Latest Fumio Kishida News

Japanese prime minister's aide leaving over LGBTQ remarks
TOKYO (AP) — A senior aide to Japan’s prime minister is being dismissed after making discriminatory remarks about LGBTQ people. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters Saturday that Masayoshi Arai, a secretary at his office, was being dismissed after Arai recently told...

NATO chief wants more 'friends' as Russia, China move closer
TOKYO (AP) — China's growing assertiveness and collaboration with Russia pose a challenge not only to Asia but also to Europe, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Wednesday as he sought stronger cooperation and more “friends” for NATO in the Indo-Pacific region. ...

NATO chief urges closer ties with Japan to defend democracy
TOKYO (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg sharply criticized China on Tuesday for “bullying its neighbors and threatening Taiwan” and stressed the need for Japan and other democracies to work together with the alliance to defend the international order. Calling it a...

Japan, Greece step up security ties as 'strategic partners'
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his Greek counterpart, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, agreed on Monday to strengthen their security, defense and economic ties and pledged to cooperate in responding to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and other threats in Europe and Asia. ...

Kishida prioritizes arms buildup, reversing low birthrate
TOKYO (AP) — Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Monday that Japan faces the severest security environment in the region since the end of World War II and pledged to push a military buildup under a newly adopted security strategy, as well as tackle rapidly declining births so the country can...

Japan to lower COVID-19 to flu status, further easing rules
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Friday announced plans to downgrade the legal status of COVID-19 to the equivalent of seasonal influenza in the spring, a move that would further relax mask wearing and other preventive measures as the country seeks to return to normalcy. ...

Japan court acquits utility executives in Fukushima disaster
TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese court on Wednesday found three former utility company executives not guilty of negligence over the 2011 Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster and the subsequent deaths of more than 40 elderly residents during their forced evacuation. The Tokyo High Court...

Biden and Kishida discuss Japan 'stepping up' security
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida held wide-ranging talks at the White House on Friday as Japan looks to build security cooperation with allies in a time of provocative Chinese and North Korean military action. The two administrations...

Japanese PM asks for Canada’s help on clean energy
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is looking to Canada to help his country wean itself off fossil fuels from places such as Russia. Kishida is in Ottawa Thursday for his first visit as Japan’s head of government, as part of a tour of other Group of...

South Korea plans fund to compensate forced labor victims
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean officials are considering creating a domestic fund to compensate Koreans who were enslaved by Japanese companies before the end of World War II, as they desperately try to repair relations with Tokyo that have deteriorated in recent years over historical...
