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☆ US to announce military command revamp in Japan, official says
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A dealer works behind U.S., left, and Japanese national flags at a foreign exchange brokerage in Tokyo, Japan. The United States will unveil a major revamp of its military command structure in Japan and other measures to deepen defense ties with its Asian ally at high-level security talks in Tokyo on Sunday, a U.S. official said. Forces Japan as a Joint Force Headquarters, reporting to the commander of U.S. INDOPACOM," the U.S. official told a briefing ahead of the talks. The command will be headed by a three-star general, the official said, not the four-star rank that Japan had requested. Prompted by China's growing military might, Japan is stepping back from decades of postwar pacifism.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Defence Lloyd Austin, Yoko Kamikawa, Minoru Kihara, Kihara, Shin Won, Austin, Fumio Kishida, Joe Biden, Biden, Blinken, Wang Yi Organizations: U.S, Defence, Japanese, Austin, South Korean, Forces Japan, Joint Force Headquarters, U.S ., Defense Industrial Cooperation, Sustainment Locations: Tokyo, Japan, United States, Washington, China, North Korea, United, Asia, U.S, Ukraine, Blinken, Austin, Philippines, Laos

☆ US Defense Secretary Austin to hold trilateral meeting with Japanese, South Korean counterparts in Tokyo, first in 15 years
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-27 | by ( Philip Wang | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will hold a trilateral meeting with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts in Tokyo on Sunday local time, the first of its kind in 15 years, a senior US defense official said. The trilateral meeting came nearly one year after President Joe Biden held the first stand-alone summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol at Camp David in August 2023. “We’ve made enormous progress, trilateral since the Camp David summit, with early warning missile data sharing real time with a trilateral exercise plan,” the US senior defense official said. There is no intention to integrate Japanese forces into the US commands, according to the official. And they’ll be doing that side by side with Japanese forces like never before.”

Persons: Lloyd Austin, Joe Biden, Fumio Kishida, Yoon Suk, David, Kishida, “ We’ve, Austin, ” Organizations: CNN, US, Korean, Japanese, South, ’, US Forces Japan, USF, Operations Command, Pacific Command, 5th Air Force Locations: Tokyo

☆ Yen eases despite intervention threat, Aussie steady before RBA
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The yen continued to drift lower against the dollar on Tuesday as gaping interest rate differentials weighed on the currency, despite fresh warnings from Japanese officials following two rounds of suspected dollar-selling intervention last week. The U.S. dollar gained 0.22% to 154.235 yen in early Asian trading, adding to its 0.58% rally from Monday. The Aussie edged up 0.17% to $0.6636, heading back towards the high of $0.6650 from Friday, a level last seen on March 8. All but one of the 37 economists surveyed in a Reuters poll expect the RBA to keep rates on hold, with the other predicting a quarter point rate hike, amid stubbornly high inflation. "A different set of central bankers would have had the policy rate higher sooner on the same set of data," Taylor Nugent, a markets economist at National Australia Bank, wrote in a note.

Persons: Michele Bullock, Masato Kanda, Carol Kong, Bullock, Taylor Nugent Organizations: U.S, Reserve Bank of Australia, The U.S ., Bank of Japan, Japan's Ministry of Finance, Federal, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Bank of, National Australia Bank Locations: The, Japan

TOKYO (AP) — Japan's space agency on Tuesday postponed the launch of a second test flight of its new flagship rocket H3 series planned for this week because of bad weather forecast at the launch site. The fiasco triggered disappointment and uncertainty about Japan's space exploration plans, concerns that were compounded after a spacecraft designed by a Japanese company crashed during a lunar landing attempt in April. The launch of the H3 rocket had already been held up more than two years due to an engine development delay. Mitsubishi's H3 project manager Mayuki Niitsu said there is a growing demand for rockets that can stably launch satellite constellations. “We hope to achieve success of the second H3 rocket and show our capability to our potential customers,” he said and added that H3 could be competitive with major global players, such as SpaceX.

