(Adnkronos) – Sweeping reforms of the foreign ministry from 1 January are aimed at dealing with ‘increasingly fierce’ global competition, “unprecedented” trade tensions, a plethora of conflicts and “disruptive” artificial intelligence, whose emergence is impacting people’s daily lives, foreign minister Antonio Tajani

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–A bill related to a cut in the number of seats in Japan’s House of Representatives is unlikely to be enacted during the ongoing extraordinary session of the Diet, or parliament, which ends Wednesday. While senior officials of

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–The Confederation of Japan Automobile Workers’ Unions compiled a draft proposal on Friday to seek a monthly pay scale hike of at least 12,000 yen in next year’s “shunto” spring wage negotiations. JAW, which consists of labor unions

(Adnkronos) – European nations wants an end to the devastating war in Ukraine that began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022, but they “must be part of” any peace settlement, Italy said on Friday.  “We want to work

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–Nippon Steel Corp. plans to invest 6 trillion yen in facilities and business in fiscal 2026-2030, including in United States Steel Corp., which was acquired by the Japanese steelmaker in June, according to its new management plan released

Kyoto, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–Early cancer genomic panel testing aimed at detecting genetic changes in cancer cells significantly increases patients’ chances of receiving effective therapies and reduces mortality risk, according to a study released recently by Kyoto University Hospital. One in four

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–The Bank of Japan is likely to raise its policy interest rate to around 0.75 pct from around 0.5 pct at present at its next monetary policy meeting scheduled next week, Jiji Press learned Friday. It will be

Kyoto, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–“Kuma,” meaning bear, was picked Friday as the kanji character of the year in Japan, amid a series of wild bear attacks across the country. It was the first time that kuma has been selected as the kanji

Osaka, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Fair Trade Commission on Friday urged Osaka-based logistics business Senko Co. to prevent any recurrence of its practices that allegedly violated the subcontract law. The FTC found that the core unit of Senko Group Holdings Co. requested

(Adnkronos) – Foreign minister Antonio Tajani, who leads Italy’s conservative Forza Italia party, is holding talks in Heidelberg, Germany, on Friday with Chancellor Friedrich Merz and European People’s Party president Manfred Weber on ways to boost European innovation.  The talks are taking

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–The Bank of Japan is set to raise its policy interest rate from the current 0.5 pct to 0.75 pct at the next monetary policy meeting, Jiji Press learned Friday. It will be the BOJ’s first rate hike

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force’s Akizuki destroyer conducted a joint exercise with the U.S. Navy’s aircraft carrier George Washington and its Dewey destroyer in the Pacific off the southern coast of Japan’s Kanto region this week, the MSDF

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–Almost half of Japanese nationals feel familiar with loneliness and isolation, a government survey showed Friday. According to the Cabinet Office’s first public opinion survey on the issue, 48.4 pct of respondents answered they feel “familiar” or “rather

(Adnkronos) – Webuild achieves an “A” rating, the highest assigned by CDP’s (formerly Carbon Disclosure Project) Climate Change 2025 program, entering the prestigious “A-List” which includes only 4% of the over 24,800 companies evaluated by the program worldwide. The result confirms the

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–Japan issued tsunami advisories for the Pacific coast of Hokkaido and Aomori, Iwate and Miyagi prefectures from northern to northeastern Japan after another offshore earthquake shook the regions late Friday morning. All the advisories were lifted at 2:05

Washington, Dec. 11 (Jiji Press)–The United States will launch a coalition with Japan and other countries to strengthen supply chains for critical minerals and artificial intelligence, the State Department said Thursday. The Pax Silica partnership is a “U.S.-led strategic initiative to build

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s industry ministry said Friday that its affiliated National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, or AIST, will establish a research and development base for advanced semiconductors in Chitose, Hokkaido, northernmost Japan. The facility will be available

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–Petroleum Association of Japan President Shunichi Kito has warned against a misconception that gasoline prices will plummet due to the year-end abolition of the provisional gasoline tax surcharge. There has been “no turmoil” during the phased increase in

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth agreed in their phone talks on Friday that their countries will maintain close communication and coordination following China’s use of military radar on Japanese Air Self-Defense Force

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government and ruling parties are considering finalizing details of a plan to address tax revenue gaps between Tokyo and other local governments at the end of next year, people familiar with the matter said Thursday. Government

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–Japan issued tsunami advisories for the Pacific coast of Hokkaido and Aomori, Iwate and Miyagi prefectures from northern to northeastern Japan after another offshore earthquake shook the regions late Friday morning. Around 11:44 a.m., a quake with an

Stockholm, Dec. 11 (Jiji Press)–The two Japanese winners of this year’s Nobel prizes expressed deep emotions as they recalled Wednesday’s award ceremony at a press conference in Stockholm the following day. “It was a great honor,” said Shimon Sakaguchi, a 74-year-old distinguished

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–Japan issued tsunami advisories for the Pacific coast of Hokkaido and Aomori, Iwate and Miyagi prefectures from northern to northeastern Japan after another offshore earthquake shook the regions late Friday morning. Around 11:44 a.m., a quake with an

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–The number of “kodomo shokudo” community cafeterias that provide free or low-cost meals mainly to needy children in Japan has reached a record 12,601 this fiscal year, according to a survey by a nonprofit organization. The total rose

Hachinohe, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–A Japan Meteorological Agency advisory on possible future earthquakes, issued in the wake of Monday’s powerful quake off Aomori Prefecture, northeastern Japan, has led to cancellations of hotel bookings and suspensions of fishing operations. The advisory, which will

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–Over 1,000 municipalities in Japan have ordinances in place calling for measures to support crime victims, the central government said Friday. The number of such municipalities rose by 236 from a year earlier to 1,083 as of April.

Washington, Dec. 11 (Jiji Press)–The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday avoided taking sides over rising tensions between Japan and China over Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks on a possible Taiwan contingency. Trump “believes that the United States should

Tokyo, Dec. 12 (Jiji Press)–The Bank of Japan’s “tankan” quarterly survey for December, due out Monday, is expected to show narrow improvements in business sentiment among both major Japanese manufacturers and nonmanufacturers, estimates by 11 private think tanks have shown. The think

(Adnkronos) – For the first time, Thailand confirms civilian casualties due to the new escalation on the border with Cambodia. Three civilians were killed in the clashes, said Thai Defense Ministry spokesman Surasant Kongsiri to The Nation newspaper. Nine soldiers died, according

Tokyo, Dec. 11 (Jiji Press)–Japan Innovation Party (Nippon Ishin no Kai) leader Hirofumi Yoshimura on Thursday sounded negative about ending his party’s coalition with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party even if a bill regarding a reduction in House of Representatives seats is