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☆ Japanese store near Mount Fuji issues apology in response to overtourism
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Lilit Marcus | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Lawson’s, one of Japan’s largest convenience store chains, has an outpost in the small town of Fujikawaguchiko. Tourists have flooded into Fujikawaguchiko to take one specific picture – a shot of Mount Fuji behind a Lawson’s store, where the mountain’s classic elegance contrasts with the store’s modern neon signage. Although Lawson’s has not encouraged visitors to take pictures of their store, the company nevertheless issued a statement addressing the issue on May 5. Many of them headed to the same destinations, crowding Kyoto’s narrow streets and the walking trails of Mount Fuji. And Lawson’s is not the only Japanese tourist destination that has resorted to putting up signs warning visitors of bad behaviors.

Persons: Fuji –, Lawson’s, Lawson, –, overtourism, Fujikawaguchiko, Semans Organizations: CNN, Fuji, Mount Fuji, ”, Mount, UNESCO Locations: Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi prefecture, –, Japan, Mount, Yamanashi

☆ Super-aged Japan now has 9 million vacant homes. And that’s a problem
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Chris Lau | Mayumi Maruyama | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

“This is a symptom of Japan’s population decline,” said Jeffrey Hall, a lecturer at Kanda University of International Studies in Chiba. “It’s not really a problem of building too many houses” but “a problem of not having enough people,” he said. According to figures compiled by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, 14% of all residential properties in Japan are vacant. “When an earthquake or a tsunami occurs, there is a possibility that vacant houses will block evacuation routes as they break down and get destroyed,” he said. In other rural areas with a high concentration of vacant houses, akiya have stalled development, the professor said.

Persons: ”, Jeffrey Hall, “ It’s, don’t, Akio Kon, it’s, “ They’re, Buddhika Weerasinghe, Yuki Akiyama, Akiyama, ” Akiyama Organizations: CNN, Kanda University of International Studies, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Kanda University, “, Bloomberg, Getty, Ministry, Internal Affairs, Communications, Tokyo City University, Homes Locations: Japan, New York City, Tokyo, Kyoto, Chiba, Kanda, Yato, Yokosuka City, Kanagawa prefecture, Tambasasayama, Noto, Ishikawa, Europe, West, “

☆ Mount Fuji: Japanese town putting up eight-foot barrier to block tourist photos
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( Lilit Marcus | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —A picturesque Japanese town is putting up a giant mesh barrier to block a popular selfie spot near Mount Fuji. Fujikawaguchiko, at the foot of the Yoshida Trail to Mount Fuji, has become overrun with foreign tourists trying to get the perfect photo of Japan’s most famous mountain. And now the town has had enough and is putting up the mesh barrier to block the view, a local official told CNN. The town of Fujikawaguchiko is in Yamanashi prefecture, to the north of Fuji and about 62 miles (100 kilometers) west of Tokyo. Many of them head straight to Mount Fuji, an icon of Japan and a UNESCO World Heritage site, leaving garbage and causing erosion along the way.

Persons: Philip Fong, “ Overtourism, Masatake Izumi, – Organizations: CNN, Mount, Getty, UNESCO, CNN Travel, Disney Locations: Mount Fuji, Fujikawaguchiko, AFP, Yamanashi prefecture, Fuji, Tokyo, Japan, Yamanashi, Austrian, Halstatt

☆ ‘Shogun’s’ Hiroyuki Sanada on bringing the acclaimed FX miniseries to life
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Christy Choi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Editor’s Note: This interview was aired on CNN’s “First Move With Julia Chatterley.”CNN —With “Shogun,” Hiroyuki Sanada wanted to get things right. “So, I wanted to…introduce the world correctly.”He plays Lord Yoshii Toranaga on the acclaimed FX miniseries, an adaptation of James Clavell’s best-selling 1975 novel of the same name. Not a stereotypical samurai.”Video Ad Feedback Watch: Hiroyuki Sanada speaks to CNN's Julia Chatterly on how "Shogun" has become a global hit. 02:16 - Source: CNNWhile Sanada, 63, has been acting for close to six decades, this is the first time he’s taken on a producer role. What we tried to do with that gaze was find a way to transcend culture.”The miniseries has proved popular.

