Politics
Suga cabinet to face no-confidence motion from opposition parties
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's cabinet will face a no-confidence motion from opposition parties over its refusal to extend the current Diet session, the Kyodo news agency reported on Monday, though it is very unlikely to succeed. The opposition parties plan to submit the motion on Tuesday, Kyodo said, citing… Read
85 plaintiffs appeal S Korean court ruling dismissing wartime labor case
Most of the more than 80 plaintiffs in a damages suit against 16 Japanese companies over wartime labor on Monday appealed a recent South Korean district court ruling that dismissed their case. Some of the plaintiffs and their supporters also held a gathering outside the Seoul court the same day… Read
Suga not ruling out election if no-confidence vote submitted
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Sunday he would not rule out dissolving the House of Representatives for a general election if opposition parties make good on their threat to submit a vote of no confidence against his Cabinet. Speaking to reporters after wrapping up a three-day summit with other… Read
Taiwan thanks Japanese lawmakers for supporting bid to join WHO assembly
Taiwan has thanked the upper house of the Japanese Diet for passing a resolution supporting the self-ruled island's participation in the World Health Organization's annual assembly. The House of Councillors on Friday unanimously passed the nonpartisan motion calling on all countries to allow Taiwan's participation in the World Health Assembly… Read
Biden says he supports Suga's plan to hold safe Tokyo Olympics
U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday reiterated his support for Japan's plan to hold a safe Tokyo Olympics next month amid the coronavirus pandemic, as he briefly talked with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga. During their conversation on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Britain, Biden offered… Read
S Korea rulings on wartime cases may reflect judges' conviction
Court rulings have emerged lately in South Korea that upset civic group supporters of liberal President Moon Jae In's government over wartime labor compensation and "comfort women," two issues that have bedeviled relations between Japan and South Korea. According to one judicial source, what lay behind those rulings, which dismissed… Read
Main opposition party calls for 3-month extension of Diet session
The main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan on Friday called for the ongoing parliamentary session to be extended by three months to allow further debate on the government's COVID-19 response and the staging of the Tokyo Olympics next month. Jun Azumi, the CDPJ's head of Diet affairs, made the… Read
Johnson backs Tokyo Olympics; Japan wants more G7 support
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Friday gave the Tokyo Olympics a show of public support at a meeting with Japan's Yoshihide Suga and welcomed efforts to ensure the Games can take place safely. The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, which were postponed last year due to the global spread of… Read
Japan enacts revised referendum law in constitutional amendment push
The Diet passed a bill Friday to amend procedures for a national referendum, in a step toward the possibility of a revision to its war-renouncing Constitution and giving the government more emergency powers. The revision to the national referendum law makes it easier for citizens to vote, allowing them to… Read
Suga arrives in Britain for G7 summit
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga arrived in Britain early Friday to attend a summit of the Group of Seven industrialized nations, with discussions set to focus on tackling global challenges such as economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, climate change, and China's growing economic and military influence. "I look forward… Read
