000 tons of rice each from the 2020 and 2021 harvests. The government will accept applications for the 2020 rice once the limit for the 2021 rice has been reached.

Major retailers, midsize and small supermarkets, and rice shops with their own rice millers are eligible to apply for 120,000 tons of rice harvested in 2021, including 20,000 tons of rice left unsold from the previous sale, from Wednesday.

The retail price for the 2021 rice is expected to be sold in stores at around 1,800 yen (about 12.43 US dollars) per 5 kg, while the 2020 rice is expected to cost 1,700 yen, Koizumi said.

Rice prices at supermarkets in the week through June 1 averaged 4,223 yen per 5 kg, down 37 yen from the previous week, marking the second consecutive weekly decline, but still having doubled compared to a year ago, according to agriculture ministry data released Monday.

However, Koizumi voiced discontent at the slow pace at which prices are falling. "It didn't even go down 100 yen in two weeks," he said, adding that he will implement strategies to lower prices to the 3,000-yen range target as soon as possible.

The latest effort will reduce the country's rice reserves to around 100,000 tons, down from about 910,000 tons before the government began releasing stocks through auctions in March and April.

Japan essentially stores 1 million tons of rice in preparation for emergencies such as natural disasters or extremely poor harvests. A sharp decline in stockpiles has raised concerns that the government's rice reserves could fall short in an emergency.
 
 

Japan's ruling parties agreed Tuesday to include cash handouts for households hit by rising prices in their platforms for this summer's House of Councillors election, senior lawmakers said.

The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, the main opposition force, unveiled its election pledges Tuesday, highlighting a proposal to suspend the 8 percent consumption tax on food for at least one year, in sharp contrast with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which opposes tax cuts.

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who leads the LDP, has rejected opposition calls for tax cuts, citing concerns about their impact on Japan's fiscal health, which is the worst among advanced economies.

The LDP and its junior coalition partner, the Komeito party, will finalize details of the handout scheme, including the payment amount and distribution method, the lawmakers said.

Although the coalition is considering using the fiscal 2024 tax revenue surplus to fund the cash handout program, it may face backlash for appearing to use the payouts to boost public support ahead of the key national election, political experts said.

The ruling parties are aiming to secure a majority in the upper house, as they no longer hold more than half the seats in the House of Representatives, or lower house, following their defeat in the October general election.

Masaji Matsuyama, secretary general of the LDP's upper house caucus, said at a news conference that providing cash handouts is "very desirable to swiftly support the lives of people hit by rising prices."

At a separate news conference, Komeito Secretary General Makoto Nishida said it is preferable to distribute the direct payments "within the year."

Earlier this year, the ruling bloc considered introducing a similar scheme that proposed offering cash aid to all residents as part of an economic stimulus package. However, it shelved the unpopular plan.

As a stopgap measure before carrying out the tax cut, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan pledged to pay cash handouts worth 20,000 yen ($138) per person.

Party chief Yoshihiko Noda criticized Ishiba's government for failing to address inflation.

"As prices for food, daily necessities, gasoline and rice continue to rise, protecting people's livelihoods will be the biggest issue" in the upcoming upper house poll, Noda said.
 
 

Nearly 70 pct of people in Japan trust mass media, such as television, newspaper and radio, to reports news accurately, a survey by news distribution app operator SmartNews Inc. showed Tuesday.

A combined 68.7 pct were very or moderately trustful of mass media, little changed from 68.2 pct in the previous 2023 poll, according to the latest survey.

Meanwhile, 6.7 pct said they do not trust mass media at all.
The postal survey was conducted by the company's in-house think tank between January and March this year, covering 4,460 people aged between 18 and 79 across Japan. Valid responses were provided by 2,117 people.

The survey also showed that 46.5 pct picked television as their most frequently used source of information on elections and politics.

Internet news sites or apps were selected by 17.8 pct, exceeding traditional forms of newspapers and magazines, chosen by 16.0 pct. Social media was selected by 10.9 pct.
 
 

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Monday that Japan should aim to boost its economy to 1,000 trillion yen ($7 trillion) in nominal terms by 2040, instructing his ruling party executives to include it in a pledge for this summer's nationwide election.

The size compares with the country's nominal gross domestic product of around 600 trillion yen in 2024.

Japan is set to hold an election for the House of Councillors this summer.
 

 

Japan's Children and Families Agency will examine ways to have more pregnant women under difficult conditions, such as abuse and poverty, benefit from the agency's program to provide them with a safe childbirth environment.

The program was launched in fiscal 2024 to prevent life-threatening situations for both such struggling women and children they are giving birth to. As of January this year, 23 prefectural and municipal governments had taken part and offered temporary housing, meals, medical services and other necessary assistance through individual consultations.

Assistance seekers include youngsters who ran away from home due to bad relations with their parents, or other guardians, and those fleeing their partners' violence, agency officials said.

Still, many women who unexpectedly got pregnant have been taken to hospitals in critical conditions, had their children die shortly after delivery, or killed their newborn babies and themselves.

In a move to further prevent childbirths with a high possibility of bitter consequences, the agency will conduct a survey from next month to around the end of the current fiscal year through March 2026.

It will first learn roles infant homes and support facilities are actually playing in the program and then, upon their consent, hear directly from women who eventually became eligible for the public support in a way to respect their feelings.
 
 

An explosion at a storage site for unexploded ordnance at a U.S. military base on Japan’s southern island of Okinawa injured four Japanese soldiers, though the injuries are not life-threatening, officials said Monday.

The four soldiers sustained finger injuries while working at a facility that belongs to Okinawa prefecture and temporarily stores unexploded ordnance, mostly from wartime and found on the island, local officials said. One of the harshest battles of World War II was fought on Okinawa.

Prefectural officials said the injuries were not life-threatening, but no other details were immediately known.

The U.S. Air Force said in a statement that the explosion occurred at the facility managed by the Okinawa prefectural government at Kadena Air Base’s munitions storage area. It said no U.S. servicemembers were involved in the incident.

The Self Defense Force’s joint staff said one of the devices suddenly exploded when the soldiers were inspecting it at the facility. The blast occurred when the soldiers were trying to remove rust, NHK television reported.

The SDF said they are trying to confirm what caused the accident.
Monday’s accident was believed to be the first ever since the 1974 launch of the Japanese army’s unexploded ordnance disposal unit.

Hundreds of tons of unexploded wartime bombs, many of them dropped by the U.S. military, remain buried around Japan and are sometimes dug up at construction sites and elsewhere. Many of them are still found on Okinawa, where about 1,856 tons of unexploded U.S. bombs are believed to remain.

In October, an unexploded wartime U.S. bomb exploded at a commercial airport in southern Japan, causing a large crater and suspending dozens of flights.
 
 

The funeral of legendary Yomiuri Giants player and manager Shigeo Nagashima was held in Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo, on Sunday.

Nagashima, one of Japan’s most beloved sports figures and known as “Mr. Pro Baseball,” died on Tuesday at 89.

In addition to his family members, the 96 attendees of the service included Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Chairman Sadaharu Oh, with whom Nagashima formed the “O-N” pair, a driving force for the Giants; and Tsuneo Horiuchi, former manager of the team.

The altar was decorated with orange flowers, as Nagashima loved the Giants’ team color.

Among the items placed on the altar were a uniform with his number 3, which is now retired, the bat with which he made a walk-off home run during a game attended by Emperor Showa and Empress Kojun, and a golden commemorative bat made when Nagashima received the People’s Honor Award from the government with his protege Hideki Matsui.
 
 

Tokyo's Akihabara district on Sunday marked the 17th anniversary of a stabbing rampage that killed seven and injured 10 others.

Passersby placed flowers and offered prayers near the intersection where Tomohiro Kato, a 39-year-old former temp worker, mowed down pedestrians in a vehicle-free zone with a truck, killing three people, at around 12:30 p.m. on June 8, 2008. He then got out of his truck and randomly stabbed passers-by with a knife. Four of the victims died.

Kato was sentenced to death in 2011 by the Tokyo District Court. He appealed the ruling but the Supreme Court rejected his appeal in 2015.

He was executed in July 2022. The Supreme Court said in its ruling that Kato was motivated by rage after being harassed on an internet forum he had become engrossed in.

Kato said he had scouted the location before the rampage to make sure there would be lots of people. He also had posted on internet message boards several warnings that he was planning to kill people in a mass attack.
 