Persons: Julia Chatterley, ”, ” Hiroyuki Sanada, Yoshii Toranaga, James Clavell’s, Tokugawa Ieyasu, Hiroyuki Sanada, CNN's Julia Chatterly, Sanada, John Blackthorne, Cosmo Jarvis, “, Anna Sawai, Lady Mariko, Michael De Luca, Justin Marks, Rachel, Kondo, Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan, Beef, Ali Wong, Steven Yeun Organizations: ” CNN, CNN, FX, Disney Locations: Japan, Hollywood, Clavell’s

☆ Private rooms coming to some of Japan’s bullet trains
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Lilit Marcus | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Japan’s beloved Shinkansen trains are getting another upgrade. This photo illustration shows what the private rooms will look like. Japan RailwaysThey will be located in the green cars, which are the first-class, more expensive cars on Shinkansen trains. Travelers who have purchased a JR Rail pass will still need to pay extra to use the private rooms. The Tokaido line was Japan’s first-ever high speed rail line, making its debut in 1964.

Persons: CNN —, CNN’s Junko Ogura Organizations: CNN, Japan Rail, Japan Railways, Travelers Locations: Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka

☆ 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

Taro Akebono, a Hawaii-born sumo wrestler who became the sport’s first foreign grand champion and helped to fuel a resurgence in the sport’s popularity in the 1990s, has died in Tokyo. When he became Japan’s 64th yokozuna, or grand champion sumo wrestler, in 1993, he was the first foreign-born wrestler to achieve the sport’s highest title in its 300-year modern history. He went on to win a total of 11 grand championships, and his success set the stage for an era during which foreign-born wrestlers dominated the top levels of Japan’s national sport. Akebono, who was 6-foot-8 and 466 pounds when he was first named yokozuna at 23, towered over his Japanese opponents. Painfully shy outside the dohyo, as the sumo ring is known, he was known for using his height and reach to keep opponents at a distance.

Persons: Taro Akebono Organizations: United States Locations: Hawaii, Tokyo, Japan

☆ Taiwan quake led to traffic jam of Japanese F-15J air power
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-08 | by ( Brad Lendon | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

At one Japanese air base, they take to the streets. A base spokesperson told CNN putting warplanes on a roadway rather than a runway is something that’s practiced so it can be done quickly. “It took 15 to 20 minutes to move 12 fighter jets thanks to normal-time evacuation drills,” the spokesperson said. Aircraft tugs pulled the fighter jets on to a road at Naha Air Base on Okinawa to be sure they were not damaged in a possible tsunami. Naha Air BaseThe F-15J, a variant of the US-designed F-15, is the “mainstay” of Japan’s air force, according to the country’s Defense Ministry.

Persons: Nature, that’s, CNN’s Wayne Chang Organizations: CNN — Fighter, Japan, Self, Defense, Air Base, CNN, Aircraft, Naha Air Base, country’s Defense Ministry, Taiwan’s Defense Locations: Taiwan, Okinawa, Naha Airport, Naha

☆ Japanese people could all be called Sato by 2531, study warns. But they’d need to get married first
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Chris Lau | Mai Nishiyama | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Tokyo CNN —Everyone in Japan could one day have the same surname unless its restrictive marriage laws change, according to a new study. But the country’s dwindling marriage rate could buck that trend and a rapidly declining population might render it moot entirely. If the rules carry on, all Japanese people could have the surname Sato by 2531, according to Hiroshi Yoshida, an economist from Tohoku University in Sendai, who led the study. According to Myoji Yurai, a company that tracks Japan’s more than 300,000 surnames, Sato is currently the most common, followed by Suzuki. About 1.8 million people out of Japan’s 125 million population have the surname Sato, Myoji Yurai says on its website.

