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☆ Japan Airlines first female CEO hopes more women make it to the top
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Hanako Montgomery | Helen Regan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Tokyo/Hong Kong CNN —Mitsuko Tottori admits Japan has much more to do to get people like her into the chief executive seat. Tottori was named as the first female president and chief executive of Japan Airlines (JAL) in January, crowning a career that began nearly 40 years ago when she joined the airline as a flight attendant. Tottori, pictured in 1985 using an in-flight phone, began her career as a cabin attendant at Japan Airlines. Japan Airlines' A350 airplane is on fire at Haneda international airport in Tokyo, Japan January 2, 2024. They really followed the instructions of the flight crew calmly, which I think was a big factor.

Persons: Mitsuko Tottori, ”, “, Tottori, Issei Kato, Shukor Yusof, Seijiro Takeshita, ’, ” Takeshita, — CNN’s Junko Ogura, Mayumi Maruyama, Juliana Liu Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Japan Airlines, JAL, “, CNN, University of Tokyo, Women’s Junior College, Boeing, Airbus, Haneda, Endau, ”, Japan Inc, University of Shizuoka, ANA, All Nippon Airways Locations: Tokyo, Hong Kong, Japan, Tottori, “ Japan, Nagasaki, Haneda, Osaka, Asia, Myanmar, Fiji

Kishida made the remarks days ahead of his Wednesday meeting with Biden in Washington, where he will also address a joint session of Congress and participate in the very first trilateral summit between Japan, the United States and the Philippines. Partnership with Japan has long been central to US strategy in the Indo-Pacific, but the defense relationship has expanded under Kishida, who has raised Japan’s profile in global and regional security. That move is not without controversy, especially in China and other parts of Asia that suffered hugely under Japan’s World War II era militarism. Building Japan’s deterrence and response capability is also “essential” for the alliance with the United States, he argued. Since taking office, Kishida has also positioned Japan as a partner to the US not only in Asia, but more globally.

Persons: Fumio Kishida, Joe Biden, ” Kishida, ”, Kishida, “, Biden, Donald Trump, White, Trump, Kim Jong Organizations: Tokyo CNN, CNN, Biden, Partnership, East China, South Korea –, North, South Locations: Japan, Ukraine, East Asia, Tokyo, United States, Washington, Philippines, Russia, South, Taiwan, China, Asia, East, South China, South Korea, America’s, Europe, North Korea, Moscow, Pyongyang

☆ After Ohtani and Kikuchi, Japan high school toasts latest baseball prodigy
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-30 | by ( Hanako Montgomery | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Banners herald Los Angeles Dodgers megastar Shohei Ohtani and Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Yusei Kikuchi, their faces greeting every visitor. But now, Hanamaki Higashi High School celebrates a new prodigy in its midst – one whose high-school records beat even those of Ohtani and Kikuchi. “The presence of legends like Shohei Ohtani and Yusei Kikuchi were a huge factor as to why I got into baseball – I fell in love with the sport,” Sasaki told CNN. Now, with the emergence of three baseball stars from Hanamaki Higashi, Sasaki’s teammates swell with pride at the honor of walking the same corridors. Despite its status as a public school with a modest baseball budget, Hanamaki Higashi has impressively produced three outstanding athletes.

Persons: Shohei, Yusei Kikuchi, Hanamaki, Kikuchi, Rintaro Sasaki doesn’t, ” Sasaki, Sasaki, he’ll, ”, Hiroshi, Ohtani, Shohei Ohtani, “, Taichi Murakami, Hanamaki Higashi, it’s Organizations: Japan CNN —, Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays, School, baseball, CNN, Stanford University in, Stanford, Los Angeles Angels, Angel, Kyodo, baseball’s, Dodgers, American League Locations: Hanamaki, Japan, Iwate prefecture, Stanford University in California, America, “, Anaheim , California, Higashi, Hanamaki Higashi

☆ Mount Fuji introducing visitor cap and entry fee to prevent overcrowding
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Lilit Marcus | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Mount Fuji, a UNESCO World Heritage site and an icon of Japan, is putting new regulations in place for climbers amid concerns about overcrowding. “By strongly promoting comprehensive safety measures for climbing Mount Fuji, we will ensure that Mount Fuji, a treasure of the world, is passed on to future generations,” said Koutaro Nagasaki, governor of Yamanashi Prefecture. “In order to revive traditional mountain climbing from the foot of Mount Fuji, we will gain a detailed understanding of the Fuji-ko and Oshi culture that supported Mount Fuji worship. This 2023 photo shows a crowd of visitors beginning their Mount Fuji ascents. Mathiad Cena/AFP/Getty ImagesAccording to prefectural data, five million people hiked Mount Fuji in 2019, a rise of three million from 2012.