 

Police in Malaysia say nearly 20 people, including 13 Japanese, were detained over a suspected scam operation that apparently targeted Japan.

The police announced that investigators detained 19 foreign nationals when they searched two locations believed to be the bases of a group of fraudsters in and around the capital, Kuala Lumpur, on May 13.

The 13 Japanese are alleged to have made phone calls or sent texts to people in Japan, and had them transfer money to designated accounts by pretending to be police officers in Osaka and through other means.

Investigators seized what appeared to be plots written in Japanese and clothes resembling police uniforms in Japan, as well as smartphones and personal computers.

Malaysian police say six of the 13 Japanese were indicted and later released after paying penalties.

In Southeast Asia, a series of telephone and other fraud cases involving Japanese nationals have been uncovered this year. Japanese and many other foreigners were found to have been engaged in scam operations in Myanmar.

In Cambodia, over 20 Japanese were taken into custody late last month at an apparent fraud scheme hub.
 

 

The cabinet of Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba gave the greenlight Friday to the government's new five-year anti-disaster program worth over 20 trillion yen, about 5 trillion yen larger than the current one.

The fiscal 2026-2030 program, starting next April, focuses on rebuilding aging infrastructure and stepping up preparations for huge disasters, such as ones that would be caused by massive earthquakes expected to occur along the Nankai Trough, which stretches off the Pacific coast of central to southwestern Japan, or directly beneath the Tokyo metropolitan area.

At a National Resilience Promotion Headquarters gathering held prior to the cabinet meeting, Ishiba, head of the task force, said that "all relevant government agencies should get united to strongly drive forward efforts" to finish preparing necessary equipment and evacuation facilities as soon as possible.

Under the new program, funds worth around 10.6 trillion yen would be poured into seismic reinforcement work for aging water and sewerage systems as well as roads, 5.8 trillion yen into measures against river flooding, and 1.8 trillion yen into boosting regional efforts for disaster prevention and reduction, including improving living conditions and food availability at evacuation centers.

In particular, the government intends to beef up anti-disaster measures on peninsulas, where afflicted areas are prone to isolation, and "strategically" maintain and manage the water and sewerage systems, taking lessons from the 2024 Noto Peninsula earthquake and the fatal road cave-in caused by a ruptured sewerage pipe in Saitama Prefecture earlier this year.
 
 

Resilience would have made history as the first non-US commercial lander to make a successful touchdown

An attempt to land a commercially built spacecraft on the surface of the moon looked to have ended in failure on Thursday, two years after its predecessor, launched by the same Japanese company, crashed following an uncontrolled descent.

Resilience, an un-crewed vehicle from the Tokyo company ispace, would have made history as the first non-US commercial lander to make a successful touchdown, scheduled for 3.17pm ET Thursday (4.17am JST Friday) at Mare Frigoris (the Sea of Cold) in the far north of the moon.

But the company’s live stream covering the landing attempt ended almost 30 minutes later, with mission managers unable to establish communication with the craft, and its fate uncertain.

“Mission control center members will continuously attempt to communicate with the lander,” an ispace commentator said immediately before the feed was pulled, promising an update at a press briefing “in a few hours”.

It brought back memories of the April 2023 failure of ispace’s Hakuto-R Mission 1, when communication with the spacecraft was lost around the scheduled time of landing. It was later established that a software error had led the lander to believe it had already touched down when it was still hurtling towards the lunar surface.

Resilience launched on 15 January from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on the same SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that carried the Blue Ghost lander manufactured by the Texas startup Firefly Aerospace. Blue Ghost followed a speedier trajectory to the moon and made its own pioneering landing on 2 March.

The apparent demise of Hakuto-R Mission 2 would be a significant setback for ispace’s Venture Moon initiative that it said would be “laying the groundwork” for an extended human presence on the moon. Ambitious plans include a lunar city with a thousand residents, the first arriving as early as 2040.

It also hopes to eventually accommodate thousands more space tourists for shorter visits.

“Our goal is to build the cislunar economy, one in which the moon and Earth are economically and socially connected,” ispace’s chief executive, Takeshi Hakamada, said in a prepared statement released before Thursday’s landing attempt.

“We view the success of the lunar landing as merely a stepping stone toward that goal. We strongly believe that this endeavor and its long-term success will contribute to making life on Earth sustainable for all humanity.”

Resilience was set to deploy a small, European-built moon rover named Tenacious for a two-week mission. High-definition video footage and telemetry would have been beamed back to Earth for monitoring by the European Space Agency (Esa) and partners.

The rover has a shovel intended to collect soil samples for evaluation as the search for evidence of the presence of life-sustaining water or ice on the moon continues.

Nasa, the US space agency, will pay ispace $5,000 under an agreement signed in 2020 for a chunk of regolith it can study in furtherance of its own plans to land humans back on the moon for the first time since 1972, and ultimately on Mars.

“Tenacious is hopefully a very successful technological achievement, but beyond the technology it’s also a symbol of the future of lunar exploration,” Géraldine Naja, Esa’s director of commercialization, industry and competitiveness, told reporters earlier on Thursday.

“Esa is extremely proud and thrilled to support ispace Mission 2. This is a very good example of how we can support new space actors in Europe [and] commercialization. We are eager to support, eventually, a sustainable European-Japanese presence on the moon.”

The 11lb (5kg) rover was also carrying a more quirky payload: Moonhouse, a model installation created by Swedish artist Mikael Genberg, that would have become the first property on the moon, albeit in miniature form.

The bright red Swedish-style house was to have provided a splash of color against the gray backdrop of the moon’s northern reaches.

“It’s a small house in a vast, empty place, a symbol of belonging, curiosity and vulnerability,” Genberg told space.com in an interview published on Thursday.

“I hope it invites people to reflect on our relationship to space, and to recognize the fragility and uniqueness of our own world.”

While the governments of five countries – the US, Russia, China, India and Japan – have successfully landed un-crewed robotic lunar explorers, commercial efforts have seen more failures than successes in recent years.

In addition to the previous ispace flop, two attempts by the Texas company Intuitive Machines (IM), with its Odysseus and Athena landers in February 2024 and March 2025 respectively, ended prematurely when both spacecraft toppled over on landing.

Mare Frigoris is a flatter area of the moon, with fewer boulders than the landing sites chosen by IM and Firefly.

Ispace also chose to take its time getting to the moon, with the five-month journey of Resilience during a so-called low-energy transfer allowing the company to thoroughly evaluate its systems and computer programs after blaming a software error for the 2023 crash landing.

A contract with Nasa will see ispace attempting to send a larger rover to the moon on a mission scheduled for 2027.
 
 

A Japanese court overturned a 13.3 trillion yen damages verdict on Friday against ex-bosses of the operator of the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, thought to be the largest such award ever in the country for a civil suit.

Four former executives had in 2022 been ordered to collectively pay 13.3 trillion yen in a suit brought by shareholders over the nuclear disaster triggered by a massive tsunami in 2011.

But the verdict was thrown out Friday by the Tokyo High Court, a spokeswoman for the institution told AFP.

Shareholders had argued the catastrophe could have been prevented if Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) bosses had listened to research and implemented preventative measures like placing an emergency power source on higher ground.

But the defendants countered that the risks were unpredictable, and the studies cited were not credible.

"The defendants... cannot be found to have had this foreseeability at a point in time before the earthquake in question," Friday's court ruling said.

The 13.3 trillion yen damages award was believed to be the largest amount ever ordered in a civil suit in Japan.

It was meant to cover TEPCO's costs for dismantling reactors, compensating affected residents, and cleaning up contamination.

The court spokeswoman said an appeal by the shareholders for an even higher damages order of 22 trillion yen had been denied.

"Take responsibility for the Fukushima nuclear accident!" said a pink-and-white banner displayed by the plaintiffs after the ruling.

Hiroyuki Kawai, head of their legal team, also issued a stark warning at a press conference on Friday.

"If I were to summarize today's ruling in one phrase: It is a ruling that will lead to future serious nuclear accidents," he said.
TEPCO declined to comment on the verdict.

Three of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant's six reactors were operating when a massive undersea quake triggered a massive tsunami on March 11, 2011.

They went into meltdown after their cooling systems failed when waves flooded backup generators, leading to the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl.

Overall the tsunami along Japan's northeast coast left around 18,500 people dead or missing.

In March this year, Japan's top court said it had finalized the acquittal of two former TEPCO executives charged with professional negligence over the Fukushima meltdown.

The decision concluded the only criminal trial to arise from the plant's 2011 accident.
 