Persons: Sato, Hiroshi Yoshida, Myoji, Suzuki, Takahashi, Myoji Yurai, Yoshida –, Yoshida, ” Yoshida, ”, Fumio Kishida, Wang, Li, Zhang, Liu, Chen, Galton, Watson Organizations: Tokyo CNN, Tohoku University, CNN Locations: Japan, Sendai, East Asia, China

☆ ‘Oppenheimer’ Hits Nuclear-Scarred Japan, 8 Months After U.S. Premiere
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-01 | by ( Motoko Rich | Kiuko Notoya | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Watching “Oppenheimer,” the Oscar-winning biopic about the father of the atomic bomb that opened in Japan on Friday, Kako Okuno was stunned by a scene in which scientists celebrated the explosion over Hiroshima with thunderous foot stomping and the waving of American flags. Seeing the jubilant faces “really shocked me,” said Ms. Okuno, 22, a nursery school teacher who grew up in Hiroshima and has worked as a peace and environmental activist. Eight months after Christopher Nolan’s film became a box office hit in the United States, “Oppenheimer” is now confronting Japanese audiences with the flip-side American perspective on the most scarring events of Japan’s history. The movie follows the breakthrough discoveries of J. Robert Oppenheimer and his team before the United States struck Japan with the first salvo of the nuclear age. It won seven Academy Awards last month, including for best picture.

Persons: “ Oppenheimer, ”, Kako Okuno, “, Okuno, Christopher Nolan’s, “ Oppenheimer ”, Robert Oppenheimer Locations: Japan, Hiroshima, United States

☆ Ilia Malinin: Record-breaking American teen lands quadruple axel as he wins first ever World Figure Skating title
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-24 | by ( Issy Ronald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —For every other figure-skater, landing a quadruple axel lies outside the realms of possibilities, attempted but never accomplished by an endless parade of skating greats. For American teenage prodigy Ilia Malinin though, they are simply part of his routine. And landing one on Saturday propelled him to his first ever world title after a record-breaking performance in the free skate at the World Figure Skating Championship. I am so glad to be here on top right now.”Ilia Malinin won his first world title. His gold medal was the US’s second at this World Championships after Madison Chock and Evan Bates won the ice dance earlier on Saturday.

Persons: axel, Ilia Malinin, –, ” Malinin, “, ” Ilia Malinin, Mert Alper, France’s Adam Siao Him, ’, Malinin, Madison Chock, Evan Bates Organizations: CNN, International Skating Union, Anadolu Agency, Madison Locations: “, Japan’s Kagiyama Yuma

☆ FBI returns looted artifacts found in Massachusetts attic to Japan
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Amy Woodyatt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The FBI has returned a trove of looted Japanese art to its country of origin after a family found a stash of artifacts in their late father’s Massachusetts attic. They looked old and valuable,” Special Agent Geoffrey J. Kelly, art crime coordinator for FBI Boston and a member of the FBI Art Crime Team, said in a statement. A typewritten letter found alongside the artifacts in Massachusetts helped confirm they were looted during the last days of World War II, the FBI added. “When taken together, they really represent a substantial piece of Okinawan history,” Kelly said of the artifacts. The artifacts were returned to Okinawa last week, the FBI said, but noted that several Okinawan objects are still missing and are listed in the National Stolen Art File.

Persons: Geoffrey J, Kelly, ” Kelly, ”, you’re Organizations: CNN, FBI, FBI Boston, Okinawa FBI, Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Asian, Washington , D.C Locations: Massachusetts, Japan, Okinawa, Washington ,

☆ Japan Raises Interest Rates for First Time in 17 Years
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Joe Rennison | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Japan’s central bank raised interest rates for the first time since 2007 on Tuesday, pushing them above zero to close a chapter in its aggressive effort to stimulate an economy that has long struggled to grow. Negative interest rates — which central banks in some European economies have also applied — mean depositors pay to leave their money with a bank, an incentive for them to spend it instead. But Japan’s economy has recently begun to show signs of stronger growth: Inflation, after being low for years, has sped up, cemented by larger-than-usual increases in wages. Even after Tuesday’s move, interest rates in Japan are far from those in the world’s other major developed economies. The Bank of Japan’s target policy rate was raised to 0.1 percent from minus 0.1 percent.