Persons: ”, Koutaro Nagasaki, Mathiad Cena, “ Overtourism, Masatake Izumi, Tomoyo Takahashi, Takahashi, Hanako Montgomery Organizations: CNN, Mount, UNESCO, Fuji, Mount Fuji, Heritage Fuji Division, CNN Travel Locations: Japan, Yamanashi, Yamanashi Prefecture, Kasai, Kyoto, Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima

☆ Japan’s economy slips into recession due to weak consumer spending
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Hanako Montgomery | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

Tokyo CNN —Japan’s economy has contracted unexpectedly because of weak domestic consumption, pushing the country into recession and causing it to lose its position as the world’s third largest economy to Germany. Gross domestic product shrank at an annualized pace of 0.4% in the last three months of 2023, the Cabinet Office said on Thursday. It was the second consecutive quarter of negative growth. Private consumption — which accounts for half of the economy — declined by 0.2%, as Japanese consumers battled higher prices for food, fuel and other goods. This is a developing story and will be updated.

Organizations: Tokyo CNN, Gross Locations: Germany

As one of the first countries to the west of the international dateline, Tokyo is a full 17 hours ahead of Las Vegas. The two friends who secured tickets to Saturday’s last show said they started out as NFL fans and became “Swifties” after Kelce and Swift’s romance began. Roke Hiro (left) say they are originally NFL fans and became Swifties after Kelce and Swift began dating. Prior to her win of the coveted award, Swift was tied with Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder and Paul Simon, who along with her all previously won album of the year three times. Speaking at the Tokyo concert on Wednesday, she said she had planned to announce the new album at the Grammys if she won anything – and announce it in Tokyo if she didn’t win.

Persons: Taylor Swift, Swift, Travis Kelce, that’s, Kelce, Hiro, Swifties, Roke Hiro, Saki Toi, Ari Novianti, “, ”, Levi Myers, Seiko Inoue, Tricia Mears, ” “ Travis Kelce, He’s, ” Tricia Mears, CNN Swift, Welch, Patrick Smith, Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, she’s, – Organizations: Tokyo CNN —, Bowl, Kansas City Chiefs, dateline, Chicago Bears, NFL, CNN, Chiefs, AFC, Baltimore Ravens, T, “, Department Locations: Tokyo, United States, Japan, Las Vegas, Saitama, Indonesia, Kansas, Baltimore , Maryland

“What we’ve seen with the Taylor Swift tour is something that we’ve not really seen before,” said Richard Clarke, an analyst at investment firm Bernstein. Taylor Swift performs at the Staples Center in Los Angeles in 2015. From Taylor Swift On her birthday in 2019, Swift shared this photo of herself as a child. From Taylor Swift A 13-year-old Swift sings the National Anthem before an NBA game in Philadelphia in 2002. John Mabangalo/Pool/Getty Images Swift performs during a sold-out show at New York's Madison Square Garden in 2009.