 

Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako paid their respects to the war dead in Okinawa on Wednesday ahead of the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, accompanied by their daughter Princess Aiko on her first trip to the prefecture.

The imperial family visited the national cemetery in Itoman and laid flowers at the ossuary housing the remains of approximately 180,000 people who died in the battle.

They spoke with bereaved family members who had gathered there and visited the Cornerstone of Peace cenotaph, where the names of the war dead are inscribed.

The couple strongly encouraged their daughter to join them on the two-day trip, a move underscoring the imperial family's desire to remember and pass on the lessons of the war to the next generation.

The imperial family visited the Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum later in the day, where a 91-year-old survivor said Princess Aiko told her she had "felt the importance of peace" through the visit.

The family also engaged with youth in their 20s and 30s who are helping to preserve and share wartime stories for future generations, asking what led them to become involved in such efforts.

The emperor and empress released a statement through the Imperial Agency after the trip, saying, "With the importance of peace engraved in our hearts, and with remembrance of all who died in the Battle of Okinawa or were forced to endure hardship because of the war, we renew our wish for peace."

The emperor has consistently expressed his strong desire for peace, echoing the sentiments of his father, former Emperor Akihito, who reflected at length on the war fought in the name of his father, Emperor Hirohito, posthumously known as Emperor Showa.

Okinawa fell into U.S. hands in the closing months of World War II in 1945 through the Battle of Okinawa, which began in March of that year with the landing of U.S. troops on the Kerama Islands near the main island of Okinawa.

Around 200,000 people -- both Japanese and American -- lost their lives in the ensuing ground battle.

In July 1975, former Emperor Akihito and former Empress Michiko, then crown prince and princess, became the first imperial family members to visit Okinawa after the war.

But with local sentiment toward the emperor remaining deeply conflicted at the time, the couple had a Molotov cocktail thrown at them by radicals during a visit to the Himeyuri Cenotaph, constructed in remembrance of student nurses and teachers killed in the war.

Still, the former emperor strived to connect with the locals, becoming, in April 1993, the first-ever reigning emperor to officially visit Okinawa. Together with his time as crown prince, he visited a total of 11 times by 2018 before abdicating the following year.

In May 2022, Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako remotely attended a ceremony marking the 50th anniversary of Okinawa's reversion to Japan from U.S. rule and visited the island prefecture the following October for cultural events.

In April, the emperor and empress visited Iwoto Island, formerly known as Iwojima, the site of a fierce battle in the Pacific between Japan and the United States, to mourn the war dead. The couple is also scheduled to visit the atomic-bombed cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki later this month.
 
 

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is seeking an early in-person summit meeting with South Korea’s new President Lee Jae-myung, aiming to build a trusting relationship, potentially during an international conference to be held this month.

Ishiba plans to have a telephone conversation soon and intends to call for continued cooperation in diplomacy and security, including among Japan, South Korea and the United States.

While speaking to reporters at the Prime Minister’s Office on Wednesday, Ishiba congratulated Lee, who advocates practical diplomacy, on his inauguration speech.

“This year marks the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between Japan and South Korea. I want to strengthen Japan-South Korea and Japan-U.S.-South Korea cooperation with President Lee,” said Ishiba, adding that “a summit meeting should be held as soon as possible.”

The two leaders could potentially meet at either the Group of Seven summit in Canada or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit in the Netherlands, both of which are scheduled for this month. South Korea is expected to be invited to the Group of Seven summit.

June 22 will mark the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea, and commemorative events are scheduled in both countries.

Bearing in mind Lee’s repeated past criticism of Japan, the prime minister told reporters, “While comments have been made previously, he also referred to Japan as an important partner during the election campaign.”
“By having a heart-to-heart talk and actively engaging with each other, I believe the bilateral ties will become stronger. As the government, we will also make efforts.”

Many have expressed concern about the left wing, which has historically taken a tough stance on Japan regarding historical issues. However, in his inauguration speech, Lee emphasized practical diplomacy and mentioned “South Korea-U.S.-Japan cooperation.”

His comment is seen as a response to the administration of the U.S. President Donald Trump and the rapprochement between Russia and North Korea.

“Even if he may not be as eager as the previous administration [to engage with Japan], President Lee must also intend to stabilize Japan-South Korea relations given the current international climate,” a Foreign Ministry senior official said.
 
 

Brazil has the largest population of people of Japanese descent in the world, at 2.7 million.

Princess Kako, the second daughter of Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko, will visit Brazil from Wednesday as this year marks the 130th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Japan and Brazil.

Brazil has the largest population of people of Japanese descent in the world, at 2.7 million. A Japanese Brazilian academic is trying to record the steps of his forebears — including a time when they were persecuted — and is gathering testimony from many people for that purpose. He hopes that Princess Kako’s visit will also shed light on the dark side of Japanese emigrees’ history.

The mass emigration of Japanese people to Brazil was promoted as national policy after the emigrant ship Kasato-maru arrived at the port of Santos in Sao Paulo state in 1908. The number of Japanese immigrants in Brazil reached about 189,000 in 1941.

However, as Brazil sided with the Alies during World War II, moves to expel Japanese immigrants intensified. In the city of Santos, about 6,500 people received deportation orders and were put in an internment camp in July 1943.

“We must not put a lid on the past,” said Japanese Brazilian scholar Akira Miyagi, 87, who studies the history of immigration. A native of Okinawa Prefecture, Miyagi emigrated to Brazil during the 1990s. Since then, he has collected testimonies about the internment, in cooperation with fellow members of an association of people from Okinawa.

Living standards were poor in the internment camp. Even the elderly, children and pregnant women were forced to sleep on the ground, and meals were served only once a day. A second-generation Japanese-Brazilian man who was 7 at the time recalled how his family’s furniture and other household belongings were confiscated.

“It was humiliating,” he told Miyagi.

 

 

Receiving an appeal from Miyagi and others, the Brazilian government admitted to past mistreatment of Japanese Brazilians and made an official apology for the persecution of Japanese immigrants in July last year.

Princess Kako will visit Sao Paolo and seven other cities in Brazil, where she will meet and converse with Japanese Brazilians. Her trip is scheduled to last for 14 days.

“I hope the princess will see the hardships experienced by Japanese immigrants. At the same time, I hope she will communicate with people in younger generations who will carry our future, so that the ties between Japan and Brazil will be deepened,” he said.

Ahead of the trip, Princess Kako attended a lecture by an expert, and visited the Japanese Overseas Migration Museum in Yokohama and the Kobe Center for Overseas Migration and Cultural Interaction in Kobe.

Hirochika Nakamaki, a professor emeritus of the National Museum of Ethnology, served as the princess’ guide at both facilities. According to Nakamaki, Princess Kako took notes as she listened to his explanations on the characteristics of each Brazilian city she will visit and on the history of Japanese Brazilians. She also asked many questions, he said.

The Kobe center used to be a base for people emigrating to Brazil to receive instruction in a Westernized style of living. The princess reportedly sat on a replica of a bed from those days, imagining people who aspired to go to a new world.
 
 

Jiji Press and some other members of the Japan Newspaper Publishers & Editors Association have launched a fact-checking initiative for election-related online information, beginning with the Tokyo metropolitan assembly election on June 22.

The collaboration between Jiji Press, the Yomiuri Shimbun group, Saga Shimbun and Nippon Television Network aims to enhance the fairness and credibility of fact-checking work and disseminate accurate information broadly.

The initiative will examine uncertain information pieces that could affect the fair holding of elections and assess them as "correct," "almost correct," "groundless," "incorrect" or "false." Assessment results could be published by participating media companies.

Opinion pieces will not be covered.

The four media companies will cooperate with the nonprofit Japan Fact-check Center. They will also invite other media companies to participate.
 
 

A total of 375 people were planning to run in the 27th House of Councillors election this summer as of June 2, according to a Yomiuri Shimbun tally.
Campaigning is expected to officially start on July 3, with voting to be held on July 20.

The focus will be on whether the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito, which are only a ruling minority in the House of Representatives, can maintain their majority in the upper house.

Of the 248 seats that make up the upper house, a total of 125 seats will be up for grabs. This includes 124 seats up for normally scheduled election — 74 constituency seats and 50 proportional representation seats — and one seat to fill a vacancy in a Tokyo electoral constituency.

