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☆ Japan's Message for Donald Trump: Don't Cut a Deal With China
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +8 min

Trump, who reached a trade agreement with Beijing in 2019 that later expired, has not mentioned any potential deal with China during his campaign for the 2024 nomination. Two Japanese foreign ministry officials said they fear that Trump may be prepared to weaken U.S. support for nearby Taiwan in pursuit of a deal with China. A Trump aide told Reuters that no recent meetings have taken place between Trump and Japanese officials. "If he is going to cut a deal with China, Japan needs to try and get ahead of the curve and understand its potential role to support its interests in both the U.S. and in China," said Machida. Robert O'Brien, Trump's former national security adviser, also has connections with Japanese officials, two of the sources said.

Persons: John Geddie, Tim Kelly, Yoshifumi, America's, Donald Trump, Fumio Kishida, Joe Biden's, Trump, Xi, Kim Jong Un, they're, Ado Machida, Machida, Shinzo Abe, Aso, Japan's, Shigeo Yamada, Mike Pence, Jim Mattis, Mike Pompeo, Michael Green, Bill Hagerty, Yamada, Hagerty, Robert O'Brien, Trump's, O'Brien, Shigeru Kitamura, Biden, Tsuneo Watanabe, John Bolton, Watanabe, Yukiko Toyoda, Kaori Kaneko, Sakura Murakami, David Brunnstrom, Tim Reid, Ben Blanchard, Laurie Chen, Liz Lee, David Crawshaw Organizations: Trump, Republican, Group, North, Reuters, Fox News, U.S, Steel, Japan's Nippon Steel, U.S ., Liberal Democratic Party, . Studies, University of Sydney, Japan's U.S, Taiwan, Peace Foundation Locations: TOKYO, Japan, Asia, China, Beijing, Tokyo, Iowa, New Hampshire, U.S, Taiwan, Washington, Trump, Taipei

☆ U.S. Military in Japan to Deploy to Earthquake-Hit Area - Sources
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO (Reuters) - U.S. military forces in Japan are set to deploy to the earthquake-hit Noto peninsula to help with relief efforts, sources familiar with the matter said. Details of the mission are expected to be announced later on Tuesday, the sources said on condition of anonymity as the plans have not yet been made public. The quake is Japan's deadliest since 2016 when quakes in the southwestern region of Kumamoto claimed 276 lives. U.S. forces have been stationed in Japan since World War II, marking the country's biggest military presence abroad. (Reporting by Yukiko Toyoda, Nobuhiro Kubo, Tim Kelly, Kaori Kaneko; Writing by John Geddie; Editing by Michael Perry)

Persons: Yukiko Toyoda, Nobuhiro Kubo, Tim Kelly, Kaori Kaneko, John Geddie, Michael Perry Organizations: Authorities Locations: TOKYO, Japan, Noto, Kumamoto, U.S

But the $290 billion outlay comes without a parallel plan to prepare Yonaguni for a possible humanitarian crisis that residents like Sakihara say could quickly overwhelm their shores. Tokyo, they said, has no plan to deal with them, and locals' pleas for help have gone unanswered. A spokesperson for Japan's Cabinet Secretariat said that "if large numbers of refugees came to Japan, relevant government departments would work together to respond". Even if he had a refugee plan, Kishida would still face an obstacle: his contentious relationship with the Okinawa government that administers Yonaguni. NOT ENOUGH TO SHAREBack in Yonaguni, resident Satoshi Nagahama, 33, was surprised to learn the government had no humanitarian plan for refugees.

