Tokyo, 21 October, /AJMEDIA/
Truss quits after just 6 chaotic weeks as British PM
British Prime Minister Liz Truss announced her resignation Thursday, just over six weeks into the nation’s top job after a political crisis caused by her economic plans increasingly undermined her premiership and authority.
Truss, Britain’s third female prime minister, said she is resigning as leader of the ruling Conservative Party to preserve economic stability, with a new leader expected to be chosen through a leadership contest by the end of next week.
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Blinken reiterates China’s plan to “speed up” Taiwan reunification
WASHINGTON – The Chinese government made a decision some years ago to seek to “speed up” the reunification with Taiwan, including through the possible use of force, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a recent TV interview.
The U.S. assessment of the timing of a potential attack by China against Taiwan has drawn renewed attention after Blinken said Monday, two days before the interview, that he believed Beijing was “determined to pursue reunification on a much faster timeline.”
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Japan reopens Kabul embassy after 1-yr closure
KABUL – Japan reopened its embassy in Kabul late last month after it had been closed for more than a year following the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan, as security in the Central Asian country has improved, diplomatic sources said Thursday.
Japan shut its embassy in the Afghan capital on Aug. 15, 2021, when the Taliban took control of the country and President Ashraf Ghani fled the country. The embassy staff were subsequently evacuated from Afghanistan and Japan temporarily moved its diplomatic operations to the Qatari capital of Doha.
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China boasts weaning 9 states away from Taiwan as diplomatic win
BEIJING – China on Thursday boasted that nine countries have switched their diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to Beijing in recent years, calling it a major outcome of its diplomatic “fight” under the leadership of President Xi Jinping.
Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu said at a press conference held on the sidelines of the ruling Communist Party’s key congress that China succeeded in “winning” the nine countries that had diplomatic ties with the self-ruled democratic island that Beijing regards as its own.
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Japan COVID cases rise 1st time in 2 months amid fears of new wave
TOKYO – The number of weekly COVID-19 cases in Japan increased for the first time in about two months, health ministry data showed Thursday, as some health experts warned that the country has already entered a new wave of infections.
All 47 prefectures except Okinawa reported a rise in the number of new cases over the week through Wednesday, at a time concerns are growing about an eighth wave of infections with the country opening its doors to overseas visitors, the vaccination rate plateauing and the movement of people continuing to increase.
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Japan dangles threat of “decisive” steps as yen slips past 150
TOKYO – Japan is ready to take “decisive” steps against volatile yen movements, Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said Thursday shortly after the currency slid past the 150 mark to the U.S. dollar for the first time since 1990, in his strongest warning yet of intervention.
The government is monitoring developments in the foreign exchange market “meticulously” with a high sense of vigilance, Suzuki told reporters, saying that excessive and rapid yen movements driven by speculators cannot be tolerated.
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Damages awarded to Japan’s #MeToo symbol over defamatory tweet likes
TOKYO – A Tokyo court on Thursday ordered ruling party lawmaker Mio Sugita to pay Shiori Ito, a journalist and symbol of Japan’s #MeToo movement, 550,000 yen ($3,700) in damages for clicking “like” on several tweets she said defamed her.
The ruling by the Tokyo High Court, which overturned a dismissal of the suit by the Tokyo District Court, marks the first time damages have been awarded for liking a defamatory post online, according to Ito’s lawyer.
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Unification Church asks ruling party members to promote its policies
TOKYO – Two affiliated groups of the Unification Church sought to persuade ruling Liberal Democratic Party members to agree on policies they wished to promote in exchange for political endorsement in past elections, lawmakers said Thursday.
Hideyuki Teshigawara, who heads the Unification Church’s reform promotion headquarters, admitted that one of its affiliated groups, the Federation for World Peace, attempted to encourage some LDP lawmakers to sign a document incorporating the policies it wanted to realize.