The Chinese government's crackdown is intensifying, so Japanese nationals living in China must take this ruling seriously and exercise greater caution.
© Asahi Shimbun
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Japan Today
2 hours ago
- Japan Today
Ishiba denies he has decided to quit
Japan's Prime Minister and President of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Shigeru Ishiba looks on after meeting with the party's executives at the LDP headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, July 23, 2025. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon By Tim Kelly, Satoshi Sugiyama and Leika Kihara Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba denied on Wednesday he had decided to quit after a source and media reports said he planned to announce his resignation to take responsibility for a bruising upper house election defeat. Asked about media reports that he had expressed his intention to step down as early as this month, the 68-year-old leader Ishiba told reporters at party headquarters on Wednesday: "I have never made such a facts reported in the media are completely unfounded." The reports came after Ishiba and Trump unveiled a trade deal on Tuesday that lowers tariffs on imports of Japanese autos and spares Tokyo from punishing new levies on other goods. Ishiba chose not to quit straight after the election to prevent political instability as the August 1 deadline for clinching the trade deal approached, a source close to the prime minister said, asking not to be identified because they are not authorised to talk to the media. Ishiba will announce his resignation next month, Japanese media reported earlier. His departure less than a year after taking office would trigger a succession battle within the ruling Liberal Democratic party as it contends with challenges from new political parties, particularly on the right, that are chipping away at its support. Among them is the "Japanese First" Sanseito far-right group which surged in Sunday's vote, growing its representation in the 248-seat upper house to 14 from one. The party has attracted voters with pledges to curb immigration, slash taxes, and provide financial relief to households squeezed by rising prices. Ishiba, a former defence minister who failed four times to win the party leadership, defeated hardline conservative Sanae Takaichi in his fifth attempt in a runoff last year. Whoever succeeds him as head of the LDP, which has ruled Japan for most of the post war period, would have to govern without a majority in either house of parliament following the government's lower house election defeat in October. Their immediate priority would be to secure support from enough opposition party lawmakers to win confirmation as prime minister. Any incoming leader is unlikely to call a general election straight away, in order to bolster the party's appeal before seeking a mandate from voters, the source said. © (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2025.
Japan Today
2 hours ago
- Japan Today
EU and Japan agree to work together to promote free trade and economic security
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, right, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, center, and European Council President António Costa, left, join hands prior a meeting at the prime minister's office Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Tokyo Japan. (David Mareuil/Pool Photo via AP) By MARI YAMAGUCHI Leaders of the European Union and Japan launched an alliance Wednesday aimed at boosting economic cooperation, defending free trade and countering unfair trade practices as the two sides face growing challenges from the United States and China. The agreement followed a meeting among European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President António Costa and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba. It comes just as Tokyo and Washington reached a new trade deal, which places 15% tariffs on Japanese cars and other goods imported into the U.S., down from an initial 25%. The leaders agreed to launch 'competitiveness alliance" aimed at stepping up trade, economic security and cooperation in innovation, energy and other areas, according to a joint statement released by the EU. The leaders also supported 'a stable and predictable rules-based free and fair economic order,' and reaffirmed the importance of Japan-EU cooperation to uphold multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization at its core, as well as with other multilateral cooperation efforts. The EU and Japan also agreed to strengthen defense industry cooperation and to start talks on an information security agreement. Japan and the EU have been stepping up their security and defense cooperation amid growing global tensions and conflicts, including Russia's war on Ukraine, conflicts in the Middle East and increasingly assertive China's military activity in Asia, recognizing that challenges in Europe and Indo-Pacific are inseparable. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Japan Today
2 hours ago
- Japan Today
Split Japan antinuke groups, Hidankyo unite for 80th A-bomb anniversary
Terumi Tanaka (3rd from L), co-chair of Nihon Hidankyo, Masashi Tani (2nd from L), secretary general of the Japan Congress Against A-and H-Bombs, and Masakazu Yasui (far R), secretary general of the Japan Council Against Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs, pose for a photo at a joint press conference in Tokyo on July 23, 2025. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo Two Japanese antinuclear groups that split during the Cold War issued a rare joint statement Wednesday to mark the upcoming 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, appealing for the people of Japan to carry the cities' message to the world. The statement by the Japan Congress Against A- and H-Bombs, known as Gensuikin, and the Japan Council Against Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs, known as Gensuikyo, was also cosigned by Nihon Hidankyo, Japan's leading group of atomic bomb survivors and the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. "I truly hope that this (collaboration) will become a turning point where Japan's movement can grow into a much larger one and expand to the world," Terumi Tanaka, co-chair of Nihon Hidankyo, said at a joint press conference held by the three groups in Tokyo. With the risk of nuclear weapons use rising globally, the three groups stressed that survivor testimonies remain one of the most powerful deterrents against the use of such weapons in war. Building on Hidankyo's Nobel Peace Prize recognition, the statement also urged the Japanese government to "break free" from the U.S. nuclear umbrella, and swiftly sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. "Despite atomic bomb survivors capturing the world's attention, the risk of nuclear weapon use continues to rise, making the role of Japan's antinuclear movement more critical than ever," the statement said, while criticizing the Japanese government's refusal to join the treaty as "eroding international trust." Japan's antinuclear movement began in 1954 following the Bikini Atoll incident, when a Japanese fishing boat was exposed to radiation from a U.S. nuclear weapon test. The first World Conference against A & H Bombs was held in Hiroshima in 1955. The movement later split in the 1960s over political differences, with Gensuikyo aligning with the Japanese Communist Party, which tolerated Soviet nuclear testing, and Gensuikin with the former Socialist Party and and trade unions, which opposed all nuclear testing regardless of country. While the world conference was held jointly from 1977 to 1985, Gensuikyo and Gensuikin have in recent years hosted separate events each summer in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. © KYODO