The number of candidates by political party is as follows: 75 from the LDP, 15 from Komeito, 41 from the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, 23 from the Japan Innovation Party, 34 from the Japanese Communist Party, 41 from the Democratic Party for the People and 11 from Reiwa Shinsengumi.

Those running in the constituency elections totaled 264, while the number in the proportional elections totaled 107.

According to Yomiuri Shimbun tallies conducted about a month before previous elections, 353 people had planned to run for the House of Councillors in 2022 and 261 in 2019.

Currently, the ruling parties have 75 seats that are not up for grabs, and the LDP and Komeito hope to win at least 50 seats in the upcoming election to take their total above 125 and maintain their majority. Some within the ruling party have said that the party should aim for 63 seats, a majority of the seats up for grabs.

Opposition parties are seeking to increase their number of seats in the upper house against the backdrop of a slump in support for the Ishiba Cabinet. The leading opposition party, the CDPJ, is hoping to force the ruling parties to lose their majority.

At present, however, the opposition parties are fielding their own candidates in many constituencies, and no progress has been made in coordinating their efforts.
 
 

The Japanese government said Tuesday it will seek to enhance the country's competitiveness in the area of intellectual property by promoting the use of artificial intelligence and attracting foreign talent.

In the intellectual property strategy for 2025, the country will take advantage of the international popularity of Japanese anime and the content of such movies that highlights local culture to help promote regional economies, expecting a total economic impact of around 1 trillion yen.

"Intellectual property and technology, the sources of our country's earning power, are extremely important to ensure corporate competitiveness," Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said at a meeting on the strategy at his office.

The strategy set a target to raise the country's standing in the World Intellectual Property Organization's Global Innovation Index to fourth or higher by 2035. Japan ranked 13th in 2024, coming below South Korea in sixth and China in 11th.

Published annually, the index ranks 132 economies using over 80 indicators including measures on the policy environment, education and infrastructure.

Japan will consider recognizing the patent rights of individuals who have developed AI used to create new technologies as rules are currently vague regarding how to evaluate contributions made by a developer of AI, according to the plan.

The strategy stressed the need to attract top talent from abroad, while supporting human resources development and promoting public-private cooperation in eight strategic fields such as energy, disaster prevention and mobility to make more Japanese technologies international standards.
 
 

Nintendo hopes to match the runaway success of the Switch when its leveled-up new console hits shelves Thursday, with strong early sales expected despite the gadget's high price.

Featuring a bigger screen and more processing power, the Switch 2 is an upgrade to its predecessor, which has sold 152 million units since launching in 2017 -- making it the third best-selling video game console of all time.

But despite buzz among fans and robust demand for pre-orders, headwinds for Nintendo include uncertainty over U.S. trade tariffs and whether enough people are willing to shell out.

The Switch 2 "is priced relatively high" compared to the original device, company president Shuntaro Furukawa said at a financial results briefing in May.

 

"So even if there is momentum around the launch, we know it will not be easy to keep that momentum going over the long term," he warned.

Sales of the Switch, which can connect to a TV or be played on the go, were boosted by the popularity of games like "Animal Crossing" as a pandemic lockdown pastime.

The Japanese company forecasts it will shift 15 million Switch 2 consoles in the current financial year, roughly equal to the original in the same period after its release.

The new device costs $449.99 in the United States, over a third more than the Switch. A Japan-only version is cheaper, at 49,980 yen ($350). New Switch 2 games such as "Donkey Kong Bonanza" and "Mario Kart World" -- which allows players to go exploring off-grid -- are also more expensive than existing Switch titles.
 

Most original Switch games can be played on the Switch 2, and some Switch blockbusters such as "Zelda: Breath of the Wild" will have enhanced editions released for the new incarnation.

"People were a bit shocked by the price of 'Mario Kart World', the first $80 game that we've ever seen," said Krysta Yang of the Nintendo-focused Kit & Krysta Podcast.

While the company is "going to have to do some work" to convince more casual gamers that it's worth upgrading, Nintendo fans are "super excited", she told AFP.

The Switch 2 will have eight times the memory of the first Switch, and its controllers, which attach with magnets, can also be used like a desktop computer mouse.

Although the new console is not radically different, "a lot of people (are) saying, 'this is what I wanted, I wanted a more powerful Switch -- don't mess with a good thing'," said Yang, a former Nintendo employee.

New functions allowing users to chat as they play online and temporarily share games with friends could also be a big draw, said David Gibson of MST Financial.

 

"It's a way to appeal to an audience which has got used much more to the idea of streaming games and watching games, as well as playing games," he told AFP, predicting that the Switch 2 will break records in terms of early sales.

 

And success is crucial for Nintendo.

While the "Super Mario" maker is diversifying into theme parks and hit movies, around 90 percent of its revenue still comes from the Switch business, analysts say.

Nintendo delayed pre-orders for the Switch 2 in the United States by two weeks as it assessed the impact from President Donald Trump's global assault on free trade.

But its pre-orders have since sold out in the U.S. market and elsewhere, with the company boasting of particularly high demand in Japan.

Furukawa said in May that Nintendo's financial projections are based on the assumption of U.S. tariffs of 10 percent on products produced in Japan, Vietnam, and Cambodia, and 145 percent on China.

"Hardware for North America is mainly produced in Vietnam," he added.
Trump's hefty so-called "reciprocal" tariff of 46 percent on goods from Vietnam is on pause, while those on China have been slashed.

Tariff uncertainty could in fact push consumers to buy a Switch 2 sooner, because they are worried that the price could go up, Yang said.

Charlotte Massicault, director of multimedia and gaming at the French retail giant Fnac Darty, told AFP that pre-sale demand has been "well above what we imagined".

"For us, this will be a record in terms of first-day sales for a games console," she said.

The Switch 2 is "less of a family-focused product, and more of a 'gamer' product" compared to the Switch, she said. "That's what Nintendo wanted, and it works."
 
 

Many small and midsize companies are actively hiring foreign workers. Of the 2.3 million foreign workers employed in Japan, more than 50% work for companies with under 100 employees.

This situation comes amid a serious labor shortage in Japan, and issues have surfaced such as a concentration of foreign workers in big cities and their worsening working conditions.

Koganei Seiki Co., a manufacturer based in Iruma, Saitama Prefecture, which primarily produces engines for motor sports, has 40 Vietnamese workers among its about 300 employees.

All the Vietnamese employees hold visas for highly skilled workers named “Engineer / Specialist in humanities / International services.” They operate the manufacturing equipment and program the process for manufacturing parts.

“They graduated from top-class universities in their country and have high-level capabilities,” said Yusuke Kamoshita, president of the company.

Todaya, a long-established ryokan Japanese-style inn in Toba, Mie Prefecture, employs 37 foreign workers from 11 countries, including China and Myanmar. Some are technical intern trainees, while others are specified skilled workers.

Many of them are fluent in English and thus are valuable for serving foreign tourists.

“It is important how our guests feel. So, I taught them the manners, etiquette and culture [of Japan],” said President Junzaburo Terada.

According to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry, the number of foreign workers in Japan increased from 787,000 in 2014 to 1.658 million in 2019. It increased again to 2.302 million in 2024.

In 1993, the government introduced the technical intern training program so that foreign workers could acquire job skills at companies in Japan and bring those skills back to their home countries.

Of the about 2.3 million foreign workers, about 470,000 are technical intern trainees who are facing problems such as long working hours and nonpayment of wages. According to the Immigration Services Agency, the number of missing trainees in 2023 reached a record high of 9,753.

To address such problems and encourage foreign workers to work in Japan for longer, the government will abolish the technical intern trainee system and create a new “training and employment” resident status by 2027.

Technical intern trainees are not permitted to change jobs until they have worked at a single company for three years, but in the new category, foreign workers will be allowed to move to other companies after one to two years.

However, it is likely that companies in eight prefectures, including Tokyo and Osaka, will be restricted from employing the new category of workers if they are changing jobs from rural areas.

As of 2024, the number of foreign workers in Tokyo was 585,000, 25.4% of the total; 229,000 in Aichi Prefecture, accounting for 10%; and 174,000 in Osaka Prefecture, accounting for 7.6%. The figures show a tendency of foreign workers to concentrate in big cities. Akita Prefecture had the smallest number of foreign workers with 3,536, or only 0.2%.

According to an estimate by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research, Japan’s working age population, which is between the ages of 15 to 64, will likely decrease from more than 75 million in 2020 to 55.4 million in 2050.