Persons: Sonkichi Sakihara, chancing, Kenichi Itokazu, Itokazu, Hirokazu Matsuno, Xi Jinping, Joe Biden, Lai Ching, Matsuno, Fumio Kishida, Kevin Maher, Maher, Yoshihide Yoshida, Japan's, shouldn't, Kishida, Denny Tamaki, it's, Hironobu, Satoshi Nagahama, Sakihara, Koji Sugama, Tim Kelly, Kaori Kaneko, Yukiko Toyoda, Ben Blanchard, Kentaro Sugiyama, David Crawshaw Organizations: Reuters Graphics Reuters, Reuters, U.S, Japan Coast Guard, Migration Policy Institute, Nations, NMV Consulting, State Department, Defense Forces, it's, University's Research, of Disaster Management, Thomson Locations: YONAGUNI, Japan, Vietnam, Taiwan, China, Beijing, Tokyo, Yonaguni, Taipei, Myanmar, Europe, East, Germany, Poland, Ukraine, Washington, East Asia, Okinawa

China detained the executive, named in several media reports as Hiroshi Nishiyama, on suspicion of espionage in March, and he was formally arrested last month. Japan's then foreign minister protested the executive's detention with his Chinese counterpart on a visit to Beijing in April. China's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Half the respondents in a recent survey of Japanese companies doing business in China said they would cut investments this year. It's a very difficult point in time to be navigating that as a decision maker, in business or politics," he said.

Persons: Fumio Kishida, Xi Jinping, Rahm Emanuel, Hiroshi Nishiyama, Japan's, Xi, Masashi Mizobuchi, Nishiyama, Takeshi Niinami, Niinami, Stefan Angrick, Yukiko Toyoda, Kiyoshi Takenaka, John Geddie, Sakura Murakami, Francis Tang, Laurie Chen, Antoni Slodkowski, Andrew Silver, Lincoln Organizations: Economic Cooperation, Kyodo, drugmaker Astellas Pharma, APEC, Reuters, Japanese Chamber of Commerce, Japan Association of Corporate, Suntory, Moody's Analytics, Thomson Locations: Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, TOKYO, BEIJING, China, San Francisco, Tokyo, U.S, Japan, Beijing, officialdom, Shanghai

Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel speaks during an interview with Reuters at the ambassador's residence in Tokyo, Japan, October 30, 2023. China, which had been the biggest buyer of Japanese seafood, says its ban is due to food safety fears. "It's going to be a long-term contract between the U.S. armed forces and the fisheries and co-ops here in Japan," Emanuel said. The U.S. military had not previously bought local seafood in Japan, he said. Asked if he considered himself hawkish on China, Emanuel rejected the term and said he was a "realist".

Persons: Japan Rahm Emanuel, Issei Kato, Rahm Emanuel, Washington, Emanuel, Barack Obama's, Antony Blinken, hawkish, They're, Li Keqiang, Xi Jinping, Robert Birsel Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, Rights, United, U.S, Thomson Locations: Japan, Tokyo, United States, China, U.S, Beijing

Rahm Emanuel, Washington's outspoken ambassador to Japan, wrote in a post on X: "1st: Defense Minister Li Shangfu hasn't been seen or heard from in 3 weeks. China's defence ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment. On the trip, Wat met with China's navy commander, Dong Jun and other navy leaders, Singapore's defence ministry said on its website. Singapore's defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Military observers and diplomats are closely watching whether China will go ahead with plans to hold the Beijing Xiangshan Forum - an annual international security summit normally hosted by China's defence minister - in late October.

Persons: Li Shangfu, Li, Rahm Emanuel, Washington's, Li Shangfu hasn't, Mao Ning, Qin Gang, Qin, Emanuel, Barack Obama, Matthew Miller, Sean Wat, Wat, Dong Jun, Lloyd Austin, Yew Lun Tian, Laurie Chen, Martin Pollard, Yukiko Toyoda, Xinghui, John Geddie, Neil Fullick, Lincoln, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Defence, Financial Times, U.S, Street Journal, Defense, Navy, Liberation, Rocket Force, . State Department, Reuters, Military, Beijing Xiangshan, U.S . Defence, Australian National University, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, TOKYO, U.S, Beijing, Japan, Vietnam, Tokyo, States, China, Singapore, United States, Xinghui Kok

☆ U.S. Diplomat Questions Whether Chinese Defence Minister Under 'House Arrest'
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Sept. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Rahm Emanuel wrote: "1st: Defense Minister Li Shangfu hasn't been seen or heard from in 3 weeks. Now: He’s absent from his scheduled meeting with the Singaporean Chief of Navy because he was placed on house arrest???" China's foreign and defence ministries did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Reuters exclusively reported on Thursday that Li had abruptly pulled out of a meeting with Vietnamese defence leaders last week. These moves have raised questions from analysts and diplomats about a lack of transparency and unpredictable decision-making in China's leadership.

