New contender in Japan ruling party race seeks to be first female PM
A new contender poised to join the race to succeed Japanese leader Yoshihide Suga could become the country's first female prime minister, as former communications minister Sanae Takaichi intends to declare her candidacy for the top post in the ruling party, Nikkei has learned.
Takaichi, one of the most prominent female cabinet members in recent years, is an ally of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. She has Abe's support to seek the leadership of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party in the Sept. 29 vote. Takaichi is expected to announce her vision for government as early as this week.
She would join a race upended by Suga's decision last week not to run after months of sagging cabinet approval ratings.
Taro Kono, Suga's cabinet point man for vaccine distribution and administrative reform, is also set to announce his candidacy as soon as this week. Leading in a Nikkei opinion poll of likely LDP leadership candidates with 16% support, Kono will face declared candidate Fumio Kishida, a former foreign minister.
A Kyodo poll also put Kono ahead, followed by former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba -- who has not revealed an intention to run -- and Kishida.
Japan's ruling party will choose a new face to lead it into a general election looming after the LDP race. With an LDP majority behind her, Takaichi as the party's leader would be only a confirmation vote away from becoming Japan's first female prime minister. She would be only the second woman to run for the LDP leadership, after current Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike in 2008.
AP - Nov 26
Top diplomats from Japan and China met for bilateral talks Saturday as they try to resolve disputes including China's ban on Japanese seafood that has badly hit Japanese exporters.
Reuters - Nov 25
Japan passed on Friday an extra budget worth around 13.1 trillion yen ($88 billion) aimed at helping households cope with the rising cost of living and corporations boost domestic investment, even amid concerns over the country's worsening finances.
News On Japan - Nov 23
Japan hosted the "Self-Defense Forces Joint Exercise," from October 10, attended by the Japan Self-Defense Forces (SDF) and the U.S. military. JNN reports on Japan's only elite unit, the 1st Airborne Brigade, during their training.
The Diplomat - Nov 23
Japan’s biggest defense company, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), has outlined plans for future growth through development investment in new major national defense projects, including standoff missiles and a joint next-generation fighter program with Britain and Italy.
NHK - Nov 22
North Korea's space agency says the country has launched a rocket carrying a military reconnaissance satellite and put it successfully into orbit.
Kyodo - Nov 22
A Japanese health ministry panel on Tuesday decided to ban HHCH, a synthetic cannabinoid, from Dec. 2 after many people who consumed gummies containing the compound had to go to the hospital.
dailymail.co.uk - Nov 22
The home of the US Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel became the target of anti-Semitic vandals over the weekend who spray painted the word 'Nazis' on a fence outside his house in Michigan.
CNA - Nov 21
Japan has condemned the seizure of a Japanese-operated cargo ship by Yemen's Houthi rebels in the Red Sea, south of Israel.
AOL - Nov 19
Daisaku Ikeda, a former leader of Japan's influential Buddhist group Soka Gakkai, has died at the age of 95.
News On Japan - Nov 18
Edogawa Ward in Tokyo, which has the highest incidence of bicycle thefts in the city, announced the installation of 80 surveillance cameras in bicycle parking areas at private condominiums and other locations.
CCTV Video News Agency - Nov 18
Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in San Francisco of the United States on Nov. 16, reaffirming the positioning of comprehensively advancing the strategic and mutually beneficial relations between China and Japan.
eurasiareview.com - Nov 18
Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s inaugural two-day visit to Malaysia heralded a new strategic bulwark of defence and security criticality.
News On Japan - Nov 16
A car crashed into the barricades near the Israeli Embassy in Tokyo on Thursday morning, injuring a police officer.
NHK - Nov 15
Wednesday marks 46 years since a 13-year-old junior high school girl was kidnapped by North Korean agents.
NHK - Nov 14
Japan's government has approved the resignation of State Minister of Finance Kanda Kenji, who repeatedly failed to pay taxes for his company.
NHK - Nov 14
An NHK opinion poll shows the approval rate for the Cabinet of Japan's Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has fallen below 30 percent for the first time since he took office two years ago.