“There is a serious labor shortage, mainly in the transportation and nursing care sectors,” said Tomoya Suzuki of the NLI Research Institute. “To maintain Japan’s society and economy, we need to have a perspective on how Japanese and foreign workers can coexist in harmony.”
 
 

Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Saturday agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the cyber field.

Meeting in Singapore, Nakatani and Hegseth confirmed that they will work together in aligning the strategic priorities of Japan and the United States, as the administration of U.S.

President Donald Trump prepares the 2025 National Defense Strategy, the first of its kind since the one compiled in 2022 by the administration of former President Joe Biden.

Hegseth has ordered the new strategy to be submitted by the end of August.
According to the Japanese Defense Ministry, the two countries are expected to share their recognitions of regional situations as well as priorities in the development of Japan's defense capabilities.

In their meeting, Nakatani explained to Hegseth that Japan's parliament recently passed a law to introduce active cyberdefense designed to prevent serious cyberattacks.
 
 

Japan and the U.S. on Friday agreed to hold another round of trade talks ahead of the G7 summit next month, Japan's top tariff negotiator said, stressing that no deal would be without concessions on all Washington's tariffs, including on autos.

Japan's Economy Minister Ryosei Akazawa met with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington for 130 minutes in a fourth round of the trade negotiations.

"We agreed to accelerate the talks and hold another round ahead of the G7 summit in June, where the leaders from Japan and the United States are set to meet," Akazawa told Japanese media gathered at the Japanese embassy in Washington.

The U.S. side, led by Bessent and Lutnick, called Friday's talks "frank and constructive."

"Secretary Bessent highlighted to Minister Akazawa the importance of addressing tariffs and non-tariff measures, increasing investment, and working together to address economic security and other issues of mutual concern," a Treasury Department statement said.

Japan faces a 24% tariff rate starting in July unless it can negotiate a deal with the U.S. It is also scrambling to find ways to get Washington to exempt its automakers from 25% tariffs on automobiles, Japan's biggest industry.

Akazawa said Japan's position has not changed that the tariffs are not acceptable and he is "strongly urging" the U.S. to immediately reconsider and drop all the tariffs, including those levied on automobiles, auto parts, aluminum and steel.

"If our requests to do that are met, we may be able to come to an agreement," Akazawa told Japanese media gathered at the Japanese embassy in Washington. "But if that is not possible, then it will be difficult for us to agree to a deal."

Japanese government sources said before the latest meeting that an immediate deal was unlikely, as they would never hastily seal a deal that would not benefit Japan, particularly the automobile sector.

Akazawa declined to give details of the latest discussions, but said trade expansion, non-tariff barriers and cooperation in economic security have been on the agenda at every meeting.

Semiconductor supply chains and rare earths are among economic security topics, he added.
 
 

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.1 struck off the coast of Kushiro in Japan's Hokkaido on Saturday, local weather agency said.

The temblor occurred at 5:37 p.m. local time (0837 GMT), originating at a depth of approximately 20 km, said the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), News.Az reports, citing Xinhua.

While slight changes in sea level may be observed along Japan's coastline, there is no concern for significant damage or a tsunami, the JMA said.

Emergency services are monitoring the situation closely, and no immediate reports of injury or structural damage have been issued.
 
 

Mako Komuro, the eldest daughter of Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko, has given birth to her first child, the Imperial Household Agency said Friday.

In a regular press conference, Naomasa Yoshida, grand master of the Crown Prince's Household, did not disclose the baby's sex or date of birth, but said that the Crown Prince and Crown Princess as well as their other children, Princess Kako and Prince Hisahito, are delighted about the birth and are wishing for the happiness of the Komuro family.

The newborn is the first grandchild for the Crown Prince and Crown Princess.

Regarding the timing of the announcement, the grand master said: "This is a matter for a person who has left the Imperial Family, and we had hoped that she would spend her time in a quiet environment. We decided to make the announcement, however, in light of some media reports (about the birth)."

Mako, 33, left the Imperial Family after marrying Kei Komuro, 33, a former schoolmate at International Christian University in Tokyo, in October 2021. They moved to the United States together the following month.

Kei passed the New York state bar examination on his third attempt in 2022 and now works at a law firm there.
 
 

Japan's Emperor Naruhito met with Lao President Thongloun Sisoulith at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Friday.

In the talks, which lasted about 25 minutes, the Emperor shared his delight over the growing amicable bilateral relations, noting that this year marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and Laos, according to the Imperial Household Agency.

Regarding the planned visit to Laos in November by Princess Aiko, the only child of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, the president said that he will be honored to welcome the princess. The Emperor replied, "Aiko is also looking forward to it."

They also discussed the 60th anniversary of the first dispatch of Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers, now JICA Volunteers, to Laos. "Cooperation is very important," the Emperor told the president.
 
 

If you go to Japan, there’s a chance you might meet someone with an unusual name – such as “Nike,” “Pikachu” or “Pudding.”

While still a minority, these names have grown in popularity over recent decades as parents reject traditional Japanese names for something more unique.

But the practice has also drawn criticism – mainly that it’s confusing for hospitals, schools and authorities who don’t know how to pronounce them.
Now the government is cracking down on these so-called “kirakira” names, which means sparkly or shiny. New rules came into effect on Monday that will limit parents from giving their babies names pronounced in unconventional ways.

The news was met with mixed reactions; some social media users argued that kirakira names are an expression of individualism, that they’re fairly harmless and don’t warrant government regulation.

“They’re not children of the nation, right? They’re children of their parents,” one person wrote on X after the announcement.

Many more, however, welcomed the change – lamenting that children with unusual names might face harassment, or at the very least complications in administrative tasks like registrations or banking.

“Why do certain people put kirakira names on their kids? It just causes those kids to be bullied,” one X user wrote. Another joked sarcastically: “Please stop restricting kirakira names. Seeing a child’s name reveals the intelligence of their parents, which is helpful.”


How ‘kirakira’ names work

Japan uses three writing systems – Kanji, which is based on Chinese characters, and two other phonetic systems. Names are typically written in Kanji, and this is where the trouble comes in.

Because these Chinese characters were mixed with the existing Japanese language, each Kanji character can be pronounced multiple ways – some with ten or more ways. You decipher the “right” pronunciation based on context clues and the other characters in a sentence or phrase.

In kirakira names, which became more popular from the 1980s onward, parents often choose a name based on the phonetic sound – wanting their child’s name to sound like “Pikachu,” for instance – and pick similar-sounding Kanji characters.

The problem is that those characters might not usually be pronounced that way – making it hard, or impossible, for a teacher or nurse to decipher how to properly say a child’s name just by looking at its written Kanji form.

Some have drawn parallels to how American parents have, increasingly in the past decade, chosen unusual spellings for common names – such as Ashleigh instead of Ashley, or Catelynn instead of Caitlin.

The Japanese government’s new rules aim to limit this by mandating that only widely accepted pronunciations of kanji characters will be allowed.

Parents will need to include the phonetic readings of their baby names in the registry – and if local officials see that the phonetic sound of a name doesn’t match how its characters are typically pronounced, they may reject the name or request additional paperwork.



The rise of unusual names

This is not the first time strict naming rules have sparked debate in Japan.
Japan still legally requires married couples to share the same surname, unlike most other major economies that have done away with the tradition. Normally, wives take their husband’s name, since same-sex marriages aren’t legal in Japan.

A movement to change the rules around surnames has been brewing, led by women’s rights advocates and those trying to preserve the diversity of Japanese surnames in a nation where a handful of names are becoming increasingly common.

First names have afforded more room for experimentation – at least, until the latest rules came in.

More and more people have been given unusual names in the last 40 years, according to a 2022 study that analyzed baby names published in local newsletters over the last few

The trend suggests a shift toward seeking “uniqueness and independence” in Japan, the study said – also seen in changes to other parts of Japanese life during that time like family structures and societal values.

Girls in particular saw an increase in kirakira names, it added – perhaps suggesting that parents had a stronger “hope for their daughters to become unique and independent than for their sons.”

Japan isn’t the only country that has seen an upward trend in unusual baby names. A 2016 study found that American parents picked more unusual names between 2004 and 2015, pointing to the culture’s “increasing individualism.”

In China, too, rapid economic growth and upward mobility have meant people today value individualism and autonomy more than previous generations, according to a 2018 study – reflected in the steady rise of parents choosing unique characters in their babies’ names.

Like in Japan, the study found that Chinese girls were more likely to have unusual names than boys – perhaps reflecting different “parental expectations.”

