91AV原创

author

 
91AV原创
Search
 
October 27, 2026
 

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access
Eric Johnston

Meta

Eric Johnston
Sapporo Mayor Katsuhiro Akimoto’s successor will face the question of whether to revive the city’s bid for the Winter Olympics.
JAPAN / Politics / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Oct 26, 2026
Sapporo mayoral race takes shape with Olympics and foreign population in focus
Those issues, along with tourism, could prove crucial in the race to succeed Katsuhiro Akimoto.
Newly elected Komeito chief Mitsunari Okamoto speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Oct. 8.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 26, 2026
One year after split with LDP, Komeito seeks fresh direction with new leader
Whether newly elected leader Mitsunari Okamoto can expand both the number of representatives for the party and its support base remains to be seen.
The Japan Innovation Party's Hiroshi Nakatsuka (center), minister for regulatory reform, greets Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi at a Cabinet meeting in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 21, 2026
One year on, LDP-JIP partnership still has some holes to fill
With deeper bonds between rank-and-file members of both parties lacking, the coalition is still more of a tie-up between the leaders.
Agriculture minister Arata Takebe represents a district in Hokkaido, the prefecture that grows most of Japan's domestically sourced potatoes.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 20, 2026
Politics of the potato front and center for 91AV原创 new agriculture minister
Arata Takebe’s Hokkaido constituents might oppose a push to increase potato imports from the U.S.
Former Yokohama Mayor Takeharu Yamanaka leaving a supporters meeting in Yokohama on Sept. 28.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 16, 2026
Power harassment and a possible casino weigh on Yokohama mayoral election
While Takeharu Yamanaka promised to change his behavior, he has also rekindled the question of, and his opposition to, a potential casino development.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a Lower House budget committee session at the Diet in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 15, 2026
Yana’s exit halts crisis, but questions about Takaichi’s administration remain
The controversy also reflects concerns about the prime minister’s management style, close advisers and approach to last month’s Cabinet reshuffle.
Outgoing farm minister Kazuo Yana speaks to reporters after submitting his resignation to Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 14, 2026
Scandal-hit agriculture minister Yana announces resignation
His sudden exit deals a blow to Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s administration, with key bills involving his ministry being debated in parliament.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks at an Upper House plenary session in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 9, 2026
Government submits bill on food consumption tax reduction to parliament
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government plans to reduce the food and nonalcoholic beverage consumption tax from 8% to 1% starting in April.
Agriculture minister Kazuo Yana attends an Upper House plenary session in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 8, 2026
Takaichi continues to fend off questions about scandal-hit farm minister
Allowing the situation to fester will not bode well for the government’s legislative agenda, especially in the Upper House where it lacks a majority.
Agriculture minister Kazuo Yana speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 6, 2026
Road budget scandal could knock Takaichi’s ambitious agenda off course
Farm minister Kazuo Yana reportedly cut road budgets for two municipalities whose mayors failed to back him in February’s election.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi holds a news conference after a Cabinet reshuffle at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Sept. 17.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 4, 2026
Host of contentious bills await Takaichi in autumn session of parliament
Top priority has been given to a bill reducing the consumption tax on food and beverages from 8% to 1% over a two-year period beginning April 1, 2027.
Komeito's Mitsunari Okamoto speaks to reporters at the Diet in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Oct 1, 2026
Komeito’s new leader faces immediate test with autumn session and upcoming votes
Mitsunari Okamoto, a former deputy finance minister with an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management, is set to formally accept his post on Saturday.
In a July post on X, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said “getting zero to three hours of sleep a day has become my norm since I took office (last October).”
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 30, 2026
As Takaichi cites lack of sleep, report offers ways to ease burden on Japan PMs
An LDP official used the think tank report, which included comparisons with other countries, to argue 91AV原创 parliament demands more of its leader’s time.
