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June 07, 2026
 

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Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi responds to questions at the Upper House Budget Committee on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Takaichi faces heat over defamatory campaign video scandal
A report claims that her campaign posted defamatory videos of her rivals on social media during election time. The release of audio recordings has intensified the controversy.
JAPAN / Politics
Parliament leaders adopt draft proposal for imperial succession
The draft calls for allowing female members of the imperial family to retain their status after marriage and male heirs to be adopted from former branches.
JAPAN / Politics
Takaichi still highly popular despite slide in approval ratings
The lower ratings in two of three recent media polls come amid concerns over rising prices and the availability of crude oil-derived naphtha due to the Middle East conflict.
A push by Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party to criminalize the desecration of the national flag is reviving a long-running debate over the limits of political expression.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 5, 2026
LDP¡¯s flag desecration bill rekindles debate over limits of expression
By Kenji Yoshida
Advocates say the measure is meant to address a legal gap but critics argue the bill's language is "extremely vague."
Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Shunichi Suzuki speaks during the party's meeting on political system reform in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 4, 2026
LDP considering cutting 45 proportional representation seats in Lower House
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is said to be seeking consensus within the party on reducing Lower House seats through cuts to proportional representation seats.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks at a Lower House plenary session in Tokyo on Wednesday. Takaichi has described the supplementary budget as being designed to ¡°minimize risks¡± from the increasingly uncertain situation in the Middle East.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 4, 2026
Lower House passes ?3.11 trillion extra budget to ease Mideast war impacts
By Kenji Yoshida
The budget will create a new reserve fund to respond to developments in the conflict while aiding impacted energy users and replenishing the existing reserve fund.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is expected to meet with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in London on June 14 and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Rome the following day ahead of the Group of Seven summit in France.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 4, 2026
Takaichi eyes wider Europe trip during G7 summit in France
The prime minister aims to make stopovers in London and Rome ahead of the June 15-17 summit in Evian, eastern France.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi during a party leaders' debate at the Lower House of parliament in Tokyo on May 20. A pledge to cut the consumption tax on food products is quickly becoming a policy headache for the prime minister.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jun 4, 2026
Consumption tax cut is quickly turning into a headache for Takaichi
By Michael MacArthur Bosack
Translating the pledge from Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's administration into policy has proven more complicated than many lawmakers anticipated.
Michael Kovrig, a former diplomat of Canada, speaks in an online interview on May 22.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 3, 2026
Former Canadian diplomat detained in China says Japan needs to help constrain Beijing
By nico pandi
Countries like Japan, South Korea and Australia cannot counter China on their own, but with the U.S. and India, they could constrain Beijing's influence, Michael Kovrig says.
Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the Democratic Party for the People (DPP), delivers a question during a House of Representatives plenary session on May 25. Making the DPP a coalition member would make it easier for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (above left) to drive forward her legislative agenda.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 3, 2026
The LDP wants another coalition partner. Will it happen?
By Michael MacArthur Bosack
The Liberal Democratic Party floated the idea of inviting the Democratic Party for the People to join the ruling bloc.
Criminalizing flag vandalism is a key policy goal of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, and was included in the coalition agreement between the Liberal Democratic Party and the Japan Innovation Party.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 2, 2026
LDP approves bill criminalizing vandalism of national flag
Criminalizing flag vandalism is a key policy goal of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
A government draft calls for raising awareness of gender and sexual diversity in schools, local communities, households and workplaces.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 2, 2026
Japan eyes multilayered approach to promote LGBTQ+ awareness
The government presented the draft program to the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which approved it the same day.
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi speaks at the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit in Singapore on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 1, 2026
Japan taking cautious ¡ª if firm ¡ª approach to avoiding escalation with China
By Jesse Johnson
The absence of any direct mention of China in Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi's rebuttal against claims of a "new militarism" in Japan highlights the country's careful approach.
Niigata Gov. Hideyo Hanazumi won his third four-year term in Sunday's gubernatorial election.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 1, 2026
Hanazumi wins third term as Niigata governor
The 68-year-old governor was backed by the Liberal Democratic Party and the prefectural chapters of the Japan Innovation Party, the Democratic Party for the People and Komeito.
Junya Ogawa, leader of the Centrist Reform Alliance, attends a news conference on Friday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
May 31, 2026
Three Japanese opposition parties explore new alliance
With the current Diet session slated to end July 17, the three parties hope to confirm such plans by mid-July, according to sources.
Sakie Yokota, whose daughter Megumi was abducted in 1977 by North Korea, speaks, as Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi listens at a rally in Tokyo on Saturday to seek the immediate return of all Japanese abductees by North Korea.
JAPAN / Politics
May 31, 2026
Takaichi asks North Korea for summit to solve abduction issue
After taking office last October, the Japanese prime minister has been repeatedly expressing her willingness to resolve the issue.
Kazuhiko Shigetoku, Lower House parliamentary affairs chief of the Centrist Reform Alliance (center, left), and Yoshitaka Saito, Upper House parliamentary affairs chief of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (center, right), meet in parliament on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 30, 2026
Japan ruling and opposition parties at odds over extra budget
The budget committees of both the upper and lower chambers will each spend one day deliberating the extra budget for the fiscal year that started in April.
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi speaks to reporters as New Zealand defense chief Chris Penk (left) and Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles listen on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit in Singapore on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 30, 2026
Mogami frigate talks anchor first Japan-Australia-N.Z. trilateral defense chiefs¡¯ meeting
By Gabriel Dominguez
The three nations' first such meeting signaled the emergence of a new regional security format as they explore a three-way expansion of Tokyo's Mogami-class frigate program.
Yawata Mayor Shoko Kawata recently announced that she will take maternity leave, making her the first sitting mayor in Japan to do so.
JAPAN / Politics
May 29, 2026
Meet the Japanese mayor seeking to normalize maternity leave in public office
By Mai Yoshikawa
Shoko Kawata discusses balancing pregnancy with her duties ¡ª and the reaction that followed her announcing she would take leave before and after childbirth.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. before a meeting at the Akasaka Palace state guest house in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 28, 2026
Japan and Philippines agree to elevate ties to new level amid China concerns
By Gabriel Dominguez and Jesse Johnson
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi also said they would begin formal negotiations on a key intelligence-sharing pact.
The Osaka Municipal Assembly passes a proposal on Wednesday to establish a statutory council to discuss what has become known as the Osaka metropolis plan.
JAPAN / Politics
May 28, 2026
Osaka Municipal Assembly approves proposed council to discuss metropolis plan
The council may hold its first meeting as soon as next month if its establishment is greenlit at the prefectural assembly's plenary meeting next Wednesday.
Itsunori Onodera, the Liberal Democratic Party's tax chief, on Wednesday presented a draft outline for providing additional benefits for households with children during a meeting of lawmakers.
JAPAN / Politics
May 28, 2026
Lawmakers eye extra benefits for child-rearing households
A bipartisan group of lawmakers is looking into increasing take-home pay for low- and middle-income workers by adjusting the amount of benefits according to income.
Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako welcome Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos during a welcome ceremony at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 27, 2026
Japan welcomes Philippines¡¯ Marcos at Imperial Palace
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s visit is the first state guest visit to Japan by a Philippine president since 2015.