But it’s also common for countries to have rules in place for what names are acceptable. In the US, this is often state-by-state; names in California can only use the 26 alphabetical characters of the English language, which briefly posed a problem when Elon Musk and Grimes named their baby “X Æ A-12.” They eventually changed the name – very slightly – to “X Æ A-Xii.”

In Germany, authorities may strike down a baby name if they find it offensive or potentially harmful to the child’s best interests. For example, they’ve previously barred parents from using “Borussia,” a reference to a soccer team, or “Gastritis,” arguing that the names would “jeopardize the welfare of the child,” according to the official Frankfurt city administration.

Meanwhile New Zealand also maintains strict rules that include bans on references to titles, meaning names like “King” and “Prince” are routinely rejected.
 

 

Politicians discuss tourism and adapting health system to ageing population
Catalan president, Salvador Illa, met with Yokohama Hideyuki, mayor of Osaka, the third-largest city of Japan.

During the meeting, the two political leaders discussed how to advance the air connection between Osaka and Barcelona, as well as the possibility of promoting tourism between the two territories.

They also addressed how to adapt healthcare systems to an ageing population, a topic of interest for both Catalonia and Japan.  
The meeting lasted approximately 40 minutes.

During the meeting, the Catalan president also presented the Catalan initiatives featured at the World Expo 2025, taking place in Osaka between April 12, 2025, and October 13, 2025.

Catalonia is participating in the event as part of Spain’s Pavilion program and has organized a “Catalan Week.”

With the slogan “Catalonia, a land of innovation and avant-garde,” visitors can learn how to make the quintessential Catalan dish pa amb tomàquet (bread with tomato), attend wine masterclasses, learn to paint like Joan Miró, and explore the connections between language and modernist architecture.

Guests will also be able to interact with a brainwave-reading interface that generates personalized artwork, developed by the Catalan public innovation agency Biocat and the company Neuroelectrics.

With the week-long program of activities, Catalonia seeks to raise its profile at this major international event, which brings together nearly 160 countries and has already attracted over five million visitors in just over a month.

On Wednesday, the Catalan president will attend the official opening ceremony.

Hideyuki has been mayor of Osaka, a city with 8.7 million inhabitants, since 2023. Osaka is the second largest city in the Keihanshin metropolitan region, after Tokyo, and has one of the largest GDPs in the world.
 
 

On May 28, at 3:20 p.m., for approximately 45 minutes, Mr. IWAYA Takeshi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, held a bilateral meeting with H.E. Mr. Prak Sokhonn, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Cambodia. The summary of the meeting is as follows:

1. Opening Remarks

Minister Iwaya warmly welcomed Deputy Prime Minister Prak Sokhonn’s visit to Japan and emphasized that Japan and Cambodia are “Comprehensive Strategic Partners” cooperating for international peace and stability, including demining in mine-affected third countries.

He further expressed his desire to strengthen cooperation with Cambodia in realizing a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” based on the rule of law and to maintain and enhance the multilateral free trade system.

In response, Deputy Prime Minister Prak Sokhonn expressed gratitude for Japan as a most trusted friend and Japan’s continuous support to Cambodia since the peace process and expressed his commitment to further developing bilateral cooperation.


2. Bilateral Relations

Both ministers welcomed the port call of Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force vessels at Ream Naval Base in April and agreed to further enhance security cooperation. Minister Iwaya expressed Japan’s desire to advance discussions on Official Security Assistance (OSA) and to see port calls of vessels from various countries at Ream Naval Base in the future toward a “more open base.”

The ministers also agreed to cooperate in maintaining and strengthening the multilateral free trade system, taking into account the current global economic situation, and to support the diversification of Cambodia’s economic partnerships.

Minister Iwaya further stated that Japan will promote “three new cooperation approaches” to Cambodia, focusing on social infrastructure development, maritime connectivity, and humanitarian mine action, as well as the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC). Deputy Prime Minister Prak Sokhonn expressed his appreciation for Japan’s continued support.

Both ministers agreed to cooperate towards Cambodia's sustainable development and the co-creation of social values, and the promotion of further investment from Japan.

Additionally, the ministers discussed Cambodia’s democratic development.
 

 

3. Regional and International Situation

The ministers agreed to strengthen cooperation for international peace and stability, including triangular cooperation in the field of demining. Deputy Prime Minister Prak Sokhonn also highlighted Cambodia's resolve to address transnational organized crime, and both Ministers affirmed their commitment to cooperation in this regard.

Furthermore, both ministers agreed to continue to cooperate on a range of regional and international issues, including Japan-ASEAN cooperation, the situation in Myanmar, the East China Sea and the South China Sea, and responses to North Korea.
 
 

With the average price of rice now doubled from the same period last year — reaching more than ¥4,000 for 5 kilograms at supermarkets — much attention is being paid to whether the ministry’s new approach will be effective.

The agriculture ministry’s decision to sell state-held reserves of rice through “discretionary contracts,” in which the government sets the price of the grain, is a drastic change from its previous stance of not controlling rice prices.

With the average price of rice now doubled from the same period last year — reaching more than ¥4,000 for 5 kilograms at supermarkets — much attention is being paid to whether the ministry’s new approach will be effective.

“We will prevent rice prices from rising further, halt the decline in rice consumption and fulfill our responsibility,” Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Shinjiro Koizumi told ministry officials on Monday. He also set up a special in-house team to tackle rising rice prices.

The standard system of open bidding played a role in driving rice prices higher, as those who made the highest bid would win the auction. Under a discretionary contract, the government can set a low price and decide who gets a contract. This approach also reduces intermediary margins by skipping distributors and wholesalers, which also helps lower prices.

According to a ministry survey, 90% of the about 210,000 tons of rice sold at auction in March was bought by the National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations (Zen-Noh). Only 14,998 tons, or 7.1%, had gone to retailers, as of April 27.

The key element of Koizumi’s new measure is how much faster it can enable distribution through direct sales to retailers.
The ministry started accepting applications for the discretionary contracts on Monday.

A senior official of Pan Pacific International Holdings Corp., which runs discount store chain Don Quijote, told reporters on Monday after he participated in a ministry briefing that the company would apply that day. Pan Pacific International Holdings may limit the amount of rice each consumer can buy and will start selling the rice as soon as possible, the official said.

“It’s beneficial for consumers if we retailers participate in the discretionary contracts. We’ll make efforts to put the price at the ¥2,000 level,” the official said.

Rakuten Group, Inc. is considering direct sales through its Rakuten Ichiba e-commerce site. The company hopes to start selling the rice in early June in cooperation with Japan Post Holdings Co., which is Rakuten’s partner in the distribution business.

Hiroshi Mikitani, chairman and president of Rakuten Group, met with Koizumi on Friday and reportedly told the minister that he would make efforts to sell stockpiled rice.

Ito Yokado Co., which is under the umbrella of Seven & i Holdings Co., is one of the major retailers expected to apply for a contract. Aeon Co. is also considering submitting an application.

Rice has to be polished before being sold at stores, and retailers will have to perform this task.

 

“We have to prepare bags for polished rice and rice polishing facilities. The schedule will be tight,” said an official in charge of public relations for a major retailer. It may take them longer to put rice in stores if they have to arrange for other companies to polish the rice.

If the stockpiled rice is distributed from June as Koizumi expects, the average sales price at supermarkets may go down nationwide. Currently, the price is more than ¥4,000 per 5 kilograms, about double the level in the same period last year. If stockpiled rice costing about ¥2,000 appears in stores, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s hopes for an average price at the ¥3,000 level may be realized.

However, the total amount of stockpiled rice sold at the three open biddings and to be sold through the discretionary contracts is about 610,000 tons in total, or less than 10% of the 7 million tons needed annually. It will last households only two months.

Cheap rice sold through discretionary contracts may be popular among consumers. If it goes out of stock, expensive rice distributed through open bidding will remain at stores.

“The current extraordinary high prices will subside when sufficient rice comes into the market,” said Shunsuke Orikasa, chief researcher at the Distribution Economics Institute of Japan and a specialist in rice distribution.

However, Orikasa is skeptical about the long- and mid-term effects of the measure. “There’s no way that retailers and wholesalers will sell rice at a lower price than they paid to buy it,” he said.
 
 

H2O Retailing Corp. has applied to sell 2,000 tons of rice to be released from the Japanese government's stockpile under discretionary contracts, company officials said.

