The Japanese Foreign Ministry has announced that it has confirmed moves by China to build a new structure on the Chinese side of the median line between the two countries in the East China Sea. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/17/japan/china-east-china-sea-structure/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #china #chinajapanrelations #eastchinasea #gas #minerals
The approval rate for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Cabinet increased 1.1 percentage points from the previous month to 61% in January, a poll has found. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/16/japan/politics/takaichi-cabinet-poll-january/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #sanaetakaichi #surveys #cabinet #china #taiwan #chinajapanrelations
Japanese companies are still evaluating the effects of China’s latest export controls, including on rare earths, with any impact unlikely to be apparent until February, according to a person familiar with the matter. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2026/01/14/companies/japan-companies-assess-china-rare-earth-curbs/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #companies #rareearths #chinajapanrelations #china #trade
Japan has roughly 12 years to overhaul its postwar strategy, military posture and political mindset to preserve its autonomy and deter China as U.S. reliability fades and regional power balances shift. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2026/01/13/world/japan-cant-afford-strategic-confusion/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #worldnews #usjapanrelations #chinajapanrelations #defense #china #sdf #xijinping #donaldtrump #sanaetakaichi
Finance ministers from the Group of Seven major industrial nations agreed at a meeting in Washington on Monday to take measures quickly to enhance supply chains for rare earth minerals. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2026/01/13/economy/g7-rare-earth-supply-issue/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #economy #china #chinajapanrelations #sanaetakaichi #defense #rareearths #trade #g7 #scottbessent #washington
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s meeting with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday is expected to reconfirm improving bilateral ties as Japan faces a diplomatic falling-out with another key neighbor, China. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/13/japan/politics/japan-south-korea-takaichi-lee-nara/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #southkoreajapanrelations #southkorea #leejaemyung #sanaetakaichi #china #chinajapanrelations #indopacific #defense #taiwan #northkorea
A Japanese mining ship has departed for a remote coral atoll to probe mud rich in rare earths on the seabed as part of Tokyo’s drive to curb its reliance on China for critical minerals as Beijing tightens supply. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/12/japan/japan-rare-earth-hunt/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #china #chinajapanrelations #rareearths #trade
The U.S. will host a gathering of Group of Seven ministers to discuss rare earths this week as Japan steps up efforts to reach out to its G7 peers and others amid concerns over new export restrictions China has imposed. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/12/japan/g7-japan-rare-earths/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #china #chinajapanrelations #sanaetakaichi #defense #rareearths #trade #g7
China cutting off rare-earth exports to Japan over the Taiwan issue will have a limited impact because Japan and other countries have diversified supplies and taken steps to weaken Beijing’s long-term leverage. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2026/01/11/japan/china-rare-earths-japan/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #japan #chins #chinajapanrelations #sanaetakaichi #taiwan #defense #rareearths #trade
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is believed to be eyeing a snap election as early as next month, with the co-leader of the LDP's ruling coalition partner saying her thinking on the matter had "shifted to a new stage." https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/11/japan/politics/japan-takaichi-snap-election/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #sanaetakaichi #diet #ldp #nipponishinnokai #diet #lowerhouse #dpp #chinajapanrelations #jip #osakaishinnokai
China has restricted dual-use exports to Japan that can be used for military purposes, including rare-earth elements, prompting Tokyo to reduce dependence on Chinese supply chains. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/editorials/2026/01/09/china-lawfare-japan/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #editorials #chinajapanrelations #sanaetakaichi #taiwan #defense #rareearths #trade #china
China is ramping up objections to what it sees as Japan’s desire to acquire nuclear weapons, despite Tokyo’s long-standing renunciation of such arms. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/10/japan/china-japan-nuclear-ties-sour/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #chinajapanrelations #sanaetakaichi #nuclearweapons #china
Japan is ramping up efforts to reach out to its Group of Seven peers and beyond amid mounting concerns over China’s grip on rare earths as the dispute with Beijing escalates. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/10/japan/japan-support-china-rare-earth/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #china #rareearths #chinajapanrelations #g7 #us #satsukikatayama
The Japanese public now sees China’s growing military power as the country’s leading security concern, overtaking the threat posed by North Korean nuclear missiles, according to a government survey. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/09/japan/politics/china-worries-government-poll/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #china #chinajapanrelations #sanaetakaichi #surveys #taiwan
China blinks again following its dual-use export threat earlier in the week, signaling for a second day running that the restrictions are not meant to upend trade. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2026/01/09/economy/china-dual-blink/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #economy #chinajapanrelations #sanaetakaichi #taiwan #defense #rareearths #trade #china
Uichiro Niwa, former president of Japanese trading house Itochu and the first individual from the private sector to be appointed Japanese ambassador to China has died at the age of 86. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/09/japan/ex-itochu-president-envoy-china-obituary/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #chinajapanrelations #china #uichironiwa #itochu #foreignministry
China upped the ante on the trade front with Japan and then offered a glimmer of hope, saying that civilian companies don’t have to worry about the dual-use export ban. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2026/01/08/economy/dumping-dual-use/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #economy #chinajapanrelations #sanaetakaichi #taiwan #defense #rareearths #trade #china
China's dual-use export ban on Japan is a decisive escalation, with established trade flows at risk if the restrictions are fully implemented. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2026/01/07/economy/china-dual-use/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #economy #chinajapanrelations #sanaetakaichi #taiwan #defense #rareearths #trade #china
China imposed controls on exports to Japan with any military use, intensifying a dispute between Asia’s top economies over remarks Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made last year on Taiwan. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/06/asia-pacific/china-dual-use-export-ban/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #chinajapanrelations #sanaetakaichi #taiwan #defense
China's Xi Jinping has urged visiting South Korean leader Lee Jae Myung to make the “correct" choices, as Beijing seeks a united front amid its standoff with Japan over Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks on Taiwan. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/06/japan/politics/china-south-korea-xi-lee-japan/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #southkorea #southkoreajapanrelations #leejaemyung #xijinping #taiwan #pla #sanaetakaichi #chinajapanrelations #indopacific #northkorea