Organizations: Bank of Japan Locations: Japan

☆ Japan economy: Avoids recession after quarterly growth data is revised up
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-10 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Tokyo Reuters —Japan’s economy expanded at an annualized clip of 0.4% in October to December from the previous quarter, better than the initial estimate for a 0.4% contraction, government data showed on Monday. The revised figure for gross domestic product (GDP) released by the Cabinet Office compared with economists’ median forecast for a 1.1% uptick in a Reuters poll. The fresh data meant Japan’s economy, now the world’s fourth-largest behind Germany, avoided a technical recession thanks to companies’ stronger-than-expected spending on plants and equipments. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, GDP grew 0.1%, compared with the initial 0.1.% drop reading and a median forecast for a 0.3% rise. Meanwhile, private consumption, which makes up about 60% of Japan’s economy, fell 0.3% in October to December, slightly worse than the 0.2% drop in the initial estimate.

Organizations: Tokyo Reuters, Bank of Japan Locations: Tokyo, Germany, Japan

Tokyo CNN —Akira Toriyama, the Japanese manga artist who created the enormously popular and influential Dragon Ball series, died of a brain condition last week at the age of 68, his production studio said Friday. He made his debut as a cartoonist in 1978 by submitting a short story to manga fans’ magazine Weekly Shonen Jump. A Dragon Ball Z graphic seen at the NiceOne Barcelona Gaming & Digital Experiences Festival in 2019. Paco Freire/Sipa/APHis “Dragon Ball” series went on to be featured in the same magazine in 1984 and was front and center of a creative career that spanned more than four decades. “Dragon Ball was my textbook for life.

Persons: Tokyo CNN — Akira Toriyama, Toriyama, Son Goku, Dragon, “, Paco Freire, Goku, Shen Long, Yuji Horii, he’s, ”, Eiichiro Oda, Toriyama “, ” Oda, Ball Organizations: Tokyo CNN, Bird Studio, Capsule Corporation, Barcelona, Hollywood Locations: Kiyosu City, Aichi

☆ Japan’s population crisis was years in the making – and relief may be decades away
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Jessie Yeung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The demographic crisis has become one of Japan’s most pressing issues, with multiple governments failing to reverse the double blow of a falling fertility rate and swelling elderly population. But Japan’s crisis is unique in that it’s been decades in the making, experts say – meaning its impact is particularly evident now, with relief unlikely to come anytime soon. ‘Not reversible’The first thing to understand about Japan’s population crisis is that it’s only partly behavioral, said James Raymo, professor of sociology and demography at Princeton University. As of last year, Japan’s fertility rate sat at 1.3. The real problem is that the fertility rate has been consistently low for so long.

Persons: handwringing, It’s “, –, it’s, James Raymo, ” Raymo, ‘, aren’t, Raymo, Tomohiro Ohsumi, – “, Stanislav Kogiku, “, ” Organizations: CNN, Princeton University, government’s Institute of Population, Social Security Research, Getty Locations: Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Spain, Italy, United States, India, Yonomori, Fukushima, singlehood, Vietnam, Shinjuku, Tokyo, Toyko

☆ ‘Geisha paparazzi’ are back in Kyoto – and the city is ready to take action
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Lilit Marcus | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

As a result, an unfortunate nickname has even been given to these tourists: “geisha paparazzi.”Foreign tourists have sometimes struggled to understand Japanese customs and etiquette. In 2015, Kyoto created pamphlets and paper handouts that used pictograms to illustrate travel “nuisance activities” like littering, using selfie sticks, smoking in prohibited areas, and taking photos of geisha and maiko. Plenty of rules, little enforcementToday, signs in three languages also explain that geisha photography is not allowed without a permit, and that violators could be charged up to ¥10,000 ($67). Most maiko and geisha (these words are both singular and plural in Japanese) use this road, making it the prime spot for “paparazzi” to gather. Still, Ota and other Gion residents are looking for ways to curb the “geisha paparazzi” issues.