Persons: Yukiko Toyoda, Tian, Rahm Emanuel, Li Shangfu hasn't, William Shakespeare's, Li, Singapore Rahm, Sean Wat, Dong Jun, Qin Gang, Lun Tian, Martin Pollard, Xinghui, John Geddie, Neil Fullick Organizations: Twitter, Defense, Navy, Reuters, Financial Times, Singapore, PLA Navy, Liberation, Rocket Force Locations: Tian TOKYO, BEIJING, U.S, Japan, Vietnam, Denmark, Tokyo, Beijing, Singapore, China, Xinghui Kok

☆ US's McCarthy says China's position on Fukushima discharge 'unfair, 'false'
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy walks through Statuary Hall in the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, U.S., July 19, 2023. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsTOKYO, Sept 7 (Reuters) - U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy called China's position on the release of treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant "unfair" and "false" during a visit to Tokyo on Thursday. Japan started its discharges from the wrecked plant last month, provoking strong criticism from China. In retaliation for the release into the ocean, China has placed a blanket ban on all aquatic imports from Japan. Reporting by Yukiko Toyoda and Sakura Murakami; Editing by Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Kevin McCarthy, Leah Millis, Yukiko Toyoda, Sakura Murakami, Clarence Fernandez Organizations: U.S . Capitol, REUTERS, Rights, . House, Japan, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Tokyo, China, Japan

To help address that, Tokyo in April said it would offer like-minded countries military aid, including radars, that the officials said would help the Philippines plug defensive gaps. One, however, said the aid effort was a Japanese initiative and not anything the United States had pressed for. The Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs said it was not immediately able to comment on security aid from Japan or hosting Japanese troops. LOOSENING THE RULESThe scope of Japanese military aid is limited by a self-imposed ban on lethal equipment exports. But he said Japan and the United States are treading carefully in trilateral talks with the Philippines.

Persons: Read, Fumio, Katsutoshi Kawano, Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Takeo Akiba, Eduardo Ano, Fumio Kishida, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Kishida, Kawano, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Marcos, Yusuke Ishihara, Tim Kelly, Sakura Murakami, Yukiko Toyoda, Neil Jerome Morales, Gerry Doyle Organizations: U.S, Marines, Warriors, Philippine Marine Corps, Japanese, Reuters, Washington, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs, Ukraine, Group, Seven, Self - Defence Forces, Staff, Japan's National Institute for Defense Studies, Thomson Locations: Philippine, Japan, South Korea, ”, Taguig City, Metro Manila, Philippines, TOKYO, Indonesia, Taiwan, Ukraine, East Asia, Tokyo, Pacific, China, Japanese, United States, Kyiv, Manila, Yonaguni, Britain, Australia

[1/2] Ukrainian artillery fires towards the frontline during heavy fighting amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near Bakhmut, Ukraine, April 13, 2023. Following Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's visit to Japan during the Hiroshima G7 leaders summit last month, Kishida agreed to donate jeeps and trucks. Japan is one of dozens of friends and allies that Washington is asking to help arm Ukraine as it wrestles with stretched military supply chains. Reuters contacted 22 explosives makers listed on the Japan Explosives Industry Association's website. The only one that said it made industrial TNT was Chugoku Kayaku, an Hiroshima-based firm that supplies Japan's military.

