BOJ held record 52% of gov’t bonds in Dec. as it defended yield cap

Tokyo, 17 March, /AJMEDIA/ TOKYO -The Bank of Japan owned a record 52.02 percent of outstanding Japanese government bonds at the end of December, as the central bank was forced… Read more

South Korea seeks scientific analysis before Fukushima water release

Tokyo, 17 March, /AJMEDIA/ South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday called for Japan to conduct a scientific analysis before releasing treated radioactive water into the sea from the… Read more

Japan to crack down on crime rings that recruit via social media

Tokyo, 17 March, /AJMEDIA/ TOKYO – Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Friday ordered a crackdown on crime rings that use social media to recruit new members and task them… Read more

Australia to buy up to 220 Tomahawk missiles from U.S.

Tokyo, 17 March, /AJMEDIA/ CANBERRA Australia said Friday it is planning to buy up to 220 Tomahawk cruise missiles from the United States after the U.S. State Department approved the… Read more

Hotels in Kagawa urged not to request foreign residents’ ID

Tokyo, 17 March, /AJMEDIA/ TAKAMATSU – The government in Kagawa Prefecture has called on local hotel operators to stop asking foreign residents for identification when they check in, local officials… Read more

Japan sends missile units to southwestern island to face China threat

Tokyo, 17 March, /AJMEDIA/ NAHA – Japan on Thursday deployed Ground Self-Defense Force units including missile squads to a remote southern island near the disputed Senkaku islands and Taiwan, apparently… Read more

Baidu unveils ChatGPT-rival Ernie Bot; 650 companies sign up

Tokyo, 17 March, /AJMEDIA/ HONG KONG – Chinese search giant Baidu unveiled its artificial intelligence chatbot Ernie Bot, presenting its rival to the Microsoft-backed ChatGPT in a pre-recorded video presentation… Read more

Japan beats Italy 9-3 to reach World Baseball Classic semifinals

Tokyo, 17 March, /AJMEDIA/ TOKYO – Japan manager Hideki Kuriyama still gets a special tingle watching Shohei Ohtani. It’s been that way since Kuriyama managed the two-way star with the… Read more

Japan’s return to path of militarization dangerous, China says

Tokyo, 17 March, /AJMEDIA/ BEIJING – Japan has played up so-called “external threats” in recent years and greatly boosted its defense budget, and this tendency to return to the path… Read more

Japan, UK, Italy push joint fighter jet development by 2035

Tokyo, 17 March, /AJMEDIA/ Japan, Britain and Italy reaffirmed their commitment Thursday to push joint development of a next-generation fighter jet as a centerpiece of their increasingly close defense ties… Read more