TOKYO (AP) — Japan's prime minister on Monday pledged to double the number of COVID-19 booster shots being delivered on a daily basis across the country, as his government faces criticism for a delayed rollout of vaccines.
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — President Joe Biden will meet virtually with Prime Minister Kishida Fumio of Japan on Friday, as the omicron variant of the coronavirus continues to surge around the world.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan says it has retracted a ban on new incoming international flight bookings to defend against the new variant of the coronavirus only a day after the policy was announced, following criticisms that it was an overreaction.
TOKYO (AP) — In his first big test as Japanese prime minister, Fumio Kishida's ruling party is expected to lose seats in Sunday's national parliamentary elections, while still maintaining a majority.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s new prime minister donated ritual offerings Sunday to a Tokyo shrine viewed by Chinese and Koreans as a symbol of Japanese wartime aggression, though he did not make a visit in person.
TOKYO (AP) — In his first policy speech, new Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida promised Friday to strengthen the country's response to the coronavirus pandemic in case of another resurgence and revive its battered economy while bolstering defenses against threats from China and North Korea.
TOKYO (AP) — Newly elected Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said he will dissolve the lower house next week in preparation for Oct. 31 elections as he seeks a fresh mandate to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, the sagging economy and security threats from China and North Korea.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan fully came out of a coronavirus state of emergency for the first time in more than six months as the country starts to gradually ease virus measures to help rejuvenate the pandemic-hit economy as the infections slowed.
TOKYO (AP) — Former Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida won the governing party's leadership election on Wednesday and is set to become the next prime minister, facing the tasks of reviving a pandemic-hit economy and ensuring a strong alliance with Washington to counter growing regional security risks.
TOKYO (AP) — The stakes are high as Japanese governing party members vote Wednesday for four candidates seeking to replace Yoshihide Suga as prime minister. The next leader must address a pandemic-battered economy, a newly empowered military operating in a dangerous neighborhood, crucial ties with an inward-focused ally, Washington, and tense security standoffs with an emboldened China and its ally North Korea.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s government announced Tuesday that the coronavirus state of emergency will end this week to help rejuvenate the economy as infections slow.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said the emergency will end Thursday and virus restrictions will be eased gradually “in order to resume daily lives despite the presence of the virus." He said the government will create more temporary COVID-19 treatment facilities and continue vaccinations to prepare for any future resurgence.
TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were mostly higher Monday, but fears of further waves of coronavirus outbreaks were clouding the economic outlook for the region, tempering the rally.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.3% to 30,35.62.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Meeting with the leaders of India, Australia and Japan, President Joe Biden declared Friday that the U.S. and other members of the Indo-Pacific alliance known as “the Quad" are showing they “know how to get things done" in an increasingly complicated corner of the globe.
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — At a U.N. General Assembly meeting packed with global gloom, Japan's outgoing leader highlighted what he cast as a moment of inspiration: the Tokyo Olympics, controversially held in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic.
TOKYO (AP) — Four candidates vying to lead Japan's governing Liberal Democratic Party — and replacing outgoing Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga — held their first main debate on Saturday, discussing plans to tackle key issues such as China, the COVID-19 measures, the pandemic-hit economy and climate change and energy.
TOKYO (AP) — Official election campaigning started Friday for the next head of Japan's governing Liberal Democratic Party. The winner will almost certainly become leader of the world’s No. 3 economy, shaping key political, military and security roles in the region.
TOKYO (AP) — The race is on for the next Japanese prime minister.
Official election campaigning began Friday for the new head of Japan’s governing Liberal Democratic Party, who typically becomes the national leader because of the party's control over parliament.
Asian shares were mixed on Friday after a hodge-podge of economic data led Wall Street to close mostly lower.
Benchmarks rose in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Seoul but fell in Shanghai and Sydney.
Across the region, concerns over prolonged outbreak of coronavirus have weighed on sentiment.
TOKYO (AP) — Outgoing Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is expected to travel to Washington next week to join three other leaders from the so-called Quad nations at an in-person summit of the grouping.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is set to host the leaders of Australia, India and Japan for a four-way meeting later this month to strategize about COVID-19, climate change and other issues.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s former top diplomat and candidate to head its ruling party said Monday that he supports boosting Tokyo's defense budget amid China's growing assertiveness in the region.
Ex-foreign minister Fumio Kishida proposed raising defense spending, possibly above Japan's longstanding cap of 1% of gross domestic product.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s outspoken vaccinations minister, Taro Kono, announced Friday that he is running to become the head of the governing party, who usually is chosen prime minister, and pledged to be reform-minded and gets things done.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Thursday announced an extension of a coronavirus state of emergency in Tokyo and 18 other areas until the end of September, saying healthcare systems remain under severe strain, and that the continuing challenges of fighting the virus had led to his decision not to seek another term.
TOKYO (AP) — One of the main candidates to be Japan's next prime minister said Wednesday the country needs a new type of capitalism to address income and social gaps caused by the pandemic. Another, a protege of former leader Shinzo Abe, promised a stronger Japan that can cope with enemy attacks, natural disasters and pandemics.
Stocks were mixed in Asia on Wednesday after Wall Street closed mostly lower as traders returned from the Labor Day holiday.
Shares rose in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Shanghai but fell in Seoul and Sydney.
