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April 14, 2026
 

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DIET

Opposition parties are demanding Cabinet approval for exports of highly lethal weapons and for first-time projects.
JAPAN
Apr 13, 2026
Opposition calls for prior notification to parliament over arms exports
The opposition parties also demand Cabinet approval for exports of highly lethal weapons and for first-time projects.
The Commission on the Constitution in the House of Representatives holds its first debate of the current Diet session, on Thursday at the Diet building.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 10, 2026
Ruling bloc proposes constitutional amendment drafting panel
The plan to introduce an article on national emergencies "has reached a stage to hammer out a draft at long last," Yoshitaka Shindo of the LDP said.
The government is set to delay the submission to parliament of a bill aimed at amending the country's retrial system.
JAPAN
Apr 9, 2026
Government to delay submission of retrial system reform bill
The move came as the government sees the need to take more time for coordination.
Kazuhiko Shigetoku, parliamentary affairs chief of the opposition Centrist Reform Alliance, speaks at a party meeting in the Diet building on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 9, 2026
Parties call for extra budget amid concerns over energy crisis
There are concerns that currently available funds this may be insufficient if the conflict in?Iran is prolonged and continues to disrupt global energy supplies.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi at the Prime Minister's Office ahead of a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday. The government has submitted a bill to the Lower House to introduce fines for serious violations of the personal information protection law.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 8, 2026
Japan to fine repeat violators of personal info law
The government hopes the move will have a deterrent effect by making clear to businesses that violations could incur economic penalties.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi during the Upper House budget committee meeting at parliament in Tokyo on Tuesday
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 7, 2026
Japan¡¯s fiscal 2026 budget passes Upper House
The ?122.3 trillion budget is the largest ever, reflecting Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's goal of an expansionary fiscal policy.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks at the Lower House plenary session on Thursday as the bill to upgrade the nation¡¯s intelligence framework was put to debate.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 6, 2026
Japan¡¯s much-needed intel debate could cost Takaichi political points
While the Liberal Democratic Party will not likely face major obstacles in the intelligence debate, it still could weigh down Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's administration.
Democratic Party for the People leader Yuichiro Tamaki speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 6, 2026
Opposition Democratic Party for the People eyes change in strategy
The Democratic Party for the People's influence has diminished due to the Liberal Democratic Party's landslide victory in the February Lower House election.
The Diet building in Tokyo in February
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 3, 2026
91²Ö¿â budget likely to be enacted as early as Tuesday
The ruling bloc is looking to get the budget through the Upper House on Tuesday, but opposition parties have called for four rounds of intensive deliberations.
Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa speaks during an interview at the Diet building on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 3, 2026
CRA leader Ogawa calls for full merger with CDP and Komeito
"Prolonged stagnation ... could sink them together," Junya Ogawa said, referring to the three Japanese opposition parties.
Yoshihiko Isozaki (right), the Liberal Democratic Party's Diet affairs chief in the Upper House, and his Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan counterpart, Yoshitaka Saito, attend talks at the Diet building on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 2, 2026
LDP abandons fiscal 2026 budget passage this week
Members of the LDP and the CDP agreed to hold a deliberation session on the bill Friday, effectively putting a vote off until next week.
Former Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno (left) addresses a meeting of the Liberal Democratic Party's project team as it discusses making damaging the national flag a crime, at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 1, 2026
LDP divided over move to criminalize desecration of 91²Ö¿â flag, sought by JIP
While some party members have called for a bill to be enacted during the current session of parliament, others express concern over freedom of expression.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks at a session of the Lower House Budget Committee in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 30, 2026
91²Ö¿â parliament passes emergency ?8.56 trillion stopgap budget
Lawmakers across party lines were forced to resort to the temporary measure for the first time in 11 years.
