A US group of foreign policy experts has called for boosting Japan-US cooperation in the face of challenges from China and North Korea.
The experts, including former US deputy secretary of state Richard Armitage and Harvard University Professor Joseph Nye, released a report on Monday.
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, says a capsule released by the agency's asteroid probe Hayabusa2 will arrive in Japan from Australia on Tuesday morning.
The capsule is believed to contain sand samples from the Ryugu asteroid. It was retrieved after landing in an Australian desert on Sunday.
The Japanese government says it's planning on temporarily lifting import tariffs on disposable gloves made of vinyl chloride. The goal is to make it easier for medical institutions to protect frontline workers against the coronavirus.
Most of the gloves used in Japan are imported and face a range of tariffs depending on where they are made. Chinese manufacturers account for nearly 80 percent of the market and typically face a tariff of nearly 5 percent.
Japan's space agency says it plans to transport a capsule released by its asteroid probe Hayabusa2 from Australia to Japan by plane as early as Monday night.
The flight will depart after scientists from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, analyze gas inside the capsule.
Japanese officials reported 2,497 new cases of coronavirus as of 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.
They also reported 13 deaths.
Japanese officials reported 2,493 new cases of coronavirus as of 7:00 p.m. on Saturday.
They also reported 13 deaths.
TOKYO — Japan may ban sales of new gasoline-engine cars by the mid-2030s in favor of hybrid or electric vehicles, public broadcaster NHK reported on Thursday, aligning it with other countries and regions that are imposing curbs on fossil fuel vehicles.
The move would follow Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's pledge in October for Japan to slash carbon emissions to zero on a net basis by 2050 and make the country the second G7 nation in a little over two weeks to set a deadline for phasing out gasoline vehicles.
Officials in Japan's western prefecture of Osaka are urging all residents to refrain from leaving their homes for any non-essential reason until the middle of this month. This follows a surge in the number of coronavirus cases with severe symptoms.
Osaka Governor Yoshimura Hirofumi said, "It's getting harder to provide treatment to people with serious symptoms. This is the right timing to issue a red alert. It's a declaration of an emergency in medical care. Our first priority will be protecting life."
Officials in Japan's western prefecture of Osaka plan to call on all residents to refrain from leaving their homes for any non-essential reason until mid-December. This follows a surge in the number of coronavirus cases with severe symptoms.
Osaka Governor Yoshimura Hirofumi said, "It's getting harder to provide treatment to people with serious symptoms. This is the right timing to issue a red alert. It's a declaration of an emergency in medical care. Our first priority will be protecting life."
Japan's Diet has enacted legislation to prepare to distribute and administer coronavirus vaccines.
The Upper House of the Diet unanimously approved on Wednesday a bill to revise laws related to immunization and quarantine to address the ongoing pandemic.
Japan is clamping down on exports of seeds and saplings as it looks to protect its food industry.
A revision to Japan's Plant Variety Protection and Seed Act on Wednesday allows developers to limit export destinations, as well as production areas in Japan, for registered new varieties of crops.
The number of seriously ill patients with COVID-19 across Japan hit 472 on Monday. That's a new record high, and the health minister says it's another sign the situation is growing more serious.
Health Minister Tamura Norihisa said, "The number of people in serious condition tends to lag behind new cases. So the fact that serious ones have increased to nearly 500 means we're facing a sense of crisis."
Japanese immigration authorities have temporarily enabled people who cannot return to their countries amid the coronavirus pandemic to work part-time in Japan.
The Immigration Services Agency put the measure into effect on Tuesday.
A survey by an aid group shows that some young people in Japan are giving up on higher education due to financial uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The survey was carried out in October and November by Ashinaga, a group that provides educational and emotional support to orphaned students worldwide.