Persons: Tokyo CNN —, Taylor, Travis Kelce, Taylor Swift, we’ve, ”, Richard Clarke, Bernstein, “ It’s, TikTok she’d, curating, Kane Ishiyone, Swift, –, Ishiyone, Richard A, Brooks, Clarke, “, that’s, Christopher Polk, Scott, Andrea Swift, Jesse D, Tim McGraw, Kevin Winter, John Mabangalo, Chad Batka, Bryan Bedder, Larry Busacca, Miley Cyrus, Lucas Till, Hannah Montana, Sam Emerson, Everett, Jonas, Frank Masi, I'm, West, Beyoncé, Jeff Kravitz, Lucy Nicholson, Christopher Morris, Josh Haner, Kevin Mazur, James Taylor, Charles Sykes, Matt Sayles, Mark J, Terrill, Invision, Jimmy Fallon, Douglas Gorenstein, Nicholas Harvey, Kanye West, Kim Kardashian, Laraine Newman, Bill Hader, Taran Killam, Kristen Wiig, Keenan Thompson, Fred Armisen, Kerry Washington, Betty White, Bradley Cooper, Dana Edelson, Andrea, Ethan Miller, Tim Boyles, Selena Gomez, Jordan Strauss, Mike Coppola, John Shearer, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Brandon Urie, Katy Perry, Republic Records Jack Antonoff, Aaron Dessner, Will Heath, Seth Wenig, Terence Rushin, David Eulitt, Mitsumasa Etou, Akazawa, haven’t, It’s, Michele Bullock Organizations: Tokyo CNN, People, Kansas City Chiefs, Taylor, Getty, Super Bowl, Chicago Bears, dateline, Vegas, Staples Center, NBA, of Country, Garden, New York Times, New York's Rockefeller Center, Walt Disney Co, Kanye, Madison, MTV, NBC, ACM, Academy of Country, New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art, Universal Pictures, Coachella, Republic Records, New York University, Arrowhead, Chiefs, NET, Tokyo City University, Fuji, Tokyo, Reserve Bank of Australia, Reuters Locations: Tokyo, Las Vegas, Philippines, Fukuoka, Japan, Germany, Austria, Netherlands, Shibuya, AFP, Asia, Washington, Las Vagas, Los Angeles, West Reading , Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, New York, Auburn Hills , Michigan, Newark , New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Frankfurt, London, Arlington , Texas, Tampa, Chicago, Atlanta, Kansas City , Missouri, Asia Pacific, Singapore, Australia, East Coast

☆ Japanese trading giant Itochu to cut ties with Israeli defense firm over Gaza war
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-06 | by ( Juliana Liu | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Hong Kong/Tokyo CNN —One of Japan’s biggest trading firms, Itochu, has decided to end its partnership with a major Israeli defense company due to the war in Gaza. The sprawling conglomerate, best known outside Japan for its Family Mart chain of convenience stores, said its aviation unit will cut ties with Elbit Systems, which bills itself as Israel’s largest defense contractor, by the end of February. Itochu Aviation, Elbit Systems and Nippon Aircraft Supply signed a cooperation agreement in March 2023, months before war broke out between Israel and Gaza. Itochu, which reported revenues of $104 billion in 2023, has faced small-scale, student-led protests in Tokyo against its partnership with Elbit since January. Its Family Mart chain has also been the target of calls for boycotts in Muslim-majority Malaysia over the agreement.

Persons: ”, Itochu, Israel, Tsuyoshi Hachimura, Hachimura, Bezhalel Machlis, Hanako Montgomery, Heather Chen Organizations: Tokyo CNN, Elbit Systems, International Court of Justice, United Nations, Japan’s Foreign Ministry, CNN, ICJ, Israel, Itochu Aviation, Nippon Aircraft Supply, Elbit, Japan’s Defense Ministry, Self - Defense Force, Israel Defense Forces Locations: Hong Kong, Tokyo, Gaza, Japan, Israel, South Africa, Itochu, Malaysia

☆ Japan’s ‘Moon Sniper’ robot explorer resumes operations on lunar surface
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Hanako Montgomery | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Tokyo CNN —Japan’s “Moon Sniper” robotic explorer is back in action, the country’s space agency said Monday, after a power issue forced the spacecraft to shut down upon landing on the moon 10 days ago. The agency shut off the lunar explorer to conserve its battery, saying it would automatically be restarted if its solar panel began generating power as the angle of the moon changed. Its mission can be considered at least a “minimum success” because it achieved a precise and soft lunar landing using optical navigation, the agency has said. Multiple space agencies and countries have attempted moon landing missions over the past year, leading to a historic first as well as some failures. The new lunar space race is partly driven by countries’ desire to access water trapped as ice in permanently shadowed regions at the lunar south pole.

Persons: “, Smart Lander, SLIM, China — Organizations: Tokyo CNN, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA, Soviet Locations: Japan, , India, United States, Soviet Union, China

☆ Japan plans to raise the age of consent from 13 years old in an overhaul of sex crime legislation
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( Isobel Van Hagen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Japanese government has proposed changing its consent age from 13 to 16 years old. If passed, the country will no longer have the lowest age of consent of all G7 nations. The overhaul of Japan's sex crime legislation comes after multiple acquittals in sexual abuse cases. The overhaul of the country's sex crime legislation proposed last week comes after multiple acquittals in sexual abuse cases and high-profile allegations that led to protests and public outrage in 2019. The age of consent is 16 years old in the UK and most states in the US.

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