Latest news with #ShigeruIshiba
The Mainichi
an hour ago
- Politics
- The Mainichi
Japan PM to visit Netherlands from Tuesday for NATO summit
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will be in the Netherlands for three days from Tuesday to attend a NATO summit, the government said Friday, as Japan aims to deepen its partnership with the military alliance. It will be the fourth straight year that a sitting Japanese prime minister has participated in a NATO summit. Japan is not a NATO member but is one of the alliance's Indo-Pacific partners. Ishiba also plans to hold bilateral talks with leaders of NATO members and those of its partners while in the Hague for the summit, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said. U.S. President Donald Trump is among the expected attendees at the two-day summit from Tuesday. "Given the severe security environment we face, and based on the shared view that the security of the Euro-Atlantic and that of the Indo-Pacific are inseparable, Japan, along with other partners from the region, will discuss how we can cooperate with NATO in concrete terms," Hayashi said. At a meeting in Tokyo in April, Ishiba and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte underlined the need to strengthen the Japan-NATO partnership amid security threats from Russia and China and agreed to push for defense industry cooperation.
The Star
3 hours ago
- Business
- The Star
Rice prices double in Japan as inflation accelerates
A customer purchases a bag of government stockpiled rice on sale in a section of convenience store chain Seven-Eleven Japan in Tokyo on June 17, 2025. The price of rice went up 101 per cent on-year in May. - AFP TOKYO: Rice prices doubled last month in Japan as core inflation accelerated, official data showed Friday (June 20), posing a threat to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba ahead of July elections. The vote for parliament's upper house, due next month, is crucial for Ishiba after public support for his government tumbled to its lowest level since he took office in October, partly due to frustration over the cost of living. In May, Japan's core inflation rate, which excludes volatile fresh food prices, hit 3.7 per cent - its highest level since January 2023 - interior ministry data showed. The figure narrowly beat market expectations and was up from a 3.5 per cent year-on-year rise logged in April. Rice was more than twice as expensive as a year previously - despite the government releasing its emergency stockpile of the staple grain to try to bring its price down. A supply chain snarl-up has caused a shortage of rice in shops, with the grain's price up 101 per cent on-year in May, compared to the eye-watering 98 per cent rise in April. The government began releasing stockpiles in February in an attempt to drive down prices, something it has only previously done during disasters. Electricity bills were 11.3 per cent higher in May, and gas fees rose 5.4 per cent, according to Friday's data. Excluding energy and fresh food, Japan's consumer price index (CPI) rose 3.3 per cent, compared to April's 3.0 per cent. To help households combat inflation, Ishiba has pledged cash handouts of 20,000 yen (US$139) for every citizen, and twice as much for children, ahead of the election. The 68-year-old leader's coalition was deprived of a majority in the powerful lower house in October as voters vented their anger at rising prices and political scandals. It was the worst election result in 15 years for the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has governed Japan almost continuously since 1955. Earlier this week the Bank of Japan kept its interest rates unchanged and said it would taper its purchase of government bonds at a slower pace, as trade uncertainty threatens to weigh on the world's number four economy. "Policy flip-flops and delayed pass-through from producers to consumers mean inflation will slow only gradually in the coming months," said Stefan Angrick of Moody's Analytics. "This will keep a sustained pickup in real wages out of reach, and with it a meaningful uptick in consumption." Factors behind the rice shortages include an intensely hot and dry summer two years ago that damaged harvests nationwide. Since then some traders have been hoarding rice in a bid to boost their profits down the line, experts say. The issue was made worse by panic-buying last year prompted by a government warning about a potential "megaquake" that did not strike. Going forward, US tariffs are expected to weigh on Japan's growth, with economists predicting a slowdown ahead. Intensifying fighting between Iran and Israel was also adding pressure for energy prices to head north, posing a further risk to the Japanese economy. - AFP
4 hours ago
- Politics
Japan Min. Iwaya to Visit Netherlands for G-7 Meet
News from Japan Politics Jun 20, 2025 18:56 (JST) Tokyo, June 20 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya said Friday that he will visit The Hague in the Netherlands for three days from Tuesday to attend an anticipated meeting of the Group of Seven foreign ministers. The meeting is currently being arranged on the sidelines of a NATO summit. The G-7 foreign ministers are expected to discuss the current situation in the Middle East amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, and Russia's continuing invasion of Ukraine. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will take part in the NATO summit. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
Japan Times
5 hours ago
- Business
- Japan Times
¥1.9 trillion over five years eyed for 2011 tsunami reconstruction
Japan adopted a new basic policy on Friday for reconstruction after the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, expecting projects worth ¥1.9 trillion for the next five years from fiscal 2026. The amount tops ¥1.6 trillion for the five years through fiscal 2025, which ends in March. Under the basic policy, the government will tackle such issues as the final disposal of soil removed during radiation decontamination after the nuclear accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings' Fukushima No. 1 power plant. The government will also promote the return of evacuees to their homes in areas affected by the radiation from the nuclear accident. "With a strong determination to resolve problems for reconstruction within the next five years, all the cabinet members will accelerate reconstruction efforts further, staying considerate to those in affected areas," Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba told a meeting of the government's council for reconstruction from the disaster. The basic policy calls for studying the idea of allowing forest management and some other activities in areas where entry is heavily restricted due to the radiation from the nuclear accident. The government will also promote the use of soil collected during decontamination work in public works projects and continue to financially support disaster-affected municipalities with special grants. Of the ¥1.9 trillion projected for the next five years, ¥1.6 trillion will go to reconstruction efforts in Fukushima Prefecture, devastated by the Tepco accident on top of the quake and tsunami. The tsunami-hit prefectures of Iwate and Miyagi will each secure some ¥100 billion.
Japan Times
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
Ishiba calls for expanding Japan-South Korea exchanges
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has called for expanding exchanges between Japan and South Korea as this year marks the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between the two neighboring countries. "We want to pass on the baton of exchanges we have nurtured to the next generation while further broadening the scope of Japan-South Korea cooperation," Ishiba said in a speech at a reception hosted by the South Korean Embassy in Tokyo on Thursday to commemorate the anniversary. Ishiba said that he had very good discussions with South Korean President Lee Jae-myung when they met in Canada on Tuesday on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit. "As the strategic environment surrounding Japan and South Korea is becoming increasingly severe, let's take a new step toward a better future hand in hand," the prime minister stressed. Meanwhile, South Korean Ambassador to Japan Park Cheol-hee said that the bilateral relations have continuously deepened despite twists and turns in the past. Park called for further developing the friendly relations and continuing the efforts to make them sustainable. The reception was also attended by Fumio Kishida and Yoshihide Suga, both former prime ministers. Suga currently serves as head of the Japan-Korea Parliamentarians' Union.
