Politics

Japan mayor forced to quit over bringing personal sauna into office
Kyodo - Apr 27
The mayor of a city in the western Japan prefecture of Osaka said Monday he will step down after finding himself in the hot seat for setting up a home sauna just next to his office for personal use.

Japan plans 10,000 shot-a-day vaccination venues in bid to speed up rollout
Japan Times - Apr 25
Japan is considering operating large-scale COVID-19 vaccination centers capable of administering shots to 10,000 people per day, as part of efforts to speed up a vaccine rollout that is trailing other countries, government sources said Sunday.

State of emergency for COVID-19 goes into effect
NHK - Apr 25
Japan's third state of emergency to contain the rising number of cases of coronavirus has gone into effect in the nation's capital and three western prefectures.

Japan should try California-style solar panel mandate: Koizumi
Nikkei - Apr 24
Japan should consider requiring solar panels on homes and office buildings as part of its plans to achieve its new, higher target for cutting greenhouse gas emissions, Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi told Nikkei on Friday.

Japan declares state of emergency in 4 prefectures
NHK - Apr 24
Japan's prime minister has declared the country's third state of emergency of the pandemic to contain rising COVID-19 cases. The measure will take effect in Tokyo, and three western prefectures on Sunday.

Japan raises emissions reduction target to 46% by 2030
coastreporter.net - Apr 23
Japan's prime minister announced on Thursday an ambitious new target for cutting greenhouse gas emissions, hours before he was to join a virtual climate summit hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden.

Providing food banks with disaster reserves
JapanNutrition.com - Apr 23
The Japanese government is now filling food banks with food that is no longer in use.

Can Japan’s ‘Invisible’ Diplomacy Help Solve the Myanmar Crisis?
thediplomat.com - Apr 23
More than two and a half months have passed since the coup in Myanmar. Although other countries are responding to this situation, they have not been able to have a concrete impact toward stopping the bloodshed that is happening in Myanmar, sparking harsh criticism from observers like the BBC.

Japan creating fuel guidelines to avoid power shortages
argusmedia.com - Apr 22
Japan is aiming to create fuel guidelines for power generation, to avoid any repeat of the severe shortage of thermal fuel and electricity supplies earlier this year.

F-15 pricey upgrade puts thorn in side of Japan-US alliance
Nikkei - Apr 22
The U.S. and Japan showcased the strength and unity of their alliance during last week's summit, but one particular sentence in the joint leaders' statement that followed the meeting conceals a sore spot in the relationship.

'Comfort women' lawsuit targeting Japan dismissed
NHK - Apr 22
A South Korean court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a group of people referred to as wartime comfort women and relevant families.

China may hit back against Japan over Taiwan issue but economic action unlikely, analysts say
scmp.com - Apr 21
China is not likely to shy away from retaliating against Japan over the Taiwan issue but it is expected to take security rather than economic measures, according to analysts.

New state of emergency possible in Osaka
NHK - Apr 21
The Japanese government may be edging closer to declaring another state of emergency, based on a request from the western prefecture of Osaka.

Suga explains reference to Taiwan
NHK - Apr 21
Japan's Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide has explained that a reference to Taiwan in a joint statement he issued with US President Joe Biden reflects Japan's hope for a peaceful settlement of the cross-Strait issue.

Japan asks Myanmar junta to release arrested journalist
coastreporter.net - Apr 20
Japan's government said Monday it is asking Myanmar to release a Japanese journalist who was arrested by security forces in its largest city of Yangon the previous day.

US backs Japan's Fukushima plans despite South Korea's concerns
aljazeera.com - Apr 19
US climate envoy John Kerry has reaffirmed Washington’s confidence in Japan’s decision to release contaminated water from its crippled Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea despite concerns raised by South Korea.