Tokyo, April 24 (Jiji Press)–Starting July, Japan will lower application fees for 10-year passports to around 9,000 yen. At a plenary session Friday, the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of the Diet, the country’s parliament, passed into law a bill to

Tokyo, April 24 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s core consumer price index in March rose 1.8 pct from a year earlier, marking the 55th straight month of increase, the internal affairs ministry said Friday. The core CPI, which excludes volatile fresh food prices, stood at

Tokyo, April 24 (Jiji Press)–Mine-Akiyoshidai, a karst plateau in western Japan, has been designated as a UNESCO Global Geopark. The designation, decided by the executive board of the specialized U.N. agency, was announced by Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and

New York, April 23 (Jiji Press)–Signatories to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty need to make concessions to avoid failing to adopt an outcome document at a review conference for the third straight time, Izumi Nakamitsu, U.N. high representative for disarmament affairs, said in

Tokyo, April 24 (Jiji Press)–Honda Motor Co. has said it will terminate its automobile sales in South Korea at the end of this year. The Japanese company, which made the announcement Thursday, aims to concentrate its business resources on projects to enhance

Tokyo, April 24 (Jiji Press)–The Japan Innovation Party, the junior member of Japan’s ruling bloc, has proposed reducing House of Representatives seats by 45, all from the proportional representation system. The JIP presented the plan at a working-level meeting with the Liberal

Paris, April 23 (Jiji Press)–The French Foreign Ministry on Thursday welcomed Japan’s lifting of its ban on exports of lethal weapons earlier this week. The move by Japan will contribute to the safety of people and the maintenance of sovereignty in Europe

Nagoya, April 24 (Jiji Press)–Employees of three major Japanese nonlife insurers seconded to Toyota Motor Corp. improperly took internal data out of the automaker from around 2016 to 2025, Toyota has said. Among the internal data were organizational charts and meeting summaries

Tokyo, April 24 (Jiji Press)–The older sister of former Japanese death-row inmate Iwao Hakamata has reiterated her criticism of the government over a planned revamping of the country’s retrial system. A draft of the Justice Ministry’s bill to amend the criminal procedure

Sao Paulo, April 23 (Jiji Press)–Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday that she has agreed with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to export 1 million barrels of Mexican crude oil to Japan. The move is expected to help Japan, which relies on

Tokyo, April 24 (Jiji Press)–The impact of surging prices of fuel for power generation reflecting the ongoing Middle East crisis may “fully start to appear” in electricity bills for July or August, Japanese power industry leader Nozomu Mori has said. Meanwhile, Mori,

New Delhi, April 23 (Jiji Press)–The Indian government on Thursday welcomed Japan’s decision to revise the operational guidelines for its three principles on defense equipment transfer to allow the export of lethal arms. “Defense and security cooperation forms an important pillar of

(Adnkronos) – Italy “strongly supports the continuing negotations between Israel and Lebanon on extending a 10-day truce in the war with Iran-backed group Hezbollah, which is due to expire on Sunday, foreign minister Antonio Tajani has told the Senate upper house of

Tokyo, April 23 (Jiji Press)–KDDI Corp. said Thursday that it will launch a service in late May that will relay emergency messages sent from outside the coverage area of its mobile base stations via Space X’s Starlink satellite communication network. The new

Tokyo, April 23 (Jiji Press)–Supermarket sales in Japan in fiscal 2025 rose 2.1 pct from the previous year on a same-store basis, up for the sixth consecutive year, the Japan Chain Stores Association said Thursday. Sales at all stores in the year

Tokyo, April 23 (Jiji Press)–Supermarket sales in Japan in fiscal 2025 rose 2.1 pct from the previous year on a same-store basis, up for the sixth consecutive year, the Japan Chain Stores Association said Thursday. Sales at all stores in the year

(Adnkronos) – Italy’s government keeps up “frank and direct” dialogue with Israel and is not afraid to disagree with the Jewish state, foreign minister Antonio Tajani said Thursday, describing the war-razed Palestinian coastal enclave of Gaza as “an open wound” and “a

(Adnkronos) – Italy’s government keeps up “frank and direct” dialogue with Israel and is not afraid to disagree with the Jewish state, foreign minister Antonio Tajani said Thursday, describing the war-razed Palestinian coastal enclave of Gaza as “an open wound” and “a

(Adnkronos) – A state judge has blocked the new electoral map of Virginia from taking effect, declaring all votes cast in Tuesday’s referendum, won by the Democrats, “invalid”. The ruling was applauded by the Republican national committee, which accused Democrats of “attempting

(Adnkronos) – The written procedure launched yesterday by Coreper to agree on the amendment to the MFF 2021-27 regulation, necessary for the 90 billion loan to Ukraine, and for the twentieth package of sanctions against Russia for the war against its neighbor

(Adnkronos) – The son of the last shah, Reza Pahlavi, was hit by an unspecified red liquid upon leaving a press conference in Berlin. According to Sky News, an unknown person threw a red substance at him, described by witnesses as tomato

(Adnkronos) – The Pentagon denies the news reported by the Washington Post, according to which it will take six months to clear the Strait of Hormuz. In a statement, the chief spokesman for the Department of War, Sean Parnell, said that “the

Tokyo, April 23 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese transport ministry plans to create a system that would pass on part of sustainable aviation fuel, or SAF, costs to air travelers. Based on discussions by a panel of relevant experts, the ministry plans to map

Oita, April 23 (Jiji Press)–A district court in southwestern Japan on Thursday dismissed a damages claim by people with disabilities who said that the unmanned operations of stations by Kyushu Railway Co., or JR Kyushu, violated their freedom of movement. “It cannot

Tokyo, April 23 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Finance Ministry on Thursday proposed a drastic reduction in medical school enrollment, considering an expected surplus of doctors due to the country’s declining population. At a meeting of the Fiscal System Council, an advisory panel to the

(Adnkronos) – Premier Giorgia Meloni has welcomed the European Court of Justice’s Advocate General Nicholas Emiliou’s opinion that the tranfer of migrants to reception and expulsion centres built in Albania under a contested 2023 deal with Italy “is compatible with European Union

Tokyo, April 23 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s House of Representatives on Thursday passed a bill to establish a national intelligence council designed to strengthen the government’s intelligence capabilities. At a plenary meeting of the lower chamber of the Diet, or the country’s parliament, the

Tokyo, April 23 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi did not visit Tokyo’s war-related Yasukuni Shrine during its three-day spring festival, which ended Thursday. Economic growth strategy Minoru Kiuchi was the only cabinet member confirmed to have visited the Shinto shrine during

Tokyo, April 23 (Jiji Press)–The operation rate of ethylene production facilities in Japan fell 7.1 percentage points from the previous month to a record low of 68.6 pct in March, the Japan Petrochemical Industry Association said Thursday. The decline came as many

Tokyo, April 23 (Jiji Press)–Daito Trust Construction Co. is considering entering the accommodation-type postpartum care business by utilizing condominiums managed by its group, Jiji Press learned Thursday. Daito Trust will begin a trial in May, in collaboration with With Midwife Inc., which