Japan
Japan powerbroker's surprise North Korea visit
Martin Fackler A political aide to the Prime Minister of Japan made a sudden, rare visit to North Korea on Tuesday. Japanese officials refused to say what he was doing there.
Japan vows to use force if Chinese land
Kyoko Hasegawa Eight Chinese government ships have entered Japanese territorial waters near disputed islands, the most in a single day since Tokyo nationalised part of the archipelago, the Japanese government says.
China's pollution blamed for Japan's dying trees
Martin Fackler The threat to forests of airborne pollutants crossing the East China sea is starting to be taken seriously in Yakushima.
Japan executes two gangsters on death row
Japan says it hanged two death-row inmates, in the first executions since a trio of convicted killers died on the gallows two months ago and drawing immediate protest from human rights groups.
Japan PM escapes injury in five-car crash
A limousine carrying Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been involved in a five-car pile-up at a toll gate in Tokyo but he escaped without injury.
Fears Xi's push on Japan poses showdown risk
John Garnaut BEIJING: China's aggressive pursuit of territorial claims against Japan in recent months is directly linked to the efforts of new leader Xi Jinping to rally the military around him, associates and...
Japan's PM defiant on island claim
THE Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, has vowed he will not tolerate any challenge to control over contested islands, after China's growing incursions into the area.
Kennedy in running for US ambassador to Japan
The daughter of the late president John F. Kennedy is said to be a leading candidate to become President Obama's nominee.
China, Japan on the brink
John Garnaut Chinese warships have pointed missile radars at Japanese military targets, Japan says.
Warships target Japan as standoff intensifies
John Garnaut CHINESE warships have aimed missile radars at Japanese military targets in what Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called ''a dangerous action that could lead to unforeseen consequences''.
Japan's PM condemns targeting of warship
John Garnaut BEIJING: The Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, has denounced China for a ''dangerous'' escalation of a stand-off in the East China Sea, after accusations that Chinese vessels had aimed missile...
China denies Japan's radar targeting claim
China called statements made by Japanese officials on the issue 'irresponsible'
Japan finds more ships in disputed waters
TOKYO: Four Chinese ships have been spotted in disputed East China Sea waters, Japanese officials say, as Tokyo considers releasing evidence of a Chinese frigate's alleged radar-lock incident.
Hurry up and die, Japan's deputy PM tells old folk
Julian Ryall in Tokyo Japan's deputy prime minister has been forced to apologise after suggesting that old people should "hurry up and die" to save the state the cost of providing them with medical care.
Japan halts Taiwanese activists' trip to islands
Daniel Ten Kate and Isabel Reynolds The latest confrontation over the islands claimed by Japan, China, and Taiwan.
Japan's new leader endorses nuclear plants
The newly elected prime minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe, said Sunday that he would seek to build nuclear reactors, reversing within a week in office a campaign pledge to move Japan away from nuclear...
Japan's PM may recast war apology
Barbara Demick, Beijing Newly installed Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says he will revisit a 1995 apology made by his nation's government for suffering caused in World War II.
Japan scrambles jets over disputed islands
Japan scrambles fighter jets after a Chinese state-owned aeroplane entered airspace over the Senkaku-Diaoyu islands, marking the latest escalation in the simmering dispute.
Anxious Japan tipped to swing back to the right
Justin McCurry Three years after it was kicked out of office in an election that was supposed to herald a new direction for the country, Japan's biggest conservative party is on the cusp of a return to power.
