Japan's health ministry has decided to back domestic development of vaccines for eight types of infectious diseases, to avoid a shortage like the one experienced during the coronavirus pandemic.

Japan at one time had a serious shortage of coronavirus vaccines, because domestic pharmaceutical companies were not as successful as those overseas in developing them.

Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko says taking pre-emptive measures to prevent deaths from the coronavirus is the key for fighting the current rise in new infections. She says Tokyo officials will support people who test positive to ensure they don't become seriously ill.

She was speaking on Wednesday as daily case counts in the Japanese capital more than doubled from a week ago for the second straight day.

Japanese and Ukrainian ballet dancers have staged a charity event to support Ukraine's national ballet company amid Russia's ongoing military invasion.

The performance was held in Tokyo on Tuesday. It was organized by Kusakari Tamiyo, a former ballerina who was one of Japan's top dancers.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo has collapsed on the street after being shot in the western prefecture of Nara. He was making a speech for an election campaign. The fire department says he is showing no vital signs. Police say a man was arrested at the scene.

Abe was campaigning for a Liberal Democratic Party candidate in Nara City. He collapsed at around 11: 30 a.m. Abe was taken to a hospital.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo collapsed on the street in the western city of Nara while making a speech for an election campaign. The fire department says he is showing no vital signs. Police say a man has been taken into custody.

Abe was supporting a Liberal Democratic Party candidate's election campaign. He collapsed at around 11: 30 a.m. He was taken to a hospital.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo collapsed on the street in the western city of Nara while making a speech for a Liberal Democratic Party candidate's election campaign at around 11: 30 a.m. An NHK reporter who was at the scene says he may have been shot.

The fire department says he is showing no vital signs.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo was reportedly shot while he was delivering a speech on the street on Friday morning in Nara Prefecture.

Liberal Democratic Party sources close to Abe say they heard that Abe was shot in the chest and was taken to hospital.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo collapsed in the western city of Nara at around 11: 30 a.m.

Abe was making a speech on the street. An NHK reporter says Abe was bleeding. The reporter heard what sounded like a gun going off.

The top diplomats of Japan and Australia have agreed to continue boosting their cooperation on security and defense to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific region.

Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa and his Australian counterpart Penny Wong met on Thursday in Indonesia, where they traveled to attend a Group of 20 meeting.

The head of a group representing Japan's travel industry has called on the government to expand a travel subsidy scheme nationwide in early July.

Takahashi Hiroyuki, chairperson of the Japan Association of Travel Agents, told reporters on Thursday that the government should implement the program as early as possible to revitalize local economies.

Kabuki Actor Ichikawa Ebizo says he will work hard to live up to the prestigious centuries' old stage name of Ichikawa Danjuro he will assume in November.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Ebizo announced the plays he will perform at the Kabukiza Theatre in November and December to mark his name succession.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government reported 8,529 new cases of the coronavirus on Thursday. The figure is up more than 4,900 from a week ago, or 2.4 times the total last Thursday.

This marks the 20th straight day of week-on-week increase and the third consecutive day that the daily tally more than doubled from a week earlier.

Japan's Defense Ministry says a Russian naval vessel entered a zone just outside Japanese waters near the country's southernmost island of Okinotorishima.

It's the first time the ministry has publicized an entry by a Russian naval ship into the contiguous zone around the island.

In Japan, COVID-19 cases are increasing again after a period of decline. On Wednesday, the nationwide count came to 45,000, or double the figure a week earlier.

Many of those cases were reported in Tokyo where over 8,300 new infections were confirmed on the day. It was the first time since mid-April that the daily tally in the capital topped 8,000.