Persons: Kai Pfaffenbach, Lloyd Austin, Washington, Fumio Kishida, Volodymyr Zelenskiy's, Kishida, Tsuneo Watanabe, Austin, Akihisa Nagashima, Tim Kelly, Nobuhiro Kubo, Yukiko Toyoda, Kaori Kaneko, Idrees Ali, David Crawshaw Organizations: REUTERS, TNT, Russian, Reuters, Panasonic, Defense, U.S, Japan's Ministry of Trade, Industry, Technology, Logistics Agency, U.S . State Department, Ukraine, TNT Washington, Japan Explosives Industry, Liberal Democratic Party, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Bakhmut, TOKYO, United States, Japan, Washington, U.S, Tokyo, China, Taiwan, East Asia, Kyiv, Hiroshima, Sasakawa, South Korea, Chugoku, Japan's, Russia, Seoul

☆ Japanese fete LGBTQ progress, demand marriage rights as G7 summit looms
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Elaine Lies | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Masako Mori, a special advisor to Kishida on LGBTQ affairs, attended, but did not mention same-sex marriage in brief remarks before the parade began, instead urging "greater understanding of LGBTQ." Crowds lined the sidewalks, waving rainbow flags and shouting "Happy Pride" at marchers, who included a group from Taiwan - the only Asian nation with same-sex marriage. Kishida in February sacked an aide who sparked outrage by saying people would flee Japan if same-sex marriage was allowed, but the premier remains noncommittal about same-sex marriage, even as polls show some 70% of the public in favour. Allowing same-sex marriage would require amending the civil code. The situation has long limited the talent pool for global firms, but even traditional Japanese companies now find their international competitiveness endangered without diversity, including LGBTQ rights.

☆ Japan will keep calling for China to act responsibly, Kishida says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Yukiko Toyoda | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

TOKYO, April 20 (Reuters) - Japan will keep calling for China to act responsibly on the world stage, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Thursday, a sign of Tokyo's deepening concern about stability in the Taiwan Strait following Beijing's recent military drills. The comments from Kishida, after China conducted drills in the waters off Taiwan earlier this month, highlight Tokyo's growing alarm about the possibility of an attack on nearby Taiwan. Japan would "continue to call on China to take the responsibility it should be taking as a major country on the world stage," Kishida said during a roundtable interview with members of the foreign media. Japan has joined the United States in putting export restrictions on chip-making tools but in doing so avoided mentioning China so as not to antagonise its neighbour. Kishida also said Japan was calling on China to allow for the return of a Japanese executive detained there.

In Japan, DeSantis is expected to meet with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo, said two other people, who requested anonymity to discuss private matters. Back home in Florida, there are signs he is beginning to build out a foreign policy apparatus. His political operation is in the process of bringing on Dustin Carmack, a cybersecurity and intelligence expert with significant foreign policy experience, said one of the people. DeSantis traveled to Washington earlier this week to meet with Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives. DeSantis is set to address an event hosted by the Heritage Foundation, a major think tank, on Friday.

☆ Japan changes aid rules; to fund defence projects of friendly nations
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, April 5 (Reuters) - Japan on Wednesday said it plans to offer friendly nations financial assistance to help them bolster their defences, marking Tokyo's first unambiguous departure from rules that forbid using international aid for military purposes. Japan's Overseas Security Assistance (OSA) will be operated separately from the Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) programme that for decades has funded roads, dams and other civilian infrastructure projects, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said at a regular news conference. The Philippines and Bangladesh are likely to be included as the first recipients of the aid, a government source involved in talks said to Reuters. In principle, only developing countries will be eligible to receive the aid given it will be provided as grants, according to the foreign ministry. Reporting by Tim Kelly, Yukiko Toyoda, Sakura Murakami, and Chang-Ran Kim; Editing by Tom Hogue, Christian Schmollinger and Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Factbox: What's on the table for the Kishida-Yoon summit?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks at an interview with Reuters in Seoul, South Korea, November 28, 2022. Kishida is considering visiting South Korea as early as this summer, Kyodo has reported. G7 INVITATIONKishida may extend an invitation to Yoon to attend the G7 summit set to take place in Hiroshima in May, several media reported. EXPORT CURBSThe two leaders could confirm their countries' intention to resolve Japan's high-tech material export curbs against South Korea. Japan tightened restrictions on the export of high-tech semiconductor materials to South Korea in 2019 as a row over how to compensate wartime labourers flared.

