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May 11, 2025
 

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COMMENTARY

Japan

World
Japan
Shinzo Abe, then the Chief Cabinet Secretary, shakes hands with former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage during a symposium in Tokyo in July 2006.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Remembering two titans in Japan-U.S. relations
Their good humor, unflagging optimism and commitment to building a stronger Japan-U.S. alliance continues to shape that partnership.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Japan’s durable 'Free and Open Indo-Pacific' strategy brings stability
So while Ishiba’s visit to Southeast Asia may have just seemed like another round of trips during a holiday week, they were emblematic of something much more than that.
COMMENTARY / Japan
New rare earth plant shows strength of Japan-France cooperation
In France, a state-of-the-art rare earths plant is being built with French and Japanese support, showing the way for those who see the benefits of working together and not alone.
China's Bayan Obo rare earth mine in Inner Mongolia. As U.S.-China tensions strain critical mineral supply chains, Tokyo’s multipronged approach based on sovereignty, resilience and sustainability is gaining quiet relevance.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 5, 2025
Japan's resource security path may hold answers to trade turmoil
By Parul Bakshi
Critical mineral supply chains are made vulnerable by China's dominance and U.S. protectionism. Japan's strategy may provide clues as to how to secure these vital resources.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (right) speaks during an Oval Office meeting on April 24 with President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store (not pictured) to discuss tariffs.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 4, 2025
A turning point in trade: The U.S. effort to reverse global imbalances
By Sayuri Shirai
This large trade imbalance is also the primary driver of the U.S. current account deficit, largely due to the gap in goods trade.
A Honda vehicle is assembled at a plant in Lincoln, Alabama. Despite concerns about U.S. President Donald Trump's economic policies, around half of Japanese firms remain committed to the American market, according to a recent survey.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
May 2, 2025
Japan Inc. cautiously optimistic despite rising uncertainty
By Hitoshi Suzuki
Trump's economic policies and geopolitical risks are front of mind for many Japanese companies. But many remain committed to staying in the U.S. and China, says a recent survey.
A new U.S. FDA policy requiring full placebo-controlled trials for updated vaccines, pushed by Commissioner Marty Makary (right) and U.S. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (center), is seen as a backdoor effort to sideline COVID-19 boosters and undermine broader vaccine development.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 2, 2025
RFK Jr.’s new vaccine scrutiny is alarming
By Lisa Jarvis
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who oversees the FDA, intends to set new regulatory standards vaccine manufacturers couldn’t possibly meet.
The Bank of Japan signals rate-hike uncertainty and slashes growth forecasts amid rising trade and inflation concerns, as the central bank's earlier optimism is upended by U.S. President Trump's tariff moves.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 2, 2025
Bank of Japan will struggle to justify hikes after this
By Gearoid Reidy
Few anticipated how dovish the BOJ would sound on the future direction of rates or how gloomy it would be on the near-term prospects for achieving the inflation goal.
Japan's proposed "one-theater" defense strategy, linking the East China Sea, South China Sea and Korean Peninsula has raised concerns, particularly in South Korea, about its implications for regional security.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 30, 2025
Japan’s ‘one-theater’ defense concept rattles South Korea
By Brad Glosserman
Continuing expansion of SDF roles and missions is consistent with adoption of the "Free and Open Indo-Pacific" construct that guides Japanese security policy.
Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama (left), who also chairs the Japan-China Parliamentary Friendship Association, meets with Zhao Leji, the third-ranked official in the Chinese Communist Party and chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, in Beijing on Tuesday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 30, 2025
Communist China’s quiet influence on Japanese politics
By Edo Naito
China Communist Party influence operations have been embedded in the Japanese government and political structures for 75 years.

Global militaries to study India-Pakistan fighter jet battle
The Indian Air Force's Rafale fighter jets. India and Pakistan aircraft engaged in a dogfight on Wednesday.
Trump says India and Pakistan have agreed to 'immediate ceasefire'
A man stands amid debris on the roof of a damaged house, following Pakistan's military operation against India, in Rehari, Jammu, on Saturday.
Who could become Japan's next prime minister?
Clockwise from top left: Former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi, former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi, Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi
Suspect in Tokyo Metro stabbing chose station to highlight ‘educational abuse’
Yoshitaka Toda is escorted out of a police station in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward on Friday to be sent to prosecutors.
Japan stuck at starting line in tariff talks with U.S. as U.K. inks deals
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan’s top tariff negotiator, speaks to the press on Friday. Japan and the United States are still discussing what to negotiate.
Who could become Japan's next prime minister?
Clockwise from top left: Former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi, former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi, Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi
With a new Shibuya studio, Apple Music bets big on Japan
Apple Music personalities (from left) Ebro Darden, Kentaro Ochiai, Zane Lowe and Mino came together for a special recording in late April to discuss music and celebrate the newly opened Apple Music studio in Tokyo.
Kazuki Nagasawa's sustainable designs are rooted in tradition
For centuries, artisans have unraveled strands of the fibrous bark of "shuro" trees to create a medley of everyday objects. Designer Kazuki Nagasawa is now transforming the traditional material into ethereal contemporary pieces.
SusHi Tech Tokyo 2025 expands to become one of Asia's largest startup events
SusHi Tech Tokyo 2025 was bustling with participants of various nationalities Thursday, and multiple languages could be heard around the room as many engaged in conversations throughout the day.
Celebrating Japan’s defeat at Shimoda’s Black Ships Festival
Tatsumi Onose (right), who plays the part of Commodore Matthew Perry in Shimoda's Black Ship Festival, says the historical episode the event is based on should be remembered for its positives more than its negatives.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Dangami House is a 180-year-old former samurai residence of the Kato clan, who ruled over Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, until the Meiji Restoration.
A house, a legacy and the quiet work of restoration in rural Japan
By Hanako Lowry

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Fujitsu crafts sustainable innovation for itself, society
Fujitsu crafts sustainable innovation for itself, society

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