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July 12, 2026
 

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SHINZO ABE

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and other LDP leaders celebrate at the Diet after the dissolution of the House of Representatives on Jan. 23, days after calling for a snap election.
EDITORIALS
Feb 6, 2026
Takaichi and the LDP appear poised for a big win
Takaichi’s performance has surprised most observers. Not only did she take office with sky-high approval ratings, but she has maintained them since October.
A protester rallies in Nara on Jan. 21 against the life sentence handed down to Tetsuya Yamagami for fatally shooting former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2022.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 4, 2026
Assassin of Shinzo Abe files appeal against life sentence
Tetsuya Yamagami reportedly agreed to appeal after strong persuasion from his lawyers.
Sanseito supporters listen as the party’s leader, Sohei Kamiya, speaks at an election campaign event in Tokyo on Jan. 27, the first day of official campaigning for the Feb. 8 snap election. 
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 3, 2026
Has Takaichi secured a win? Conservative voters are returning to the LDP.
Takaichi’s confidence in calling an election just four months into her tenure as Japan’s leader comes from high public approval and a general fragmentation in the opposition ranks.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi holds talks with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in Nara on Jan. 13. Once a central diplomatic actor, Japan is increasingly absent as global power rivalries intensify.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 30, 2026
The cost of silence: Japan’s diminishing relevance
This diplomatic fade is more than a temporary slump. Japan is experiencing a crisis of international relevance at precisely the moment when the rules-based order is fracturing.
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi meets with his Swiss counterpart, Martin Pfister, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday. Japan should revitalize the OECD as a hub for middle powers, moving beyond the Group of Seven and Bretton Woods.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 23, 2026
After Davos, middle powers matter more than ever
Japan is well placed to act as a custodian of cooperation among countries that still depend on functioning markets but can no longer rely on a single guarantor.
The perpetrator behind the fatal shooting of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in July 2022 was motivated by his belief that Abe had ties with the controversial Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, widely known as the Unification Church.
JAPAN
Jan 21, 2026
Rescue for victims of religious parents still lacking in Japan
An expert emphasized the importance of continuing to review support systems for such victims, amid lackluster progress in aid and awareness activities.
Outside the Nara District Court in the city of Nara ahead of the sentencing of Tetsuya Yamagami, the man behind the July 2022 assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 21, 2026
Shinzo Abe’s assassin gets life sentence
The sentence meted out to Tetsuya Yamagami, who shot the former prime minister in Nara in July 2022, brings an end to the trial for a murder that shocked Japan.
News reporters gather in front of the Nara District Court on Oct. 28, when the trial of Tetsuya Yamagami, charged with fatally shooting former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, opened.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 20, 2026
Shinzo Abe’s assassin faces verdict
One of the key points in the trial is how the judges will weigh on Tetsuya Yamagami’s troubled upbringing and motivations for fatally shooting the former prime minister.
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yoshihiko Noda (left) and his Komeito counterpart, Tetsuo Saito, announce their coalition's new name, the Centrist Reform Alliance, at a joint news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 18, 2026
Komeito and CDP form new party, but doubts linger over political viability
The new party, the Centrist Reform Alliance, has an uninspired name and logo, suggesting a rushed and unconvincing partnership.
Liberal Democratic Party leader and the current prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, meets with Hirofumi Yoshimura, leader of the Japan Innovation Party, at the national Diet building in Tokyo in late October.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 13, 2026
Why Takaichi would call a snap election
Takaichi may dissolving the Lower House of the parliament upon its mandatory convocation later this month, which would prompt a general election sometime in February.
A concept model of the Global Combat Air Programme’s fighter jet is displayed at the DSEI Japan defense show in Chiba in March 2023. Improving ties between Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and her Italian counterpart, Giorgia Meloni, have helped deepen Japan-Italy defense and security cooperation.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 9, 2026
Takaichi-Meloni summit signals new era, stronger ties
Prime Minister Takaichi’s upcoming meeting with Prime Minister Meloni later this month will help mark 160 years of diplomatic ties and aim to strengthen bilateral relations.
The Unification Church’s headquarters in Seoul
JAPAN
Jan 2, 2026
Unification Church reportedly backed 290 LDP lawmakers in 2021 poll
The figure compares with the Liberal Democratic Party’s announcement in 2022 that 180 of its lawmakers had ties with the group.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and U.S. President Donald Trump address sailors and others aboard the aircraft carrier USS George Washington during a visit to the U.S. Navy’s Yokosuka base on Oct. 28.
EDITORIALS
Dec 31, 2025
As the U.S. steps back, Japan must step up
In the wake of Trump’s reassessment of the U.S. place in the world, Japan should be ready to step up.
Tetsuya Yamagami in Nara in July 2022. Earlier that month Yamagami had shot the former prime minister with an improvised shotgun at point-blank range.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Dec 23, 2025
The making of Shinzo Abe’s assassin
Tetsuya Yamagami’s path to the assassination had many turning points, but his alarm over the Unification Church’s ties with the prime minister, and financial woes, drove him on.
Kazuhiro Sugita
JAPAN / Society
Dec 23, 2025
Kazuhiro Sugita, longest-serving deputy chief cabinet secretary, dies at 84
Well-versed in crisis management and intelligence issues, his calm demeanor won the trust of former prime ministers.
The Nara District Court in November. Prosecutors in the trial of Tetsuya Yamagami, charged with the fatal shooting of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, have focused on the cruel and premeditated nature of the killing.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 18, 2025
Prosecutors demand life sentence for suspect in Shinzo Abe shooting
Tetsuya Yamagami, who pleaded guilty to fatally shooting Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2022, is standing trial for murder and other charges at Nara District Court.
The Moritomo documents, totaling more than 170,000 pages, were voluntarily submitted by the Finance Ministry to prosecutors.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 18, 2025
Japan shows fifth set of Moritomo papers to ex-official’s widow
The Moritomo documents, totaling more than 170,000 pages, were voluntarily submitted by the ministry to prosecutors.
U.S. President Donald Trump meets with the leaders of Malaysia, Thailand and Cambodia after the ceremonial signing of a ceasefire agreement between Thailand and Cambodia on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur on Oct. 26. Hostilities between the two countries have since resumed.  
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 16, 2025
White House 2025 Asia upheaval set to continue in 2026
Will the Trump administration learn from its counterproductive actions in Asia in 2025? It seems unlikely.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi chats with Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara during a plenary session of the House of Representatives at the National Diet in Tokyo on Dec. 8.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 14, 2025
What will Japan’s planned intelligence bureau look like?
Ultimately, this is an evolutionary measure that seeks to break down government intelligence silos and improve the information being provided to the highest levels of government.
Journalist and director Shiori Ito speaks during a stage greeting after the Japanese release of the "Black Box Diaries" in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 13, 2025
Shiori Ito’s Oscar-nominated #MeToo film finally screened in Japan
A Japanese #MeToo campaigner's documentary premiered in her homeland on Friday after months of delays, with one audience member saying she hoped it triggered a change in society.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese scientists identify neural mechanism that may explain why we dislike people
The aggressive mouse (left) used in the experiment and a mouse defending itself
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

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One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
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