
World View: Japan Says Armed Chinese Ship Infiltrates Its Territorial Waters
Contents: Japan says that armed Chinese ship infiltrates its territorial waters; Japan aggressively expands its military defense of the Senkaku Islands

Contents: Japan says that armed Chinese ship infiltrates its territorial waters; Japan aggressively expands its military defense of the Senkaku Islands

The Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District is installing new signs this week to remind people that the world famous span is a no-drone zone.

Generational Dynamics, Burundi, Bujumbura, Pierre Nkurunziza, Syria, Bashar al-Assad, Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, China, South China Sea, Singapore, P8 Poseidon spy plane, Ash Carter, Japan, Shinzo Abe, India Narendra Modi

Contents: China blocks Miss World Canada from attending Miss World pageant; ASEAN leaders harshly criticize China over South China Sea actions; Occupied Crimea declares state of emergency after electricity is cut

The Japanese government has announced that next year, it will open a representative office in Erbil, Iraq, the capital of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of Iraq. The office will serve to expand Japan’s role in the region, as well as develop its close relationship with Kurdish leaders.

A Japanese newspaper claims to have uncovered a North Korean spy guidebook teaching government officers how to abduct foreigners and extract information from them, proving that North Korea enforced a policy of systematic kidnapping under Kim Jong-Il.

As the United States takes the lead in challenging China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea, the Chinese government has begun to warn off Japan from assuming a role in the matter. While Japan has no territorial interests in the South China Sea, it continues to disregard China’s claim to the entirety of the East China Sea, much of which Japan claims as its own.

In his remarks before the U.N. General Assembly, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced a large increase in aid money for Middle Eastern refugees, but notably declined to allow migrants to resettle in Japan.

Contents: Suspicions grow that PKK doing Russia’s bidding in bombing Turkey’s pipelines; Report: Repeated failures in Afghanistan reconstruction projects; Japan’s economy returns to deflation

Anyone watching the debate over Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s drive to change the laws governing his nation’s self-defense force and permit overseas military deployments knows it is a highly contentious issue.

The moment of truth is nearly at hand for a bill that would revise Japanese defense policy to let its troops fight abroad, a dramatic change from its postwar military posture.

Contents: Japan’s Shinzo Abe blames WW II on the Smoot-Hawley Tariff act; Brief generational history of Japan

(Reuters) Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will include the words “apology” and “aggression” in his statement marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War Two, NHK public TV said, an apparent nod to critics who fear he will dilute past apologies.

Contents: Japan’s Shinzo Abe raises controversy at Hiroshima commemoration; Japan’s Shinzo Abe ‘insults’ Korea in plans for commemorating end of WW II; Palestinians promise to continue efforts to pursue Israeli ‘criminals’

Japanese officials are concerned over the recent WikiLeaks exposure of American spying.

Contents: China reacts harshly to Japan’s plans for ‘collective self-defense’; European officials prepare to negotiate Greece’s next bailout

Contents: Greece approves harsh reforms as IMF throws Europe under the bus; Japan’s Shinzo Abe pushes ‘collective defense’ bill for vote; Mexico’s first ‘historic’ attempt to re-privatize oil industry flops

Philippine President Benigno Aquino is set to land in Japan on Tuesday following initial negotiations for new weapons trade deals and closer military ties. Observers see the move as a preventative measure in the face of China’s expanded efforts in disputed South China Sea territory to build military facilities and artificial islands, violating international law.

US reaffirms defense of Japan’s Senkaku Islands; Japan-U.S. military guidelines will include ‘collective self-defense’

AFP reports that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to address a joint session of the U.S. Congress in April, making him the first prime minister of Japan to deliver such an address. The event is to come at the end of a visit in April focused on “deepening trade and military ties,” although there is speculation he will also cover the “evils and horrors” of Japan’s history, as he did during a speech to the Australian Parliament last July.

Nineteen American historians have signed a letter condemning the government of Japan for demanding that textbook publisher McGraw Hill remove references to “comfort women” from a book that references Japanese atrocities during World War II.

The recent, brutal beheadings of Japanese citizens Haruna Yukawa and Kenji Goto by members of the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) have shocked and awakened the people of Japan to the growing threat of radical Islam, which may prove to be a turning point in the country’s global role.

Analysts are puzzled by ISIS’s burning alive of Jordan’s pilot; Jordan promises revenge against ISIS for killing pilot; Japan’s nationalism surges over ISIS killings of two Japanese hostages

Members of Japan’s opposition party are beginning to publicly criticize Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for his choice to send humanitarian aid to nations fighting the Islamic State, a decision blamed for triggering a hostage crisis that took the lives of two Japanese citizens.

The Islamic State’s brutal murder of its second Japanese hostage, Kenji Goto, has Japan’s government talking about vengeance — a major shift in tone for post-war Japan, observers have noted.