Persons: women’s kimonos, Gion, Isokazu Ota, Kike Calvo, ”, Ota, maiko Organizations: CNN, Theatre Locations: Gion, Kyoto, women’s, Side, Japan, Ota, ”, Easter

☆ ‘Shōgun’ review: FX’s 10-part series might be the TV program of the year (again)
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Brian Lowry | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —In the early heyday of miniseries, “Shōgun” was the show of the year in 1980, and it might be again 44 years later. That chaos also creates the possibility of one regent emerging to consolidate power, and perhaps even gain the title of shōgun. Of course, in today’s heavily fragmented streaming environment “Shōgun” won’t be the massive ratings hit that it was back when there were three broadcast networks (and not much else), but those who wade into this dense history will be amply rewarded. “All men can be broken,” Toranaga muses at one point, with a quiet sense of menace and determination. If only all limited series could be half as good as “Shōgun.”“Shōgun” premieres February 27 on Hulu and at 10 p..m. ET the same day on FX.

Persons: Shōgun ”, James Clavell’s, John Blackthorne, Cosmo Jarvis, –, ” Blackthorne, Toranaga, Hiroyuki Sanada, “ John Wick, shōgun, Eager, Mariko, Anna Sawai, Buntaro, Shinnosuke Abe, Blackthorne, Richard Chamberlain, King, “ Shōgun ”, Sean Connery, Jarvis, Ishido, Hira, ”, Michael Clavell, won’t, ” Toranaga Organizations: CNN, of Regents, Apple’s, NBC, Hulu Locations: Japan, ”, “

☆ Hello Kitty theme park in Tokyo closed after ‘terrorist threat’
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-24 | by ( Heather Chen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —A Hello Kitty theme park in Tokyo has been forced to close for the day after it received a “terror threat,” its operator said. Sanrio Puroland, also known as Hello Kitty Land, is located in Tama New Town in north Tokyo. In a statement published on the park’s official website, operators said they received “a terrorist threat email” on Saturday. Hello Kitty is one of the most famous and recognizable Japanese brands of all time. Sanrio Puroland opened in 1990 and attracts over 1.5 million visitors per year – making it one of Japan’s most popular theme parks, along with Tokyo Disney Resort.

Persons: Sanrio Puroland, ”, Kitty, Sanrio Organizations: CNN, ” Police, NHK, Reuters, Tokyo Disney Resort Locations: Tokyo, Kitty, Tama New, Japanese, Japan, United States, United Kingdom

☆ How this cult Japanese artist’s eerie paintings foretold our digital malaise
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Christy Choi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —In the land of Hello Kitty, kawaii (“cute”) culture and the Neo-Pop art of 1990s Japan, Tetsuya Ishida was an outlier. An untitled 2004 acrylic and oil painting by late Japanese artist Tetsuya Ishida from the Gagosian retrospective "My Anxious Self." Ishida, who had gone to art school, worked part-time at a print shop and as a night security guard. Many of the 200 or so paintings Ishida completed in his lifetime portray the gloom of becoming a cog in the economic machine. Another painting entitled "Gripe," painted by Ishidia in 1996, portrays a Japanese salaryman with lobster claws for hands.

