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TOKYO
June 03, 2026
The Independent Voice in Asia
June 03, 2026
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A man looks a departures board showing a canceled flight to Okinawa after Tropical Storm Jangmi shut down the airport there as it moved toward mainland Japan, at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Monday.
JAPAN
At least 16 injured as Tropical Storm Jangmi threatens Kyushu
By Jessica Speed
The Meteorological Agency has warned of violent winds, high waves, storm surges, landslides, flooding and overflowing rivers in affected areas.
A man looks a departures board showing a canceled flight to Okinawa after Tropical Storm Jangmi shut down the airport there as it moved toward mainland Japan, at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Monday.
A model of an upgraded Mogami-class destroyer is displayed during the DSEI Japan exhibition at Makuhari Messe in Chiba last May.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Australian Mogami ships to have ‘core DNA’ of Japan versions, ADF chief says
By Gabriel Dominguez
The move could prove a boon for Japan's defense industry, as it would allow domestic firms to play crucial roles in the vessels' maintenance and repair throughout their lifespan.
Workers wearing protective suits walk inside the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, on Feb. 5.
JAPAN
Removal of nuclear fuel from Fukushima plant reactor pool begins
Radiation levels at the No. 2 reactor building are still high after the nuclear fuel in the reactor melted down in the March 2011 accident.
Tokyo's Shibuya Ward has begun handing out ¥2,000 ($12) fines to litterbugs.
JAPAN / Society
Shibuya begins handing out ¥2,000 fines for littering
By Jessica Speed
Patrol officers will now monitor the ward and collect the fine on the spot from anyone caught throwing away trash improperly, with cashless payments accepted.
Takanawa Gateway City is the centerpiece of East Japan Railway’s broader effort to redevelop what it calls the Greater Shinagawa Area into a major international business and transportation hub.
JAPAN / Greater Shinagawa Area
The rise of the managed city
By Elizabeth Beattie
Tokyo's newest megadevelopments aim to redesign urban life for an aging, increasingly diverse society
Takanawa Gateway City is the centerpiece of East Japan Railway’s broader effort to redevelop what it calls the Greater Shinagawa Area into a major international business and transportation hub.

JAPAN

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.
LDP approves bill criminalizing vandalism of national flag
Criminalizing flag vandalism is a key policy goal of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
Hebikubo Ginza street — now Sangen-dori street — is pictured in the 1930s, when Tokyo was rapidly urbanizing alongside the expansion of rail infrastructure.
The many lives of Shinagawa
By Alex K.T. Martin
A journey through the ancient settlements, ports, railways and redevelopments that shaped Tokyo's southern gateway.
Osaka police refer three to prosecutors over ’weight-loss’ drug Mounjaro
Takaichi administration considering 1% tax on food from next April
Bear goes on rampage in Japan, injuring four people
Ceremony set for November will mark Shuri Castle’s main hall being restored

BUSINESS

Japan bought about 1 million metric tons of bananas last year, making the fruit one of the country’s most important grocery staples.
Japan faces banana shortage as impact from Middle East conflict spreads
By Eru Ishikawa
The country ships in the tropical fruit while it's still green, then ripens it in rooms filled with ethylene, but supplies of the naphtha-derived gas are running low.
Visitors walk through the Oimachi Tracks development, one of several major projects tied to East Japan Railway’s efforts to transform southern Tokyo station districts into hubs for shopping, tourism and daily life.
JR East’s next stop? City building.
By Kazuaki Nagata
Faced with shrinking demand, the operator expands beyond transportation into land, commerce and large-scale redevelopment.
Incoming Tepco chair open to alliance partners outside of Japan
By Yusuke Maekawa
SMBC set to name first local exec as Indian unit head in expansion
By Saikat Das and Siddhi Nayak
Resona sets up team to address artificial intelligence security risks
Boston Consulting Group exec urges Japan to clarify purpose of investment