Persons: Masashi Okada, Japan's, “, ” Okada, Okada, Mayuki Niitsu, ” Organizations: TOKYO, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Canon Electronics, Seiren, SpaceX Locations: Japan, Japanese, United States, China

The U.S. Air Force said on Monday that the bodies of five crew members had been found alongside the wreckage of a CV-22 Osprey that went down during a routine training exercise last week in southern Japan. Two crew members remain unaccounted for, and the remains of one had been discovered on Wednesday, the day of the crash. Over the weekend, the Air Force identified that airman as Staff Sgt. The body of Sergeant Galliher, a young father who went by the first name Jake, had been found by the Japan Coast Guard. The U.S. Air Force said that a breakthrough in the five-day search came on Monday, when a combined Japanese and American team found the Osprey’s fuselage.

Persons: Jacob M, Sergeant Galliher, Jake, Minoru Kihara, Ricky Rupp Organizations: U.S . Air Force, Air Force, Japan Coast Guard, United States Forces Japan Locations: Japan, Yakushima

Search operations widened Friday with additional U.S. military personnel joining the effort, while Japanese coast guard and military ships focused on an undersea search using sonar. Japanese officials say they asked the U.S. military to halt Osprey flights in Japan except for those involved in the search operations. A total of 44 Ospreys have been deployed at U.S. and Japanese military bases in Japan. Denny Tamaki called on Japan’s defense and foreign ministries to request the U.S. military to suspend all Osprey flights in Japan, including in search operations. “I have serious doubts about Osprey safety even for their search and rescue operations.”

Persons: —, Sabrina Singh, Hirokazu Matsuno, Minoru Kihara, Ricky Rupp, ” Kihara, Rupp, Yoko Kamikawa, Japan Rahm Emanuel, United States “, Denny Tamaki, Tamaki, “, ” Organizations: TOKYO, Pentagon, U.S, Ospreys, U.S ., Defense, U.S . Forces Japan, Osprey, United, U.S . Air Force Special, Command, Yokota Air Base, Fifth Air Force, 353rd, Operations, U.S . Marine Corps Air, Iwakuni, Kadena Air Base, Gov Locations: Japan, U.S, Okinawa, United States, Yamaguchi prefecture

TOKYO (AP) — Japan plans to suspend its own Osprey flights after a U.S. Air Force Osprey based in Japan crashed into waters off the southern coast during a training mission, officials said Thursday. A U.S. Air Force Osprey based in Japan crashed during a training mission Wednesday off of the country’s southern coast, killing at least one of the eight crew members. The cause of the crash and the status of the seven others on board were not immediately known, Japanese coast guard spokesperson Kazuo Ogawa said. Coast guard aircraft and patrol boats found one male crew member, who was later pronounced dead by a doctor, Ogawa said. While the U.S. Marine Corps flies most of the Ospreys based in Japan, the Air Force also has some deployed there.

Persons: Taro Yamato, Kazuo Ogawa, Denny Tamaki, Ogawa, Hirokazu Matsuno, Hiroyuki Miyazawa, ___ Copp Organizations: TOKYO, U.S . Air Force, Ospreys, Defense Ministry, Gov, NHK, U.S . Air Force Special, Command, Yokota Air Base, 353rd, Operations, U.S . Marine Corps Air, Iwakuni, Kadena Air Base, Japanese, Defense, U.S . Forces Japan, Fifth Air Force, Yokota, U.S . Marine Corps, Air Force, Air Force Special Operations Command, Osprey, Marine Corps, Navy, Marine Corps Osprey, U.S . Marine, Marines Locations: Japan, Tokyo, U.S, Okinawa, Kagoshima, Kyushu, Coast, Yakushima, Yamaguchi prefecture, Australian, Washington

☆ Weak yen forces Japan to shrink historic military spending plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Since the plan was unveiled in December, the yen has lost 10% of its value against the dollar, forcing Tokyo to reduce its ambitious defense procurement plan, which was then-calculated to cost $320 billion, the sources said. Details of how Japan is paring back military procurement due to currency fluctuations have not been previously reported. China, which has not ruled out using military force to bring Taiwan under its control, has expressed concern about Japan's military spending plans, accusing it of displaying a "Cold War mentality." Chinooks and seaplanesWith the cuts in its spending power, Japan decided to prioritize spending on advanced U.S.-made frontline weapons such as missiles that could halt advancing Chinese forces, the eight people said. About half that increase was due to the weak yen, said one of the government sources, who was directly involved in those discussions.