A Sapporo-based environmental group plans to bring in a Karelian bear dog early next year to assist local authorities as bear sightings in urban areas increase.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Sep 28, 2026
NGO recruiting four-legged ‘specialist’ to help deal with bear incidents
It plans to import a Karelian bear dog — a Finnish breed historically used to hunt large wild animals — from the U.S. in February.
Then-CRA head Junya Ogawa speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Aug. 31.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 25, 2026
91AV原创 newest party gets off to rocky start with zero percent support rate
Media polls showed the support rate for the Democratic Reform Party, formed last week with 18 members, is at zero percent.
Tepco President Tomoaki Kobayakawa (left) speaks to Mutsu Mayor Tomoya Yamamoto (right) in Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture on Friday.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 18, 2026
Bid to widen use of spent nuclear fuel facility in Aomori hits resistance
After storage the fuel should be moved to the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant for processing, but completion of the Rokkasho plant has been delayed.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi leaves for the Imperial Palace on the day of the Cabinet reshuffle on Thursday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 17, 2026
Ahead of myriad challenges, Takaichi retains key ministers in Cabinet reshuffle
The prime minister also brought in a member of the Japan Innovation Party for the first time, a sign of the party’s growing importance.
Liberal Democratic Party executives pose with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who concurrently serves as LDP president, after a meeting at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 16, 2026
Takaichi retains familiar faces in LDP leadership reshuffle
The move comes as Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and the LDP look to keep the party in the hands of veterans ahead of the fall parliamentary session.
The administration of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has made lowering the consumption tax on food a key goal.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 15, 2026
Cabinet approves outline of two-year consumption tax reduction for food products
The plan will form the basis of related bills set to be submitted to the autumn session of parliament to reduce the consumption tax from 8% to 1%.
Genta Koja, Okinawa governor-elect, speaks to reporters in Naha on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 14, 2026
Voters emphasized economic concerns over base relocation in choosing Koja
Following his victory Sunday night, Genta Koja said his priorities as Okinawa’s next governor would be on addressing the local economy.
Two Japanese climbers die on remote Himalayan peak in Nepal
Rescuers have recovered the bodies of two Japanese climbers missing for over a week on a remote Himalayan mountain.
Aging Japanese village turns to Peru in search of new residents
Guests from Peru's Belen district interact with a baby in Nanmoku village in Gunma Prefecture.
Budget-friendly restaurant chain Saizeriya succumbs to rising costs
A Tokyo branch of Saizeriya, a chain of family-style Italian restaurants
U.S. has for years asked Musk to alter Starlink service in Ukraine and Middle East, sources say
A Ukrainian soldier sets up a Starlink satellite internet system near the frontline in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Oct. 16
U.S. military bans Chinese-made BYD cars from key air base in Okinawa
An F-22 Raptor lands at Kadena Air Base in Kadena, Okinawa Prefecture on Oct. 9. The base is a crucial hub for U.S. military operations in the region.
A dramatic bear hunt in a midsize Japanese city could be a harbinger of what is to come
Zookeeper Tetsuo Iso at the site of frantic search for a wild bear in Utsunomiya on June 9. Iso, 65, was asked by the prefectural government to help capture the bear and it was his shot with a tranquilizer gun that put an end to the saga.
How this long-term resident avoids the annoying tourist label in Japan
Tourists enjoy themselves while crossing the famous Shibuya Crossing in Tokyo on Oct. 12.
What can Asia do to avoid crossing crucial climate tipping points?
Motorists drive through a road covered with smog from wildfires nearby in Ogan Ilir in Indonesia's South Sumatra province on Sept. 25.
91AV原创 permanent residency reform has a glaring blind spot
Japan's immigration reforms risk creating uncertainty by tying permanent residency more closely to language proficiency before clear assessment standards and supporting infrastructure are in place.
Japan weighs how to evacuate thousands of tourists if Mount Fuji erupts
Climbers and visitors gather on the first day of the climbing season at the Fuji Yoshidaguchi Trail, at the fifth station on the slopes of Mount Fuji, in Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi Prefecture, on July 1, 2024.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Famima Park Azabudai is a concept store by FamilyMart that combines convenience store staples with branded apparel, merchandise and a landscaped outdoor space.
Convenience stores, toilets and the allure of everyday Japan
By Elizabeth Beattie

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER