Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako have been deeply concerned about the extensive damage caused by a major earthquake that struck Kumamoto Prefecture on Tuesday, the Imperial Household Agency said Thursday. According to an aide, the Imperial couple

New York, July 30 (Jiji Press)–The dollar plunged below 160 yen for the first time in about one and a half months in New York on Thursday. The drop came after the dollar had traded above 163 yen earlier Thursday, its highest

(Adnkronos) – Russia has added Telegram founder Pavel Durov to a blacklist of “terrorists and extremists,” days after declaring its intention to arrest him on charges of allowing his platform to be used by Ukrainian intelligence. Earlier this week, the FSB security

(Adnkronos) – The ten-year prison sentence for French citizen Martin Ryan in Azerbaijan has been confirmed on appeal. He was found guilty last March of espionage in favor of France, charges rejected by Paris. The trial against Ryan, a businessman who had

(Adnkronos) – Three Wildberries warehouses have been hit in recent hours by Ukrainian drones in Russia. In addition to centers in the Pensa and Udmurtia regions, Kyiv’s forces today also targeted a hub of the Russian e-commerce giant in the Perm region,

(Adnkronos) – Only 17% of German citizens believe that the state is able to fulfill its obligations, according to the latest survey commissioned by the Federation of Civil Servants (Dbb, Deutscher Beamtenbund und Tarifunion), Germany’s largest public sector union. In previous years,

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Fukuoka, July 30 (Jiji Press)–It remained unclear Thursday when services will be restored on all sections of the Kyushu Shinkansen bullet train line in southwestern Japan after a suspension caused by a powerful earthquake that struck Kumamoto Prefecture in the region Tuesday.

Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Thursday officially announced a plan to cut the consumption tax rate on food to 1 pct for two years starting next April. The government plans to lower the food tax rate to

Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Princess Aiko will visit the western Japan prefectures of Osaka and Shiga on Aug. 20-21, the Imperial Household Agency said Thursday. The daughter of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako will attend a special exhibition on “Girl with

Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–Three Japanese opposition parties–the Centrist Reform Alliance, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and Komeito–will aim to reach a conclusion at the end of August over their proposed integration, it was learned Thursday. A draft interim plan on

Brussels, July 30 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government signed an agreement Thursday to become an associated country of the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation program. The move is aimed at encouraging Japanese companies, universities and research institutions to take part in

Kudamatsu, Yamaguchi Pref., July 30 (Jiji Press)–A consortium mainly comprising Japan’s Hitachi Ltd. and Toshiba Corp. on Thursday held a ceremony to mark the first shipment of a new high-speed train to Taiwan. Featuring orange and black lines on a white body,

Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has displayed unwavering commitment to reducing the consumption tax rate to 1 pct for food for two years beginning next April as a measure to fight inflation. On Thursday, the prime minister instructed

Taipei, July 30 (Jiji Press)–Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te will donate 200,000 Taiwan dollars, or about 1 million yen, to support areas affected by Tuesday’s powerful earthquake that struck Kumamoto Prefecture in southwestern Japan, the presidential office said Thursday. The presidential office also

Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–The Japan Sumo Association said Thursday that it will double the top-division championship prize to 20 million yen and raise wrestlers’ pay and grand tournament ticket prices from January 2027. The winner’s purse in the makuuchi division will

Yokohama, July 30 (Jiji Press)–A third-party investigation by three lawyers has confirmed workplace harassment by the sitting mayor of Yokohama, south of Tokyo, according to their report submitted to the city on Thursday. The report found that Takeharu Yamanaka, 53, yelled at

Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Thursday officially announced a plan to cut the consumption tax rate on food to 1 pct for two years starting next April. Takaichi said that efforts to effectively reduce the tax rate

Kumamoto, July 30 (Jiji Press)–The number of deaths confirmed after Tuesday’s powerful earthquake in Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, reached 34 as of 3 p.m. on Thursday, while five people were seriously injured, according to the prefecture’s disaster response headquarters. The full extent

Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–Defamatory social media posts targeting Japanese athletes were more prevalent during the FIFA World Cup than during the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, the Japanese Olympic Committee and the Japanese Paralympic Committee said Thursday. About 1 pct of posts related

Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s National Personnel Authority is expected to recommend raising monthly salaries for national government employees by around 3.5 pct on average in 2026, informed sources told Jiji Press on Thursday. The agency is also likely to recommend raising

(Adnkronos) – Thousands of people have been evacuated due to fires that have developed on the island of Crete and continued to rage, fueled by strong winds. Maria Lioni, deputy governor of the Rethymno region, told state television ERT, adding that “we

(Adnkronos) – The death toll from the violent earthquake that struck Japan has risen to 28, the government announced in an update released today, two days after the 7.1 magnitude tremor.  “The death toll is currently 28 people, including those whose deaths

(Adnkronos) – Five people have died due to powerful wind gusts – up to 100 kilometers per hour – which caused chaos in Rio de Janeiro and some areas of São Paulo State, disrupting the electricity grid and paralyzing traffic and public

(Adnkronos) – Bolivian prosecutors have issued an arrest warrant for former socialist president Evo Morales, accusing him of fomenting recent protests that have paralyzed the country.  The warrant is linked to an investigation into dozens of roadblocks erected during massive anti-government demonstrations

Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–Former Japanese Foreign Minister Takeaki Matsumoto died of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, at a Tokyo hospital Monday, his office said Thursday. He was 67. Matsumoto, who was a member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, retired from

(Adnkronos) – 650 people have been evacuated due to a fire that developed late Wednesday afternoon in France, in Brignoles, in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region. Aerial means used to fight the fire continued operations until nightfall, and their efforts – combined with

Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–NTT Docomo Financial Group Inc. plans to sell more banking and other financial functions to businesses, aiming to tap into customers of regional banks and other partners, CEO Takashi Hiroi said in an interview. The Japanese company, a

Tokyo, July 30 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi stressed on Thursday the significance of resuming a program for former residents of Russian-held northwestern Pacific islands to visit their ancestors’ graves there. The suspension of the program due to Russia’s invasion of

Yokohama, July 30 (Jiji Press)–A third-party investigation by three lawyers has confirmed workplace harassment by the sitting mayor of Yokohama, south of Tokyo, according to their report submitted to the city on Thursday. The report found that Takeharu Yamanaka, 53, yelled at