A bleak prognosis for Japan¡¯s demographic future
Japan¡¯s population decline continues to accelerate despite some modest positive signs, highlighting the need for broader social, economic and cultural changes to raise the birth rate.
How Japan created its naphtha supply bottleneck
Japan received 93% of its oil via the Strait of Hormuz prior to the Feb. 28 start of the Iran war.
Japan likely sold Treasurys to fund yen intervention
Vice Finance Minister for International Affairs Atsushi Mimura speaks to reporters in Tokyo on May 1 following reports of Japan's possible intervention in the currency market.
Is an honorable U.S. surrender to Iran inevitable?
An F/A-18E Super Hornet launches from the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea on Feb. 15, shortly before the start of hostilities on Feb. 28.
J-pop group Arashi takes its final bow at Tokyo Dome
J-pop group Arashi ended its long career with a final nationwide tour and the last concert took place in Tokyo on May 31.
How Japan created its naphtha supply bottleneck
Japan received 93% of its oil via the Strait of Hormuz prior to the Feb. 28 start of the Iran war.
¡®Fujiko¡¯ transforms a mother¡¯s resilience into festival gold
¡°Fujiko¡± stars Yuki Katayama (left) as a scrappy single mother who fights for her autonomy in 1970s and ¡¯80s Japan.
Japan should prepare for an intense typhoon season this year, experts say
Elevated water levels are seen along the Tama River in Kawasaki's Tama Ward as Tropical Storm Jangmi brought heavy rain and strong winds to the Kanto region Wednesday.
The LDP wants another coalition partner. Will it happen?
Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the Democratic Party for the People (DPP), delivers a question during a House of Representatives plenary session on May 25. Making the DPP a coalition member would make it easier for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (above left) to drive forward her legislative agenda.
Japan¡¯s Cannes moment signals a new global push
Tao Okamoto (left) and Virginie Efira (right) shared the Cannes Film Festival¡¯s best actress honor for their roles in Ryusuke Hamaguchi¡¯s ¡°All of a Sudden,¡± a coproduction between Japan, France, Belgium and Germany.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Community programs and tracking systems are expanding across Japan as local governments search for ways to prevent dementia-related disappearances.
He told his wife he was ¡®coming home.¡¯ Then he disappeared.
By Alex K.T. Martin

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