The summit is the same week as major South Korea-U.S. military drills that routinely anger Pyongyang, and North Korea has already staged multiple missile launches - a backdrop for the message that Japan, South Korea and the United States need to close ranks. In November South Korea and Japan agreed to exchange real-time intelligence on North Korea's missile launches, which experts say will help both countries better track potential threats. "South Korea is already taking a side and entering the Cold War," said Kim Joon-hyung, a former chancellor of the Korean National Diplomatic Academy. Yoon said high-tech cooperation on supply chains between Japan and South Korea would contribute significantly to economic security. 'SHARED INTERESTS'Washington had pressed for reconciliation, but a State Department spokesperson said the recent arrangements were the result of bilateral discussions between Japan and South Korea.

"Until now, the ministry has taken the defence companies for granted," said Masahisa Sato, an influential ruling party lawmaker and former deputy defence minister. Three of them, Mitsubishi Heavy, Mitsubishi Electric and IHI Corp (7013.T), which makes jet engines, bridges and heavy machinery, confirmed they had also taken part in other lower-level discussions. Reuters asked 10 of Japan's military suppliers, including Toshiba, Mitsubishi Electric, Daikin and Subaru, for interviews with their defence unit managers. Despite diplomatic tensions, China is Japan's top trade partner and a major manufacturing base for many Japanese companies. Even so, Japanese companies often refer to their military products as "special equipment," the government official said.

"As the United States deepens its relationship with the Philippines, it's important for regional security that Japan join in," a Japanese defence ministry source with knowledge of internal discussions on national security told Reuters. At a press briefing last week, Neil Imperial, the Philippines Assistant Secretary for Asian and Pacific Affairs, said Marcos wanted to "facilitate closer defence, security, political, economic and people-to-people ties" while in Japan. That sentiment is shared in Tokyo, which has been deepening security ties with nations that view China with concern. Those deals provide a framework for how Marcos and Kishida could also forge deeper military ties to counter their common adversary, say experts. "The Philippines is a critical security partner for Japan," said Narushige Michishita, a professor at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS) in Tokyo.

TOKYO, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Japan's state-backed chip venture Rapidus will need about 7 trillion yen ($54 billion) of mostly taxpayer money to begin mass producing advanced logic chips in around 2027, its chairman, Tetsuro Higashi, told Reuters on Thursday. "In the past, the United States hindered Japan's chip industry growth. Japan and the United States worry that friction with China will result in semiconductor shortages that could threaten economic growth. Japan's most advanced semiconductor factory is a 40 nanometre plant owned by Renesas Electronics (6723.T). For them, the decision to invest will be taken when they are able assess our technology and production plans."

[1/2] Participants look around Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force's vessel at a recruiting event in Yokosuka, Japan December 10, 2022. The five-year plan unveiled on Friday will double Japan's defence spending and add new capabilities, including long-range missiles and an expanded cyber warfare unit. "It is just a paper plan and that should be corrected," said Yoji Koda, a retired navy admiral, who commanded the Japanese fleet in 2007-2008. Koda said the plan would limit Japan's ability to fight in situations such as land invasions and sea battles, giving its foes an advantage. Japan's defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Japan and Britain hope to agree by the end of the year to merge their next-generation Tempest and F-X fighter programmes, sources said in July. Those talks, aimed at a joint project to field a plane in the mid-2030s, remain on track, according to four other people familiar with the discussions. Japan ended a ban on military exports in 2014 in a bid to promote overseas sales. An export boom, however, failed to materialize because Japan only allowed sales of non-lethal gear such as surveillance and rescue equipment. LDP lawmakers, Onodera said, are also discussing a joint U.S-Japan command structure that could be formed for national emergencies.

By pointing to 2027 as the moment when East Asia's power balance may tip in China's favour, Japan's government can rally support for greater defence spending, he added. At a congressional hearing last year, U.S. Indo-Pacific commander Admiral Philip Davidson said that China's threat against Taiwan could "manifest" that year. Japanese defence ministry officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In July, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida won national upper house elections with a pledge to "substantially" increase defence spending. The splurge of defence spending should also benefit U.S. suppliers such as Lockheed, Boeing Co (BA.N) and Northrop Grumman Corp (NOC.N).

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