TOKYO (AP) — A Tokyo court on Tuesday sentenced to four years in prison a former top government official for taking bribes from a gambling company, in a high-profile case that has added to the political woes of Japan's outgoing prime minister ahead of elections this year.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan's outspoken Cabinet minister in charge of vaccinations, Taro Kono, has the most popular support to become the country's next leader, according to opinion polls released Monday, as potential candidates jockey to replace outgoing Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.
TOKYO (AP) — Amid growing criticism of his handling of the pandemic, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Friday he won’t run for the leadership of the governing party later this month, paving the way for a new Japanese leader after just a year in office.
TOKYO (AP) — U.S. climate envoy John Kerry met in Tokyo on Tuesday with Japan's top diplomat to push efforts to fight climate change ahead of a United Nations conference in November.
Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi highlighted what he said was the importance of getting other major carbon emitters, especially China, to cooperate.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami in his monthly radio show Sunday criticized the country’s prime minister, saying Yoshihide Suga has ignored a growing COVID-19 surge and public concerns about the pandemic.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan expanded its coronavirus state of emergency on Wednesday for a second week in a row, adding eight more prefectures as a surge in infections fueled by the delta variant strains the country’s health care system.
TOKYO (AP) — A close ally of Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga was defeated in a high-profile mayoral election in Yokohama, Suga's home turf, in a sharp setback for the already unpopular leader ahead of general elections later this year.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s exports in July jumped 37% from a year ago, the government said Wednesday, highlighting an overseas recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.
Imports also grew, rising 28.5%, according to Finance Ministry data, for the second straight month of a trade surplus for the world’s third largest economy.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga officially expanded and extended the nation's coronavirus state of emergency on Tuesday, as government advisers recommended legal changes that would allow penalties for violations.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s coronavirus state of emergency will continue through Sept. 12 rather than finishing at the end of this month as initially planned, the government decided Monday
With the virus continuing to spread in the country, the state of emergency for Tokyo, Osaka, Okinawa, and three other regions which began in July will be extended and expanded.
TOKYO (AP) — The Tokyo Olympics have ended, but it's still vacation season in Japan, and many people are ignoring government pleas to avoid travel and stay away from bars and restaurants even as the coronavirus spikes at record levels.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan's prime minister thanked people for helping the country safely hold the Olympics despite the difficulties of the coronavirus pandemic.
He noted the Games were delayed by a year and held under tight restrictions, but "I believe we were able to fulfill our responsibility as the host nation,” Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said, thanking the people for their understanding and cooperation.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s government is introducing a contentious new policy in which coronavirus patients with moderate symptoms will isolate at home instead of in hospitals, as new cases surge in Tokyo to record levels during the Olympic Games.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan expanded a coronavirus state of emergency to four more areas in addition to Tokyo on Friday following record spikes in infections as the capital hosts the Olympics.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga declared an emergency in Saitama, Kanagawa and Chiba, near Tokyo, as well as in the western city of Osaka, effective Monday until Aug.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan's capital, Tokyo, reported its highest number of new coronavirus infections on Tuesday, days after the Olympics began. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga urged people to avoid non-essential outings, but said there was no need to consider a suspension of the Games.
TOKYO (AP) — Will it be a success? A failure? Or none of the above?
It will take something much more nuanced than those basic notions to assess the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Olympics when they wrap up in two weeks.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Monday he has decided to grant official medical benefits to 84 Hiroshima residents who were exposed to highly radioactive “black rain” after the city's atomic bombing.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan's prime minister met with Pfizer's CEO in an unusually high-profile setting Friday to make sure the drugmaker would deliver the COVID-19 vaccine as promised by this fall as the nation faces supply concerns and a growing outbreak.
TOYKO (AP) — Jill Biden embarked on her first solo international trip as first lady, leading a U.S. delegation to the Olympic Games in Tokyo, where the coronavirus is surging and COVID-19 infections have climbed to a six-month high.
TOKYO (AP) — The world needs to see that Japan can stage a safe Olympics, the country’s prime minister told sports officials Tuesday ahead of the Tokyo Games.
Tens of thousands of athletes, officials, games staff and media are arriving in Japan amid a local state of emergency and widespread opposition from the general public.
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean President Moon Jae-in has decided not to visit Japan for the Tokyo Summer Olympics, citing a failure to set up a summit with Japan's prime minister that would produce meaningful results in improving relations.
Leaders of Asian Pacific nations agreed on Friday to step up COVID-19 vaccination sharing as China said it has pledged $3 billion in international aid to support coronavirus response efforts in developing countries.
HIROSHIMA, Japan (AP) — IOC President Thomas Bach got a mixed reception in his visit on Friday to Hiroshima to mark the first day of the so-called Olympic Truce.
Such a one-day visit by a dignitary would ordinarily be routine, but the Olympics are set to open next week with Tokyo under a state of emergency and with a substantial part of the population opposed to the Games being held during the COVID-19 pandemic.
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — U.S. President Joe Biden, his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and Russian President Vladimir Putin are among Pacific Rim leaders gathering virtually to discuss strategies to help economies rebound from a resurgent COVID-19 pandemic.
TOKYO (AP) — Tokyo reported its highest number of new COVID-19 cases in almost six months on Wednesday, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government said with the Tokyo Olympics opening in just over a week.
The surging numbers came out on the same day that International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach paid a courtesy call in Tokyo on Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.