Tokyo, 11 September, /AJMEDIA/
Japan to remove entry cap in “not-so-distant future,” official says
TOKYO – Japan is reviewing its border control policy of keeping daily entries below 50,000 and will remove it in the “not so distant future,” a government spokesman said Sunday.
The government will simultaneously relax other restrictions including a visa requirement and the requirement to travel on a package tour when it completely lifts the daily cap on overseas arrivals, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Seiji Kihara said in a Fuji Television program.
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Voting begins to pick Okinawa gov. with focus on U.S. base, economy
NAHA, Japan – Voting for the Okinawa gubernatorial election began Sunday with the focus on a controversial plan to relocate a U.S. Marine Corps base within Japan’s southernmost island prefecture and economic recovery from the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Pre-election polls suggested incumbent Denny Tamaki, 62, supported by opposition parties, was leading the race, trailed by former Ginowan Mayor Atsushi Sakima, 58, who has the backing of the ruling coalition. Former lower house lawmaker Mikio Shimoji, 61, was a distant third.
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10-yr. anniv. of China-Japan Senkaku dispute comes amid high tensions
TOKYO – Sunday marked 10 years since Japan’s move to put the China-claimed Senkaku Islands under state control, and comes at a time when Tokyo says it is “extremely concerned” over Beijing’s ongoing activities around the contested islets.
The Senkakus, called Diaoyu by China, have been problematic for bilateral ties since the Japanese government purchased three of the islets a decade ago, including the biggest island Uotsuri, from a Japanese individual.
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Japanese emperor plans to attend Queen Elizabeth’s state funeral
TOKYO – Emperor Naruhito plans to attend Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral in Britain, Japanese government sources said Saturday, in a rare move for the monarch who traditionally does not make appearances at funerals at home or abroad.
The sources said that depending on her health, Empress Masako, who has long been battling a stress-induced illness, is also expected to attend the ceremony. According to local media in Britain, the funeral is expected to take place around Sept. 19.
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Baseball: Shohei Ohtani earns 12th win in blister-shortened outing
HOUSTON – Shohei Ohtani set a pair of personal MLB pitching milestones Saturday as he extended his career-high win total to 12 in the Los Angeles Angels’ 6-1 win over the Houston Astros.
Ohtani (12-8) was lifted with a blister on the middle finger of his pitching hand after five effective innings in which he allowed one run and six hits in a 79-pitch outing at Minute Maid Park.
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FOCUS: Japan’s nationalization of Senkakus stirs caution on China’s threats
TOKYO – Japan’s nationalization of the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea has sparked security tensions in the region for the past 10 years, prompting Tokyo, known for its pacifist Constitution, to be acutely wary of military threats from Beijing.
Japan has administered the Senkakus, but China has claimed the uninhabited islets since the early 1970s, calling them Diaoyu, after studies by the United Nations indicated there may be potentially lucrative gas reserves around them.
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Deaflympics to come to Japan for 1st time in 2025
VIENNA – The International Committee of Sports for the Deaf on Saturday named Tokyo the host of the 2025 Summer Deaflympics.
The Olympics for deaf athletes will be staged in Japan for the first time after the only bidder to host the next quadrennial event was chosen at the ICSD Congress.
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FOCUS: How Japan’s Justice Ministry led moves to accept Ukrainian evacuees
TOKYO – Japan has welcomed more than 1,800 evacuees since Russia’s war against Ukraine began over six months ago, in an uncharacteristic move for a country with a typically poor record accepting people seeking asylum.
On March 1, just five days after the launch of the invasion, Justice Minister Yoshihisa Furukawa told senior immigration officials and others in his office that Japan “has a responsibility to act in this historic moment.”