WORLD

U.S. President Donald Trump attends a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington on May 27. In a recent last-minute turnabout, Trump dropped the planned signing of a watered-down executive order on powerful AI models that called for voluntary industry controls on the technology.
As Trump resists curbs on AI, MAGA grassroots shows growing momentum against it
Some of Trump's most fervent supporters are skeptical of the new technology threatening to replace humans and upend society.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a ceremony at the Kremlin in Moscow on Monday.
Russia finance officials tell Putin war spending is unaffordable
Finance Ministry officials have grown increasingly concerned about the state of Russia's economy and state budget in recent months.
Nine dead, dozens wounded as Russia launches major attack across Ukraine
South Korea drops gender-neutral hospital room plan after backlash
Russian aircraft production surges as Putin pivots to drone war
Chinese labs with ties to military seeking Nvidia’s AI chips
By Maggie Eastland

Sports

Tigers players Seiya Kinami (left), Shota Morishita (center) and Seishiro Sakamoto pose for a selfie with Hanshin mascot To-Lucky following a win at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, on May 20.
Rob Fitts explores the hidden figures behind Japan’s baseball culture
By Jason Coskrey
A new book by Rob Fitts shines a light on the overlooked people behind NPB games, showing how Japanese baseball's atmosphere is built as much off the field as on it.
Diamondbacks bash three homers to take opener from Dodgers
Stephen Curry signs long-term sneaker deal with China’s Li-Ning
Serena Williams to return to tennis at Queen’s Club
By John WEAVER
Huge NFL deals send Garrett to Rams, Brown to Patriots

Opinion

Vietnamese President To Lam gives the keynote address during the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue security summit in Singapore on Friday.
Vietnam is Asia’s rising power to watch
Karishma Vaswani
According to the Lowy Institute's 2025 Asia Power Index, Vietnam recorded the second-largest increase in overall influence in the region.
The cultural component of national security
By Tetyana Berezhna — David Stephenson
The world’s food supply is under a quadruple attack
By Mark Gongloff
China’s long march to technological supremacy
By Johan Rockstrom and Inga Strumke
Pope Leo XIV’s defense of humanity
By Peter G. Kirchschlager

ENVIRONMENT

Everimpact’s Alain Retiere visits a project site in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture. Through a collaboration that also includes local foresters and Hitachi Systems, the team is striving to connect Japanese forestry with international carbon finance.
How carbon finance could give a boost to Japan’s ailing forestry industry
By Annelise Giseburt
The drop in value of forests has turned them into a burden, but one group hopes carbon credits could reverse that trend, while also helping the planet.
New gold rush threatens indigenous havens in Brazil’s Amazon
By Fran BLANDY
Trees taking drastic measures to survive climate-driven heat
By Sofia BOUDERBALA
Climate change fueling growth of antibiotic-resistant salmonella
By Karoline Kan
Record temps as spring heat wave bakes Europe

CULTURE

A staff member taking a printed newspaper out of the machine at the Kyoto Shimbun factory in Kumiyama, Kyoto Prefecture.
’AI simply can’t replicate it’: Japan embraces zine trend
By Natsuko Fukue and Atish Patel
Independent artist and writers have been turning ever more to self-published or handmade small print publications, reflecting a love of paper in the digital era.
New anime adapted for stage expands what 2.5D theater can be
By Alicia Haddick
Takanawa Gateway’s latest landmark is still working on its own story
By Zoria Petkoska
Wu-Tang Clan’s final tour stop highlights enduring Asian influences
By Kim Kahan
Japanese cellist Kitamura wins fifth prize in Brussels contest

