Category: Japan

Another example of Japan’s growing military capabilities to further deter Chinese aggression in the region:

One of Japan’s largest naval vessels took part in sea trials this week, brandishing modifications that bring it closer to embarking fifth-generation, U.S.-made fighter jets, local media reported.

The JS Kaga, a flat deck carrier for helicopters, kicked off the trials Monday after departing Kure Naval Base in Hiroshima prefecture, the Asahi Shimbun reported Tuesday. The Kaga’s bow and flight deck were modified to accommodate F-35B Lightning II fighter jets.

The F-35B variant, employed by the U.S. Marine Corps aboard U.S. Navy amphibious assault ships, is capable of short takeoffs and vertical landings, making them suitable for Japan’s helicopter carriers, provided alterations are made.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

Only a high trust society could pull this off. Could you imagine what would happen in parts of the U.S. that had staffless stores?

During the COVID-19 pandemic, unmanned shops drew interest as a way to prevent infection and cater to contact-averse customers. Now such shops are again in the spotlight as a means to help solve serious labor shortages. Research is underway on systems to run unmanned shops safely and efficiently, and such systems have been introduced by a wide range of businesses, including cosmetics companies and a bookstores.

In May, cosmetics company Orbis Inc., based in Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo, opened an unstaffed store in the Granduo Tachikawa shopping mall at JR Tachikawa Station. While the company has 93 directly managed shops across the nation, this is the company’s first unstaffed shop. The shop is small, about 7 square meters, and offers about 90 cosmetics, such as lotions and serums. When a customer picks up a product, several cameras installed in the ceiling and a weight sensor installed in the shelf instantly recognize the product. The customer then pays the amount displayed on a cash register screen, and a gate opens to let the customer out.

Yomiuri Shimbun

You can read more at the link.

Another example of the increasing cooperation between South Korea and Japan. Previously South Korea had flew Japanese citizens out of Israel as well:

This Kyodo News photo, filed Oct. 23, 2023, shows a Japanese Air Self-Defense Force aircraft parked at Haneda International Airport in Tokyo on Oct. 21, after returning from Israel with Japanese nationals, 18 South Koreans and one foreign family member in an evacuation from the war-torn region. (Yonhap)

A Japanese aircraft carrying a group of South Korean nationals, along with its own people, returned from Israel on Friday, Seoul’s foreign ministry said, the second such flight Japan has offered after South Korea brought Japanese citizens home on its plane last month. 

The Air Self-Defense Force aircraft carrying 15 South Koreans and one foreign national family member related to a Korean national landed at Haneda International Airport in Tokyo, at 6:45 p.m., the foreign ministry said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

It appears this was likely a major mistake by this restaurant in Japan, but the Korean couple that was poisoned by the bleach are claiming it was a hate crime:

The Korean government has requested Japanese authorities to conduct a swift and fair investigation into a case where a Korean national was served water containing bleach at a restaurant in Tokyo. 

“We contacted the local police station as soon as we were notified about the incident,” said an official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, adding that the victim reported the case to the Korean Embassy in Tokyo on Sept. 6.

The official noted, “The Japanese police responded that they will do so, but refused to share details of the investigation at this stage.”

The official also said the ministry was informed that the restaurant’s operations were suspended for four days in relation to the incident.

On Aug. 31, a Korean woman surnamed Kang and her Japanese husband visited a high-end restaurant, famous for tempura, located in a department store in Tokyo’s Ginza. 

The couple was served two cups of drinking water upon their request, but after taking the first sip, Kang noticed a strange odor from the water.

“After the second sip, my throat began to hurt so bad I couldn’t even talk properly,” she said during an interview with local broadcaster JTBC, Monday.

She made complaints about the water immediately to the waitress and the manager, but they attempted to take the cup back without offering any explanation. Only after her husband strongly protested to the chef, the waitress admitted that the water was poured from a bottle of water containing bleach.

After showing symptoms of stomach pain and nausea, the victim was taken to a nearby hospital where she was diagnosed with acute food poisoning.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link where the couple is claiming this was a hate crime.