Tag Archives: Tokyo

Rain hampered Japanese rescuers seeking 20 missing people on Sunday after landslides triggered by torrential rains hit the central city of Atami, killing at least two, Kyodo news agency said. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said about 19 people were rescued and about 130 buildings were affected after floods, landslides and …

The Japanese embassy in Manila has announced that Japan and the Philippines will deepen their defense ties by holding their first-ever joint exercises next week, in an apparent attempt to counter Chinese influence in the region. In a statement on Thursday, the Japanese embassy hailed the drills as a “significant …

Spat about an Olympics map escalates as South Korea kicks off naval drills near disputed islands and leaders call off planned talks. South Korea’s military began annual drills on Tuesday around a set of islands also claimed by Japan, days after planned talks between the two countries leaders were called …

A top Japanese virologist and government adviser have warned of the risks of spreading COVID-19 infections during the Tokyo Olympics, the Times of London reported on Tuesday, the latest high-profile caveat about the global sporting showpiece. Tohoku University professor Hiroshi Oshitani was an architect of Japan’s “Three Cs” approach to …

In what might be the unlikeliest indicator of a post-pandemic recovery, a pair of premium Japanese melons have sold for $24,800 at auction, over 22 times more than last year’s virus-hit price. The 2.7 million yen price tag at the season’s first auction for the famed Yubari melons is still …

Sporting body chief offers Tokyo medical help, says most residents at Olympic Village will be vaccinated. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has sought to reassure a Japanese public anxious over Tokyo’s hosting of the Summer Games during the coronavirus pandemic, announcing that most athletes will be vaccinated before the sporting …

IOC President Thomas Bach has canceled a trip to Japan because of surging cases of COVID-19 in the country, the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee said Monday in a statement. Bach was to visit Hiroshima next Monday and meet the torch relay and then probably travel to Tokyo. Organizing committee president …

Japan extended on Friday a state of emergency in Tokyo and three other areas until the end of May to stem a surge in coronavirus cases, but Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga reiterated that it is still possible to host Tokyo Olympics this summer. The government had hoped a “short and …

Japan was hit by its biggest economic slump on record in the second quarter as the coronavirus pandemic emptied shopping malls and crushed demand for cars and other exports, bolstering the case for bolder policy action to prevent a deeper recession. The third straight quarter of declines knocked the size …

Thousands of protesters in Tokyo took part in a Black Lives Matter march on Sunday, calling for an end to racial discrimination and police abuse after the killing of African American George Floyd in Minneapolis last month. Demonstrators marched through the streets of the capital’s Shibuya and Harajuku districts chanting …

Japan’s largest advertising agency, Dentsu Group Corp, has evacuated its Tokyo headquarters after receiving a bomb threat, an internal company email reviewed by Reuters showed on Friday. “Warning of explosion at Dentsu’s Shiodome headquarters building with deadline past 7:00 a.m. on June 7, Sunday” a message sent via the company’s …

The Tokyo government on Tuesday warned citizens to stay at home unless they had urgent business and to practice social distancing after recording 34 new coronavirus infections, the highest since early May. Japan lifted a state of emergency for the capital on May 25.

It is a scene repeated the world over: pedestrians glued to their phones while walking, causing collisions and sometimes accidents. No more, says one Japanese city. Officials in Yamato city, near Tokyo, on Monday, submitted a bill to the city assembly to stop people from using their phones while walking. …

Japan has lifted a state of emergency imposed due to the coronavirus in 39 out of 47 prefectures, after a sharp fall in new infections. The order still applies in Tokyo, Osaka, and on the northern island of Hokkaido, where new cases are emerging daily. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said …

The Japanese government, under fire for a limited number of coronavirus tests conducted, eased access to such tests on Friday and indicated that a new test supplementing the currently dominant polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test could be approved next week. The Health Ministry said it now wants people experiencing difficulty …

Coronavirus patients with light symptoms arriving to stay at several Tokyo hotels are likely to get a lift from a pleasant surprise – a robot greeter in the lobby. Japan is now using hotels to house patients who have tested positive for the coronavirus but whose symptoms are too light …

Japan is to declare a state of emergency in Tokyo and six other prefectures as early as Tuesday in a bid to stop the coronavirus, the prime minister said, with the government preparing a stimulus package to soften the economic blow. More than 3,500 people have tested positive for the …

A decision was taken by the International Olympic Committee in agreement with the Japanese Government and Tokyo 2020 organizing committee to delay this summer’s Olympic and Paralympic Games until 2021 due to the worldwide outbreak of Covid-19, which has hampered athletes in their preparations and seen a number of competing …

Major sporting nations Australia and Canada quit the Tokyo 2020 Olympics on Monday as organizers faced global pressure to postpone the Games due to the coronavirus crisis for the first time in their 124-year modern history. Putting back the July 24-Aug. 9 event, as is looking inevitable, would be a …

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reiterated his desire to hold the Olympic Games in their “complete form,” and indicated he wasn’t thinking of reducing the scale of the event or holding the games behind closed doors. Speaking in parliament, Abe said that the games must be safe and secure for …