Persons: kawaii, Tetsuya Ishida, wasn’t, Japan’s “, Gripe, ”, Gulliver, Tetsuya Ishida's, Gagosian, ” Nick Simunovic, “, ” Gagosian, Simunovic, Ishida, ” Simunovic, Gagosian Ishida, Jacky Ho, ‪, Martin Wong, Ishidia, Cecilia Alemani, ” Ishida, Robert McKeever, Tamaki Saito, didn’t, Sharp, Japan's, claustrophobia, Takashi Murakami, Yoshimoto Nara, ” Alemani, Alemani Organizations: CNN, Asia, Art, San Francisco Asian Art Museum, Venice Biennale, Hong Kong, Christie’s Asia, Japan Inc, dehumanization, Gagosian's, Sony Locations: Japan, Japanese, Japan’s, Gagosian, New York, Venice, Sotheby’s, Christie’s, Tokyo, , York

☆ Japanese Crime Boss Trafficked Nuclear Material From Myanmar, U.S. Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Ed Shanahan | More About Ed Shanahan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A man identified by federal prosecutors as a leader of Japan’s Yakuza organized crime syndicate was charged on Wednesday with trafficking uranium and plutonium from Myanmar with the expectation that Iran would use the material to make nuclear weapons. The man, Takeshi Ebisawa, is accused of conspiring with a network of associates to sell the weapons-grade material and illegal narcotics and to buy surface-to-air missiles on behalf of an ethnic insurgent group in Myanmar, the country formerly known as Burma. “It is impossible to overstate the seriousness of the conduct alleged in today’s indictment,” Damian Williams, the U.S. attorney in Manhattan, said in announcing the charges. Mr. Ebisawa, 60, is being held in a federal jail in Brooklyn after being charged, along with three co-defendants, with international drug and weapons trafficking crimes in 2022. A lawyer representing him in connection with that indictment did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

Persons: Japan’s, Takeshi Ebisawa, ” Damian Williams, Ebisawa Locations: Myanmar, Iran, Burma, U.S, Manhattan, Brooklyn

☆ The US economy is booming — but Japan and the UK just slipped into recession. Here's why.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Two of the world's biggest economies are officially in recession, per new figures published Thursday. Meanwhile, UK growth shrank for the second straight quarter — just months ahead of a key election. Japan and the UK are both officially in recession, according to figures published Thursday, after Gross Domestic Product (GDP) fell for two consecutive quarters to close out 2023. UK: Cost-of-living crisis, weak spendingBritain also got some bad economic news Thursday, as official data showed its economy shrank by 0.3% between October and December — its second straight quarterly contraction. That officially put the UK into recession.

Persons: —, Dow Jones, It's, juicier, Goldman Sachs, Rishi Sunak Organizations: Service, Gross, Dow, Bank of, Britain, Bank of England’s, European Union, Conservatives, Labour Party, Politico Locations: Japan, Germany, China, European

☆ Japan's 'Big Whale' submarines add another weapon to bottle up China's navy
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Ben Brimelow | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Named, JS Raigei (“Thunder Whale” in Japanese), the diesel-electric attack sub is the fourth boat of the Taigei-class , which translates to “big whale.”Its launch comes almost exactly one year after the launch of the third Taigei-class sub, JS Jingei (or “Swift Whale”). With a building time of about two years each, Japan has launched a new Taigei-class sub every year since 2020. China’s current sub fleet, numbering some 59 boats, includes approximately 10 improved Kilo-class , 12 Type 039-class , and 21 Type 039A-class diesel-electric attack subs. Japan is building a larger submarine fleet but it is still only about a third the size of China's. AdvertisementJapan has so far launched four Taigei-class submarines since 2018; JS Taigei, JS Hakugei, JS Jingei, and JS Raigei.

Persons: —, JS, Japan’s, ”, Li Organizations: Service, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, JS Raigei, Jingei, Self, Defense Force, AIP, JS Ōryū, JS Tōryū, JS Taigei, US Navy, Center for Strategic, International Studies, JS Hakugei, JS Jingei Locations: Japan, Kobe, Soviet Union, Russia, China, Beijing, Taiwan, East, South China, Miyako Strait, Philippines, Australia, South

“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

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