Kansai Food Market Ltd., a subsidiary of H2O Retailing, will sell the rice at its group supermarkets such as Hankyu Oasis Co. and Kansai Super Market Ltd. at prices close to the government's target of 2,000 yen per 5 kilograms excluding tax.

Amid elevated rice prices in the market, H2O Retailing hopes to ease customer concerns by increasing the amount of rice on store shelves.
 
 

Ten people sustained minor injuries, and dozens of buildings were damaged in eastern Tokyo on Tuesday after explosions at a construction site, possibly caused by a gas leak, police said.

Gas was detected at the site in Edogawa Ward, where a fragment of a gas cylinder was also recovered. Police believe workers may have struck the cylinder with a drill during piling work for a new apartment building, likely causing the gas to ignite.

An emergency call reporting the sound of explosions was made around 9:35 a.m. A service vehicle caught fire at the site, while workers, nearby residents, and others -- ranging in age from their 20s to 70s -- inhaled smoke and sustained other minor injuries.

Around 40 buildings sustained damage to walls and other parts, with some window glass shattering. The affected area extended up to a 100-meter radius from the site, located near Tokyo Metro's Kasai Station.

Keishi Sudo, a 69-year-old who lives in a nearby apartment, said he heard a boom after hearing someone saying, "It's gas!"

The blast shattered the windows, scattering glass throughout his apartment, and caused an air conditioning unit to fall.

"I don't know how I should live from tomorrow," he said.

The cause of the explosions was initially explained as a leak from a gas pipe damaged by workers, though no pipes were found there.

An investigative source said acetylene gas, which is used to weld metals, may have leaked from the gas cylinder.
 

 

Japan lost its status as the world's top creditor for the first time in 34 years, overtaken by Germany, even as its net external assets rose to a record high, partly due to a weaker yen, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday.

Japan's gross external assets increased 12.9 percent from a year earlier to 533.05 trillion yen ($3.7 trillion) as of the end of last year, topping 500 trillion yen for the first time, but the total was below Germany's 569.65 trillion yen.

The yen's depreciation boosted the value of Japan's foreign-currency assets, including stocks, bonds and other holdings, when converted into the local currency, the ministry said, adding Germany benefited from a large current account surplus.

Japan increased its net external credit for the seventh consecutive year, with total external assets rising 11.4 percent to 1,659.02 trillion yen, driven by direct investment in the United States by domestic financial institutions and trading houses.

External liabilities also climbed 10.7 percent to 1,125.97 trillion yen, with the ministry saying the U.S. dollar was trading at 157.89 yen as of the end of 2024, up 11.7 percent from 141.40 yen the previous year.

By country and region, Japan ranked as the second-largest holder of net external assets, followed by China with 516.28 trillion yen. The United States, in contrast, had a net external liability of 4,109.26 trillion yen, meaning its foreign debts far exceeded its overseas assets.

Figures for other nations were converted into yen using the foreign exchange rates at the end of last year, as published by the International Monetary Fund, the Japanese ministry said.
 
 

As well as offering UAVs of all types, including fixed-wing, VTOL and Rotary, Hama differs from other drone designers around the world by offering a range of medium-sized aerial UAVs capable of taking off and landing in water like a seaplane.

The Nippose company takes care of development from A to Z: from the concept and design phase to manufacturing and the design of the drone’s piloting software. The latest is the UAV Hamadori seaplane.

Designed for Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) or Search and Rescue (SAR) missions over the sea, thanks to its on-board EO/IR gimbal camera, the HAMADORI UAV has the ability to take off and land autonomously on the water, and to communicate with vehicles or other underwater assets thanks to its acoustic communication antenna, making it like a relay between underwater platforms and those on the surface, whether at sea or on land, thus extending its mission possibilities.

“It can communicate with submarines, mines or UUVs, etc., and relay communication between submarine assets and air and ground assets […] a unique point that cannot be achieved with a conventional UAV […] and which could prevent the mobilization of overly large assets such as manned vessels.” said Takenori Hashimoto, head of internotional business development at HAMA.

HAMA claims to be able to integrate other sensors of various kinds into the UAV, thus broadening the range of possible missions. The company representative mentions that it would be conceivable for the UAV to assist in anti-submarine warfare, mine warfare or other missions.

To give itself every chance, the Japan-based company has developed two other versions of the HAMADORI concept. The one shown at the show was the HAMADORI 3000, a number referring to its three-meter wingspan – the smallest version.

Its big brother is the HAMADORI 6000, with twice the wingspan. Finally, HAMA is working on a catamaran version of its drone. The latter design would offer greater carrying capacity and flexibility.

For the moment, only the Hamadori 3000 is operational, and was used to observe the aftermaths of an earthquake off the Noto peninsula. HAMA has not yet entered the military market, however, and hopes to do so soon.

Discussions are currently underway with the Japanese MOD. The 6000 version and the catamaran are still in the prototype phase, the former having had its maiden flight last year, while the latter is still in the assembly phase and should have its maiden flight later this year.

As regards the technical details of the various models, the HAMADORI 3000 is a relatively light drone weighing just 29kg and capable of cruising at speeds of 35 knots with an range of 140km and an autonomy of 2 hours. It can land in seas with waves of up to 2 meters.

The HAMADORI 6000 is a real step up from its little brother. In fact, HAMA has announced an 8-hour autonomy and a flight range of 740km. Its cruising speed will be doubled, and it should be able to land in 3m waves.

Various sensors such as sonar and other oceanographic data collectors could be installed.
 
 

 

A Japanese plane headed from Tokyo to Texas had to make an emergency landing after a passenger tried to open one of its doors during the flight.

All Nippon Airways (ANA) Flight 114 was diverted to Seattle hours after taking off on Saturday "due to an unruly passenger", the airline said.

Port of Seattle police told media they had been notified of a man who "attempted to open exit doors during the flight".

The man, who was not identified, was "having a medical crisis" and had to be restrained by other passengers and flight crew, police said.

He was later taken to a hospital. It is unclear if he will face any charges.
"The safety of our passengers and crew are our top priority and we applaud the efforts of local law enforcement for their support," ANA said in a statement.

While the plane was waiting on the tarmac of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, a second person was removed from the flight for "unruly behaviour", authorities said.

Flight data shows that the plane made it to its destination, George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, on Saturday around 12:40 local time (17:40 GMT) - four hours after its scheduled arrival time.
This is the latest in a string of similar incidents.

In April, a Jetstar flight from Bali, Indonesia was forced to turn around during its journey to Melbourne, Australia, after a passenger similarly tried to open a plane door in the air.

Last November, a man who tried to open the plane door during an American Airlines flight was restrained and tied up by fellow passengers with duct tape.

And in 2023, nine passengers of an Asiana Airlines flight were sent to hospital with breathing difficulties after a man successfully opened the aircraft's emergency exit door prior to it landing at a South Korean airport.
 
 

 

Aomorikku Cube, Rubik’s Cube puzzles designed with apple skin coloration, sales have begun outside Aomori Prefecture. Instead of solid colors, each side of the cube is patterned on a different variety of apple produced in the prefecture.

The Aomori prefectural government sold the toys in the prefecture from autumn last year, quickly selling out.

Many people voiced their desire to buy the puzzle, so the prefectural government has begun selling them again to promote apples, a prefectural specialty product.

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the beginning of apple tree planting in the prefecture.

When the Aomorikku Cube is solved, each surface shows an image patterned after a different apple variety. The designs are: Fuji, Jonagold, Sekai-ichi, Kogyoku, Chiyuki and Mutsu.

All of them are red and look very similar. People need to align the pieces of each surface while paying attention to features of the apple varieties, making it very challenging.

In October last year, the toys began to be sold in stores at 11 locations in the prefecture.

They caught on right away and the initial run of 1,000 toys sold out in about 2 months.

According to the prefectural government’s tourism policy division, many people from inside and outside of the prefecture voiced a desire to buy them even after they initially sold out.

The prefectural government decided to sell the toys again starting May 1, this time selling them outside the prefecture as well.

In Aomori prefecture, the toys are available in multiple locations, including a store in Misawa Airport. Outside the prefecture, such retailers as Aomori Hokusaikan Tokyo Store, the prefecture’s antenna shop in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, and A La Ringo Kobe Factory Shop in Hyogo Ward, Kobe, sell them.

They sell for ¥3,300 each, including tax. By May 23, some shops reported their stock of the toys was low.

An official of the prefectural government’s tourism policy division said, “We want people to become familiar with the features of apple varieties and hope the toys will prompt them to visit the prefecture to try the apples for themselves.”
 