Persons: Fumio Kishida, Kiyoshi Ota, Christopher Johnstone, Johnstone, Biden, Kishida, spender, Nancy Pelosi's, Yoji Koda Organizations: Japan's, Defense Force, Getty, Reuters, Bank of Japan, Center for Strategic, International Studies, National Security, East, Japan's Ministry of Defense, Embassy, Pentagon, Russian, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Boeing Co, Kawasaki, ShinMaywa Industries, Industry, Maritime Self Defense Force Locations: Tokyo, AFP, Japan, Taiwan, Washington, Beijing, East Asia, U.S, East China, Ukraine, China

Details of how Japan is paring back military procurement due to currency fluctuations have not been previously reported. China, which has not ruled out using military force to bring Taiwan under its control, has expressed concern about Japan's military spending plans, accusing it of displaying a "Cold War mentality." In December, defence ministry officials discussed an order for 34 twin-rotor Chinook transport helicopters at roughly 15 billion yen per aircraft, two of the sources said. She declined to comment on whether the defence ministry had dropped an order for the seaplane. A ministry spokesperson confirmed the companies delivered a letter on Oct 25 to Defence Minister Minoru Kihara urging the government to proceed with the defence procurement as planned.

Persons: Tomohiro, Fumio Kishida, Christopher Johnstone, Johnstone, Biden, Kishida, outlays, spender, Nancy Pelosi's, Yoji Koda, Lockheed Martin, Minoru Kihara, Kevin Maher, Nobuhiro Kubo, Takaya Yamaguchi, Tim Kelly, Yoshifumi Takemoto, Katerina Ang Organizations: Defense Force, East Fuji Maneuver, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Reuters, Bank of Japan, Center for Strategic, International Studies, National Security, East, Japan's Ministry of Defence, Embassy, Pentagon, Russian, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Boeing Co, Kawasaki, Industries, Maritime Self Defense Force, Raytheon, Lockheed, Japan Business Federation, NMV Consulting, U.S . State Department's Office, Japan Affairs, Thomson Locations: Japan, Gotemba, Shizuoka, Taiwan, Tokyo, Washington, Beijing, East Asia, U.S, East China, Ukraine, China, U.S .

☆ Credit Suisse reinforces Japan’s offshore anxiety
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Pete Sweeney | Thomson Reuters | Asia Economics Editor Pete Sweeney Joined Reuters Breakingviews In Hong Kong In September Previously He Served As Reuters' Chief Correspondent For China Economy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

HONG KONG, March 21 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The crisis at Credit Suisse has traders wondering who’s next. Japanese lenders, with their staid depositor bases, look like unlikely targets for bank runs. Yet the rising cost of short-term dollar and euro credit, combined with extreme yen volatility, have made hedging much more expensive. Domestic commercial lenders alone held $600 billion of international debt securities at the end of 2022, and some look overexposed. Take Japan Post Bank (7182.T), a $32 billion institution whose parent is partly owned by the Ministry of Finance.

Seoul, South Korea CNN —North Korea launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on Friday, the second missile test by the Kim Jong Un regime in two days, in actions condemned as unacceptable by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. “North Korea is continuing to carry out provocative actions at frequency never seen before,” Kishida told reporters Friday at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in Bangkok, Thailand. Increased missile testsThe aggressive acceleration in weapons testing and rhetoric has sparked alarm in the region, with the US, South Korea and Japan responding with missile launches and joint military exercises. The tally includes both cruise and ballistic missiles, with the latter making up the majority of North Korean test this year. North Korea isn’t interested talking right now,” Lewis said.

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