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August 12, 2026
 

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CRA

Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa (center) and Komeito leader Toshiko Takeya (right) at a ceremony to mark 81 years since the atomic bombing of Hiroshima on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 6, 2026
Opposition leaders voice concerns over Takaichi¡¯s Hiroshima address
Yuichiro Tamaki, head of the Democratic Party for the People, pointed out that Takaichi ¡°just reiterated the government¡¯s long-standing policy.¡±
The Centrist Reform Alliance was formed by House of Representatives lawmakers from the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and Komeito
JAPAN
Jul 22, 2026
More CDP prefectural chapters oppose merger into CRA
In a survey of senior prefectural chapter officials earlier in July, 15 chapters expressed opposition, outnumbering the seven that showed support, while 25 chapters did not answer.
Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa says a difference of opinion on the royals bill among three opposition parties won't have a large impact on ongoing merger talks between them.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 16, 2026
CDP and CRA¡¯s opposing stances on imperial family bills cloud prospect for merger
The CDP opposes a clause that allows future male offspring of newly reinstated members of the imperial family to become heirs.
The Lower House plenary session, which passed legislation on the dwindling number of imperial family members on Friday
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 10, 2026
Bills on preservation of imperial family pass Lower House
The pieces of legislation will now be deliberated in the Upper House, which is expected to clear them by the end of the current session of parliament.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during a parliament committee session on June 26.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 5, 2026
Takaichi holds key to breaking parliament deadlock
Political maneuvering is expected to intensify, with less than two weeks to go before the current parliament session ends on July 17.
Three major opposition parties are hoping to finalize a three-way merger by this fall.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 2, 2026
Opposition parties CRA, CDP and Komeito discuss merger
The three parties agreed that they should establish a new political structure ahead of the fall session of parliament.
Masayo Tanabu, secretary-general of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and a senior Upper House lawmaker, speaks during an interview with The Japan Times in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 1, 2026
Â鶹´«Ã½ opposition faces a make-or-break choice over wider integration
The Centrist Reform Alliance has yet to fully convince the public of its significance, said senior opposition lawmaker Masayo Tanabu.
According to the 2025 reports on lawmakers' incomes, the average income among nine party leaders stood at ?24.53 million.
BUSINESS
Jun 30, 2026
Takaichi tops 2025 income rankings for Japan party heads
The prime minister earned ?36.41 million in 2025 while the average income among nine party leaders stood at ?24.53 million.
Kazuhiko Shigetoku (third from right), Lower House parliamentary affairs chief of the Centrist Reform Alliance, and other members submit a request to Shunichi Yamaguchi (center), chair of the Committee on Rules and Administration, regarding a bill to reduce the number of seats in the House of Representatives, at the parliament building in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 28, 2026
Shrinking Lower House by 45 seats to hit smaller parties hard
Debates on the LDP-JIP bill are slated to start Monday at a political reform special committee of the Lower House.
A bill to criminalize the act of damaging the national flag is among the measures the Liberal Democratic Party and the Japan Innovation Party plan to enact during the current special Diet session under their deal to form a ruling coalition.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 24, 2026
Lower House begins discussions on flag-vandalism bill
Under the bill, those who publicly deface the flag in a way that causes the public to feel extremely uncomfortable or disgusted would be subject to imprisonment or a fine.
Debate on constitutional revision is intensifying in commissions on the Constitution in both chambers of the Diet, Japan's parliament, during the ongoing special session.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 24, 2026
Constitutional debates intensify in Japan parliament over emergency clause
Lower House lawmakers have been debating an emergency clause that would allow legislators¡¯ terms to be extended in the event of a disaster or crisis.
Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa during a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN
Jun 13, 2026
Komeito aims to merge with CRA before next parliamentary session
Informed sources say the party plans to declare its plan to join the CRA in July and formally approve the move at a party convention by September.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi responds to questions at the Upper House Budget Committee on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 6, 2026
Takaichi faces heat over defamatory campaign video scandal