 

Businesses in Japan are expanding their use of generative artificial intelligence to human-resources management, including staff training and evaluation.

A subsidiary of precision-machinery maker, Ricoh, started using generative AI this year to train new recruits in sales work.

Staff wear goggles as they pitch the company's products to AI-generated clients, and AI also evaluates their performance.

Kawamura Koji of Ricoh Japan said "This will allow for a significant increase in role-playing and as a result, our staff will be able to communicate better with customers, and listen to their problems as much as possible.

Cable-TV operator JCOM plans to introduce AI to evaluate call-center staff by next March.

AI will analyze interactions between employees and customers for criteria such as clarity of staff explanations, and estimate how the customers are feeling.

A call-center manager said past evaluations were based on assessment of only about 2 percent of conversations, but AI can analyze all staff-client interactions.

She said the technology will help the company grow.
 
 

Japan began sales of government rice stockpiles via direct contracts on Monday, aiming to slash soaring prices after the newly appointed farm minister pledged to bring them down to about 2,000 yen ($14) per 5 kilograms by early June.

The move comes as the government seeks to quell criticism it has been ineffective in preventing rice prices from skyrocketing at a time when inflation is outpacing wage growth and pressuring household budgets.

The government plans to release around 300,000 tons of rice via the contracts with major retailers, such as supermarkets, bypassing the auction system under which farming cooperatives bought most of the previously released rice, limiting the government's influence over prices.
 
"Had we continued as we were, I did not believe we could fulfill people's expectations," farm minister Shinjiro Koizumi told Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries officials in a meeting, which was open to the press.
"We will move at speed and with urgency to dispel the people's concerns," he said.

The stockpiles of rice produced in 2021 and 2022 are to be sold at around 11,556 yen, including tax, per 60 kg and the government will shoulder the cost of transportation to regional areas. Online sales of rice to achieve broader distribution are also under consideration.

Koizumi assumed his post on Wednesday after his predecessor resigned in an uproar over a gaffe in which he said he had never bought rice due to having a surplus that had been gifted by supporters.

The average price of the nation's staple food in Japanese supermarkets reached a record 4,268 yen per 5 kg in early May, roughly double last year's level, due in part to a poor
 
 

 
 
Visitors flocked to a theme park in western Japan on Sunday for the last opportunity to get an up-close look at four giant pandas that are set to be transferred to China.
 
The four female pandas at the park in the town of Shirahama, Wakayama Prefecture, are scheduled to be sent to China on June 28, as the contract of a joint project is set to expire in August.

 

 

Sunday is the last day for visitors to be able to see the pandas outdoors. The pandas will then be on view to the public only at glass-enclosed indoor facilities from Monday through June 27, one day before their scheduled departure.
 
A woman in her 20s said that she was close enough to hear the animals munching bamboo, so she felt sad that no one would be able to see them outdoors again.
 
She added that she would like to visit again to see the pandas through glass, before they are sent to China.
 

 

Japan's government plans to improve working conditions for chefs at its overseas diplomatic missions due to intensifying competition for talent as the nation's cuisine grows in popularity worldwide.

More than 6 million yen ($41,000) will be paid annually to chefs under the new scheme slated to start in January, up from the current average of around 4 to 4.5 million yen, according to the Foreign Ministry.

Many serve as live-in chefs at diplomatic establishments, but they will be allowed to opt for rented accommodation with the cost to be covered by the government, the ministry said.

Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya said chefs at overseas missions play "significant roles" in the hosting of foreign dignitaries, and recruiting good staff has "increasingly become harder."

"We expect chefs, as 'food diplomats,' to promote Japanese food more proactively," Iwaya told a press conference earlier this month when he announced the new system.

 

Every overseas outpost should have a chef, and busy locations, including the Japanese embassies in the United States and China, have two. Currently, about a dozen out of some 230 missions have a vacancy, according to the ministry.

The chefs will be contracted for two years and can be extended for one year. Currently, the length of their contracts tends to be open-ended as they are linked to the terms of their higher-ranked colleagues such as ambassadors and consuls general.

The new system is expected to enable the chefs to "draw their career paths more easily," Iwaya said.

Other improvements include adding funds to the chefs' salaries for them to use in bringing their spouses to countries where they work, the ministry said.
 
 

 

 

Families of Japanese nationals abducted to North Korea and their supporters held a national rally in Tokyo on Saturday to demand the immediate return of all abductees.

"We really have no time left," a participant said, bearing in mind that Sakie Yokota, 89, the mother of abductee Megumi, has become the only surviving member of the generation of the abductees' parents. Megumi was kidnapped in 1977 when she was 13.

The rally was attended by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
At the beginning of the event, a minute of silence was observed in memory of Akihiro Arimoto, the father of abductee Keiko, who died in February this year. Keiko disappeared in Europe in 1983 when she was 23.

Takuya Yokota, 56, a younger brother of Megumi and head of a group of families of abductees, gave a speech calling for a Japan-North Korea summit.

"We really have no time left. We want the Japanese government to take action so that we can reunite with our family members and siblings who were abducted," he said.

Ishiba emphasized the significance of appealing to the international community to solve the problem.

"We will by all means make a breakthrough. We will make further approaches through various channels," he said, expressing his eagerness to meet directly with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Megumi "disappeared suddenly," her mother recalled, saying that she had "walked along the beach, searching and crying." She asked for support for the resolution of the abduction issue.

The rally, organized mainly by the family group and an organization supporting such families, brought together about 800 people, including lawmakers. During the event, a resolution was adopted requesting the Japanese government and North Korea to realize the immediate return of all abductees.
 
 

 

Japan’s search for a new trainer aircraft has meant that companies were keen to display their trainer aircraft solutions at DSEI Japan.

The Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) is in the process of recapitalizing its training aircraft fleet as it seeks to produce pilots for next generation combat aircraft.

JASDF announced earlier this year that it selected the Textron T-6 turboprop trainer, and is starting a search for a jet trainer to replace its existing training fleet.

According to industry executives here at the DSEI Japan expo in Tokyo, Japan is undertaking a survey to look at the aircraft types and training solutions in the market.

This likely includes the joint development of a new trainer aircraft with the US, announced during the US-Japan leaders’ summit in April 2024 to replace the JASDF’s Kawasaki T-4 jet trainers.

Japan’s search for a new trainer aircraft has meant that companies were keen to display their trainer aircraft solutions at DSEI Japan, with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) displaying a scale model of its T-X jet trainer concept.

Meanwhile, Boeing is poised to offer the T-7A Red Hawk trainer for any potential Japanese requirement, with Executive Director for Defense and Government Services in East Asia John Suding noting that the type that has been selected for the US Air Force’s own trainer program would be ideal for a US-Japan joint development.

“The training that it [the T-7] will do for the United States Air Force is very similar to the training that Japan does for their air force, and particularly for their fighter fleet with F-35s and F-15s that are being upgraded, so there’s a lot of commonality within the training system,” Suding said.

Italy’s Leonardo also had a presence at DSEI Japan, showing off a cockpit simulator for its M-346 Block 20 at its stand. The JASDF currently sends its pilots on the M-346 at the International Flight Training School (IFTS) in Italy, which focuses on Phase IV Advanced/Lead-in Fighter Training (LIFT) for pilots from several countries including Qatar and Singapore.

The IFTS is a project between the Italian Air Force and Leonardo, and a company spokesperson told Breaking Defense that nine JASDF pilots have already undergone training at the center since Japan started sending pilots over in 2022.

The pilots’ stint at the IFTS lasts approximately six months, and the spokesperson says that the aim is to increase the number to ten pilots per year.

Another company involved in IFTS is CAE, which has an industrial partnership with Leonardo related to aircraft and simulators. CAE has also demonstrated its Virtual Reality-based training capabilities to the JASDF in 2023, putting 30 pilot training cadets at Hofu-kita Air Base where the JASDF conducts basic flying training on the Subaru T-7 turboprop trainer.

CAE’s Principal Technology Officer Gary Eves told Breaking Defense that the results of the demonstration left the JASDF impressed, and the company is continuing to engage with the service as it continues to find a path forward for its future training needs.

This includes an integrated ground-based virtual training that is not dependent on whichever type of trainer aircraft the JASDF selects for its future training program.

“We will work with JASDF’s choice of aircraft. We are not aligned to anyone and can work with all of them and we will guide them through this process,” Eves said.