LIFE

More than 500 plants are growing in Luftbaum's rooftop garden.
Five things to look out for while getting lost in Takanawa Gateway City
By Mark Thompson
It's not easy to navigate the sprawling new redevelopment complex in what JR East calls the Greater Shinagawa Area, but here are a number of themes to help guide you.
Rare Yamazaki whisky sells for record $1 million
By Weiwen Lin
The Frenchmen who gave sake a Champagne soul
By Weiwen Lin
A little bit of Japan’s infamously sticky soybeans goes a long way
By Simon Daly
’Geek’ hangout to tourist draw: Japan’s maid cafes
By Mathias Cena and Caroline Gardin

COMMUNITY

Members of the Kawasaki Foreign Resident Council discuss issues faced by foreign residents during a meeting on May 17.
As immigration rises, Kawasaki’s foreign council shows path toward inclusion
By Moe Shimizu
The council aims to improve the lives of foreign residents and foster a harmonious co-existence with native Japanese.
Sturdy Tanpopo is a ‘dandy lioness’
Anglophone bookworms unite across Japan
By Mike Fu
Fujisawa flashpoint: A mosque project stokes nativist fears
By Simon Scott and Ben Stubbings
Italian creatives find their niche in Japan
By Agnese Dionisio

Editors' Picks

JAPAN
Japan taking cautious — if firm — approach to avoiding escalation with China
By Jesse Johnson
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi speaks at the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit in Singapore on Sunday.
COMMUNITY
As immigration rises, Kawasaki’s foreign council shows path toward inclusion
By Moe Shimizu
Members of the Kawasaki Foreign Resident Council discuss issues faced by foreign residents during a meeting on May 17.
JAPAN
Mosque fire shows need for better communication with foreign residents
By Eric Johnston
Farooq Soban, a Pakistani resident of Ebetsu, Hokkaido, points to damage from a fire that destroyed a local mosque in the city, on April 29.
ENVIRONMENT
How carbon finance could give a boost to Japan’s ailing forestry industry
By Annelise Giseburt
Everimpact’s Alain Retiere visits a project site in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture. Through a collaboration that also includes local foresters and Hitachi Systems, the team is striving to connect Japanese forestry with international carbon finance.
JAPAN
Who are the former royals who may be reinstated to the imperial family?
By Kanako Takahara
Tsuneyasu Takeda, a member of one of the 11 former princely houses that were abolished after Japan's defeat in World War II, in 2006

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

JT Directory Service

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SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

New Logistics Consortium baton to accelerate trucking efficiency
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COMFACTS

TSUNAN SAKE BREWERY Wins Gold at the Tokyo Sake Challenge 2026 for Junmai Daiginjo “GO TERRACE”
TSUNAN SAKE BREWERY Wins Gold at the Tokyo Sake Challenge 2026 for Junmai Daiginjo “GO TERRACE”
TSUNAN SAKE BREWERY

WHAT’S TRENDING

JAPAN
Tropical Storm Jangmi set to lash wide area of Japan
By Jessica Speed
A Meteorological Agency official shows a satellite image of Tropical Storm Jangmi in Tokyo on Sunday.
JAPAN
At least 16 injured as Tropical Storm Jangmi threatens Kyushu
By Jessica Speed
A man looks a departures board showing a canceled flight to Okinawa after Tropical Storm Jangmi shut down the airport there as it moved toward mainland Japan, at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Monday.
COMMENTARY
Tokyo wants you to wear shorts to work. Say no.
By Gearoid Reidy
Tokyo’s push for cooler office attire has sparked backlash in Japan, where conservative workplace norms still shape office culture and critics say shorts and sandals do not belong in the workplace.
BUSINESS
Billionaire behind Japan’s tiny-room hotel empire bets on U.S.
By Momoka Yokoyama and Filipe Pacheco
A guestroom at an APA Hotel in Tokyo. APA built its name in Japan on a standardized formula: a long list of amenities packed into tight rooms engineered for efficiency.
JAPAN
Japan eyes first export of indigenous missile system amid closer ties with Philippines
By Gabriel Dominguez
Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro speaks during a group interview on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue security forum in Singapore on Sunday.