Members of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan attend its regular party convention on Sunday in Tokyo.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2026
CDP stops short of specifying when to merge into CRA
A draft of the CDP's campaign policy had included a plan to make the decision in June 2027, after unified local elections earlier that year.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during an Upper House Budget Committee session on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 29, 2026
Some LDP members eye passing fiscal 2026 budget on April 7
The government and ruling parties aim to get the budget bill through parliament next week, but the opposition camp is demanding "sufficient" deliberations.
Until last year¡¯s extraordinary parliament session, when the ruling bloc lacked majorities in both chambers, Democratic Party for the People leader Yuichiro Tamaki positioned his party as an opposition group capable of delivering policy results.
JAPAN
Mar 24, 2026
DPP struggles with reduced presence after election
The opposition party's strategy of negotiating for concessions, rather than taking a confrontational stance against the government, is stalling.
Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama answers questions during an Upper House plenary session on Monday. Katayama said Tuesday that a provisional budget would be compiled to prepare for unexpected events, while noting that passing the fiscal 2026 budget bill by the end of fiscal 2025 remains "necessary."
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 24, 2026
Preparations begin for stopgap budget in case fiscal 2026 bill slips deadline
The prime minister is still aiming for the fiscal 2026 budget to be passed this month, but appears to be showing flexibility as ruling parties lack an Upper House majority.
The Bank of Japan building in Tokyo. The House of Representatives has confirmed the government's nominations of 22 people at 11 institutions.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 19, 2026
Japan Lower House OKs two reflationists as BOJ policymakers
The House of Councillors is expected to confirm the batch of nominations on Monday.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi heads to attend a Lower House Budget Committee meeting at parliament in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Mar 18, 2026
Takaichi vows to tell Trump what Japan ¡®can and cannot do¡¯ in Middle East
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi was set for a summit in Washington with U.S. President Donald Trump later this week that will be a test of her mettle amid the war in Iran.
Asked at a House of Councilors' Budget Committee meeting on Monday whether her administration would consider a law revision to allow a female emperor, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said it was "too early to have specific discussions" about imperial succession beyond Prince Hisahito, who is second in line to the throne.
JAPAN
Mar 17, 2026
Takaichi says she ¡®respects¡¯ panel proposals regarding imperial succession
The panel has proposed having female imperial family members keep their status after marriage, and adopting male members from the paternal line of former imperial family branches.
Jehovah's Witnesses followers sue Japanese government
According to court records, the plaintiffs include the Japanese branch of Jehovah's Witnesses in Ebina, Kanagawa Prefecture.
Debt-laden Japan should review spending on gender equality, survey finds
A woman holds a handheld fan bearing the image of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's wedding photo, during an election campaign event in Tokyo on Feb. 7.
Japanese researchers look at 800-year-old books and trees for signs of extreme solar events
A drawing of Fujiwara no Teika, known as a courtier, <i>waka</i> poet and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods
Japan freezes visa applications for foreign restaurant workers
Filipinos with specified skills qualifications learn how to prepare fish for sushi in Tokyo in 2022.
At Ueno Station, ¡®Freedom¡¯ restored
¡°Freedom,¡± a mural in JR Ueno Station, created in 1951, has been repaired three times, most recently in 2025.
Japan freezes visa applications for foreign restaurant workers
Filipinos with specified skills qualifications learn how to prepare fish for sushi in Tokyo in 2022.
Where Tokyo goes to sweat and soak
As Tokyo&#039;s public bathhouses age, many are embracing more contemporary aesthetics to stay relevant for a younger class of customer.
At Ueno Station, ¡®Freedom¡¯ restored
¡°Freedom,¡± a mural in JR Ueno Station, created in 1951, has been repaired three times, most recently in 2025.
Inside Iizukatei, a 200-year-old home turned boutique hotel in Tochigi
Recognized as a tangible cultural property in 2003, the former residence of the Iizuka family is now a boutique hotel in Nakagawa, Tochigi Prefecture.
Tokyo¡¯s sake calendar is filled to the brim
The recently concluded Sake Park invited younger brewers to make sake more approachable for attendees in their 20s and 30s.

Podcast

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

Longform

Projects like the BuddhaBot aim to re-create dialogue once lost to time, raising questions about whether AI can extend the teachings of Buddha or merely simulate them.
Can AI replace a priest? Japan¡¯s temples and shrines are testing the limits.
By Alex K.T. Martin

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