Tokyo, 6 May, /AJMEDIA/
Japan to ease COVID border controls like G-7 states in June: Kishida
TOKYO – Japan will further ease in June border controls implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and bring them on par with other Group of Seven nations, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Thursday.
The infection situation has been stabilizing in Japan and the government will consult with public health experts before reviewing the country’s COVID-19 measures “in stages,” Kishida said at a press conference in London, without giving further details.
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Japan, U.K. agree on defense pact amid China’s rise in Indo-Pacific
LONDON – Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson agreed in principle Thursday on a defense cooperation pact as part of their efforts to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific, in a veiled counter to an increasingly assertive China.
A reciprocal access agreement, when signed, would enable faster deployment of their troops and allow them to engage in joint training and disaster relief efforts. Japan recently signed a similar RAA with Australia.
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Japan lawmakers reaffirm peace, stability important in Taiwan Strait
TAIPEI – A delegation of youth division members of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party reaffirmed the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait in terms of the security of Tokyo and Taipei in talks Thursday with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen.
Diet member Norikazu Suzuki of the delegation expressed opposition in the talks to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and told Tsai that Japan is against any unilateral change to the status quo by force, describing Taiwan and Japan as “two countries” geographically close to each other.
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Japan minister shows negative view over banning Russian oil imports
WASHINGTON – Japan’s industry minister showed a negative view Wednesday about keeping pace with the European Union over its plan to ban oil imports from Russia as an additional sanction against Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine.
“Japan has limited resources and it is difficult for us to immediately align ourselves” with the EU, Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Koichi Hagiuda told reporters in Washington after meeting with senior U.S. officials.
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Search for missing people on sunken boat extended to disputed isle
SAPPORO – The Japan Coast Guard on Thursday extended its search to the sea around Russian-controlled, Japan-claimed Kunashiri Island off Hokkaido for 12 people missing after a tour boat sunk in late April, with Moscow permitting the move based on a bilateral accord on maritime accidents.
The Japanese coast guard notified Russia on April 25 of its intention to expand the search to the area near Kunashiri, one of four islands at issue in a territorial row that has prevented the two nations from signing a post-World War II peace treaty. Russia’s coast guard agreed to allow Japanese vessels into the area in line with the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue.
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Japan launches food export initiative with Thailand
BANGKOK – Japan launched a trading platform Thursday in Bangkok to increase exports of Japanese foodstuffs to Thailand and further promote Japanese cuisine there.
The establishment of the Japan Food Export Platform came as Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government plans to increase the country’s annual export of agricultural, forest and fishery products to 5 trillion yen ($38.58 billion) by 2030 from over 1 trillion yen in 2021.
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M4.8 quake jolts areas near Tokyo, no tsunami
TOKYO – An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.8 jolted Ibaraki, Tochigi and Gunma prefectures near Tokyo on Thursday, but no tsunami occurred, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
The 6:42 p.m. quake, with the focus at a depth of about 40 kilometers in southern Ibaraki Prefecture, was also felt in central Tokyo.
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Jean-Pierre to be 1st black female White House press secretary
WASHINGTON – U.S. President Joe Biden said Thursday that White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki will be succeeded by Karine Jean-Pierre, currently deputy press secretary, making her the first black woman to serve in the high-profile post.
Psaki has served as press secretary since Biden took office in January last year, carrying out daily briefings to the press. She will depart from the White House on May 13.