A report claims that her campaign posted defamatory videos of her rivals on social media during election time. The release of audio recordings has intensified the controversy.
Junya Ogawa, leader of the Centrist Reform Alliance, attends a news conference on Friday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
May 31, 2026
Three Japanese opposition parties explore new alliance
With the current Diet session slated to end July 17, the three parties hope to confirm such plans by mid-July, according to sources.
Kazuhiko Shigetoku, Lower House parliamentary affairs chief of the Centrist Reform Alliance (center, left), and Yoshitaka Saito, Upper House parliamentary affairs chief of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (center, right), meet in parliament on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 30, 2026
Japan ruling and opposition parties at odds over extra budget
The budget committees of both the upper and lower chambers will each spend one day deliberating the extra budget for the fiscal year that started in April.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during the National Defense Academy's graduation ceremony in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, in March. The Japanese leader currently has the political and procedural leverage to pursue sweeping reforms, including the creation of an intelligence agency modeled on the CIA.
EDITORIALS
May 29, 2026
Long overdue, Japan updates its intelligence infrastructure
The government of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is taking steps to improve that capability with passage of the National Intelligence Council Law.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during an Upper House Cabinet Committee meeting on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
May 27, 2026
How the intel bill showed Â鶹´«Ã½ new political reality
The debate surrounding the National Intelligence Council Law revealed less about Â鶹´«Ã½ intelligence system than the current contours of the country¡¯s new political reality.
Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the Democratic Party for the People, speaks to reporters last week.
JAPAN / Politics
May 17, 2026
Japan opposition to grill PM on extra budget in leaders¡¯ debate
Opposition parties are set to grill Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi during a party leaders' debate on Wednesday over her delay in preparing an extra budget to combat rising oil prices and inflation.
Renho, who previously served as executive deputy leader of the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, was defeated in a head-to-head leadership race for the party's Tokyo chapter.
JAPAN / Politics
May 16, 2026
Renho suffers upset loss in CDP Tokyo chapter leadership race
The 58-year-old member of the House of Councillors was defeated by Yuji Kawana, 66, a member of the Musashino city assembly in western Tokyo.
Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Ichiro Aisawa (right) addresses a meeting of a cross-party council on election campaigning held in a parliamentary building on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 15, 2026
Japan to order social media operators to combat misinformation in elections
Actions expected to be taken by social media operators include halting reward payments to users and improving their capacity to respond to content deletion requests.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
Yasukuni Shrine introduces ban on military attire and cosplay
People gather in front of thousands of lanterns on display at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on July 15 during the Mitama Matsuri, one of the capital's largest summer o-Bon festivals.
Many Indonesians named after Japanese anime characters
Some people in Indonesia are named Doraemon, the name of a lead character of the blockbuster anime series with the same title.
Strong wind and heavy rain forecast as tropical storm approaches Japan
Tropical Storm Chan-hom is expected to make landfall in northern Kanto between late Tuesday and early Wednesday.
Where do foreign residents in Japan want to die?
The Yokohama Foreign General Cemetery is one of the few cemeteries in Japan that allows burials, albeit with conditions for the deceased, including foreign nationality and permanent residency in Kanagawa Prefecture.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
As Â鶹´«Ã½ concrete jungles sizzle, urban forestry offers an all-natural fix
People and birds find relief from the sun in Tokyo's Nakano Ward earlier this month. While experts agree that urban greening is crucial to mitigating the impact of climate change, trees are becoming even more scarce in Japanese cities.
Â鶹´«Ã½ brewers experiment with a secret ingredient: music
At Smoke Craft, a craft beer brewery in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, music isn't just a background to the brewing process ¡ª it's an ingredient.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
J. League enters new era as league kicks off first fall-spring campaign
Players from each J. League club pose during a kickoff event on Monday ahead of the start of the 2026-27 campaign.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Â鶹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness
By Alex K.T. Martin

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