Tokyo, Aug. 10 (Jiji Press)–Japan is seen continuing to face difficulties in improving ties with China and South Korea after Wednesday’s reshuffle of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s cabinet, in which Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi was kept in the post.     Kishida hopes that keeping Hayashi as the country’s top diplomat will advance the Japanese leader’s “new-era realism diplomacy,” announced late….Read more

A mutual legal assistance treaty between Japan and Vietnam to facilitate criminal investigations between the two countries will take effect on Aug. 31.   The accord is intended to enhance cooperation between Japanese and Vietnamese authorities, amid a rise in crimes committed by Vietnamese nationals in Japan.   Signed by representatives of both countries last November, the treaty was approved….Read more

Tokyo, Aug. 11 (Jiji Press)–Nine Japanese people were among foreigners who entered Ukraine to fight for the country in the war with Russia as of Friday last week, the Russian Defense Ministry has said.     The number of such Japanese increased by one from July and compared with two from China and one from South Korea, the ministry said.     According….Read more

The post of minister for economic cooperation with Russia has been maintained under the second reshuffled cabinet of Prime Minister Kishida Fumio. Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Nishimura Yasutoshi will serve in the post. After the government imposed sanctions on Russia in response to the country’s invasion of Ukraine in February, members of both the ruling and opposition camps….Read more

Kyodo News reported that China said on Wednesday that it hopes the new cabinet of Prime Minister Kishida will work toward “sound and steady” bilateral ties after their recent deterioration over tensions in the Taiwan Strait. “China attaches importance to China-Japan relations and we hope the new cabinet can work together with China and promote bilateral relations to develop along….Read more

All national dailies reported on House Speaker Pelosi’s interview with MSNBC on Tuesday, during which she reportedly said that although China has kept Taiwan from participating in the World Health Organization and other international organizations “where Taiwan can make a very valued contribution” and may try to keep U.S. lawmakers from going to Taiwan, they will not allow China to….Read more

TOKYO — South Korean politicians across party lines want to avoid the liquidation of Japanese corporate assets seized as compensation for wartime labor, Seoul’s ambassador to Tokyo tells Nikkei, calling for a moratorium on such sales to buy time for further discussions.   “Former President Moon Jae-in had also said he did not want Japanese corporate assets to be sold,”….Read more

A country threatens to use force and closes the door to diplomacy when confronted with other countries’ actions that go against its wishes. No one will see China as a major power that aspires to peaceful development when it engages in this kind of behavior.   China continues to conduct large-scale military exercises in areas surrounding Taiwan. China’s defense ministry….Read more