Japan PM Shigeru Ishiba holds on to driver's seat despite bruising election setback
– Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has been dismissed as a seat-warmer, as he leads a minority government whose Cabinet ratings are in a perpetual slump since he took office in October 2024.
His ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) also suffered a historic rout at the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election on June 22. The poll is regarded as a bellwether for national politics, and a prelude to an Upper House election on July 20.
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Florida plans 'Alligator Alcatraz' migrant detention center
Florida began on Tuesday construction of a temporary migrant detention facility dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz" due to its remote location in the Everglades, a vast subtropical wetland teeming with alligators, crocodiles and pythons. Footage aired by a local NBC affiliate showed the start of construction on the site, which will feature large tents to house migrants and trailers for staff. The facility will have minimal security due to the natural barriers provided by the surrounding inhospitable marshy grasslands, a Florida official said last week. U.S. President Donald Trump, a Republican, has sought to ramp up the detention and deportation of migrants, saying it was needed after millions crossed the border illegally under Democrat Joe Biden. The number of people in federal immigration detention has risen sharply from 39,000 when Trump took office to 56,000 as of June 15, according to U.S. government data, and the Trump administration has pushed to find more space. The Florida facility, estimated to cost $450 million annually, could eventually house up to 5,000 people, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. In a video posted on social media last week, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said the site could hold up to an initial 1,000 people in 30-60 days. ICE on average pays $165 per day for a detention bed, according to agency budget documents. If the Florida facility eventually has capacity for 5,000 people, the cost would be $247 per day. DHS said it had set aside funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's shelter and services program to cover a "large part" of the cost of the detention center. The shelter funds, normally used in case of major disasters, were used by the Biden administration to reimburse New York City and other cities for housing newly arrived migrants. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Nigeria and Brazil sign $1 billion agreement to boost agriculture
A drone view shows ships and containers at the Port of Santos, in Santos, Brazil April 3, 2025. REUTERS/Amanda Perobelli/File Photo ABUJA - Nigeria and Brazil signed a $1 billion agreement on Tuesday to boost agriculture, food security, energy and defence in the West African nation, Nigeria's vice president Kasim Shettima said. Both countries aim to "deploy over $1 billion to deliver mechanised farming equipment, training, and service centres across Nigeria," Shettima said in a statement posted on X. Much farming in Nigeria is subsistence and land is owned by families or individuals which makes large-scale acquisition problematic. Nigeria also imports food for its 200 million plus population. "We are moving from subsistence to scale in agriculture, and in energy, we are taking long-overdue steps to attract serious investment into gas production, refining, and renewables," Shettima added. The agreements were signed in Abuja during a visit by Brazil's vice president Geraldo Alckmin to Africa's most populous nation. Shettima told his Brazilian counterpart that reforms embarked upon by President Bola Tinubu have helped reshaped Nigeria's economy. Nigeria is targeting a $1 trillion economy by 2030, with reforms to agriculture, energy, education, and public finance. The country has also asked banks to recapitalise to attract foreign investments. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

Straits Times
3 hours ago
- Straits Times
Early US assessment suggests strikes on Iran did not destroy nuclear sites, CNN reports
A satellite view shows an overview of Fordow underground complex, before the U.S. struck the underground nuclear facility, near Qom, Iran June 20, 2025. MAXAR TECHNOLOGIES/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo Early US assessment suggests strikes on Iran did not destroy nuclear sites, CNN reports WASHINGTON - An early intelligence assessment indicated that the U.S. military strikes on three of Iran's nuclear facilities last weekend did not destroy the core components of Tehran's nuclear program and likely only set it back by months, CNN reported on Tuesday, citing three people briefed on it. After days of deliberation, U.S. forces struck Iran's three main nuclear sites on Saturday. President Donald Trump said Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities had been completely and "totally obliterated," an assertion he has since repeated. While over a dozen bombs were dropped on two of the nuclear facilities, the Fordow Fuel Enrichment plant and the Natanz Enrichment Complex, they did not fully eliminate the sites' centrifuges and highly enriched uranium, CNN reported, citing people familiar with the early assessment. Citing two people familiar with the assessment, CNN reported that Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium had not been destroyed. It said the assessment was produced by the Defense Intelligence Agency - Pentagon's intelligence arm - and is based on a battle damage assessment conducted by the U.S. Central Command after the U.S. strikes. The report by the Defense Intelligence Agency estimated that the program was delayed less than six months, the New York Times said in another report. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed the CNN report in a social media post. "This alleged "assessment" is flat-out wrong and was classified as "top secret" but was still leaked to CNN," Leavitt said on X. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.