🇯🇵 Japan · International
44 storiesJapan says Russia notified it of reporter's detention, but consular access still fails
Japan said Russia provided consular notification on October 15 about the detention of a Hokkaido Shimbun reporter on suspicion of espionage. Embassy officials visited a Moscow detention facility on October 16 but could not meet him, Yomiuri…
Russia says it detained Hokkaido Shimbun reporter in Sakhalin on spying suspicion
Russia's Federal Security Service said October 13 that it detained a Japanese Hokkaido Shimbun reporter in Sakhalin on suspicion of espionage. Japanese reports said he was transferred to Moscow; the newspaper and Japan's embassy said they w…
Nobel Peace Prize goes to South African jurist Navi Pillay for international law work
The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced on October 9 that the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize goes to Navanethem (Navi) Pillay, 85, the South African-born former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and former International Criminal Court judge, fo…
Russia says it is weighing countermeasures over Japan's new sanctions
Russia's Foreign Ministry criticised Japan's additional sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine as “unfriendly” and “ill-considered,” and said it is considering countermeasures. Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on October 5 that Russia would…
US sanctions International Criminal Court; Japan's Takaichi says she is 'deeply concerned'
The Trump administration on October 9 designated the International Criminal Court (ICC) itself as a target of sanctions, after sanctioning ICC President Tomoko Akane in August. Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi wrote on X that the meas…
Nobel Peace Prize due Oct. 9: ICC and child-aid groups tipped, Trump seen as unlikely
The 2026 Nobel Peace Prize is to be announced on October 9, and Japanese outlets report that groups helping children in Ukraine and Sudan, and the International Criminal Court (ICC), whose president Tomoko Akane has been sanctioned by the T…
Zelenskyy warns of retaliation after Trump claims Russia-Ukraine energy ceasefire
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of continuing attacks on energy facilities after U.S. President Donald Trump announced an energy ceasefire on October 11. Zelenskyy said Ukraine supported a halt if Russia complied and …
Russia asks Netherlands and other countries to hand over ICC President Akane
Russia's Prosecutor General's Office announced on October 8 that it had requested the handover of International Criminal Court President Tomoko Akane and others from the Netherlands and several other countries. Tokyo Shimbun and Nikkei repo…
Trump calls for new Ukrainian leader amid dispute over Russian refinery attacks
US President Donald Trump said on October 10 that Ukraine needed a new president and demanded an end to attacks on Russian refineries, Japanese outlets reported. The remarks followed a US-Russian diesel-supply agreement that Ukrainian Presi…
Takaichi emailed that China's sanctions on LDP's Furuya were 'very honorable', he says
Keiji Furuya, an LDP lower house member who chairs the cross-party Japan-Taiwan friendship parliamentary league, said Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi sent him an email calling China's sanctions against him "a very honorable sanction". China i…
Japan raises ICC sanctions concerns with Rubio as US defends the measures
Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi spoke with ICC president Tomoko Akane (赤根智子) and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on October 10 after US sanctions targeted the court itself. Motegi conveyed Japan's position, while Rubio defende…
Japan's Katayama designated next World Bank-IMF Development Committee chair
Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama (片山さつき) has been designated the next chair of the joint World Bank-IMF Development Committee. Formal selection is expected at its October 15 meeting in Bangkok, for a two-year term starting in Octo…
South Korea to recall Ukraine envoy over disclosure of prisoner transfer
South Korea announced on October 8 that it would recall its ambassador to Ukraine following a dispute over public disclosure of the transfer of two North Korean prisoners. Seoul says the transfer was covered by a confidentiality agreement, …
ICC rejects US sanctions and urges countries to help sustain its work
The International Criminal Court rejected US sanctions against the court itself in an October 9 statement. President Tomoko Akane said it would continue its mission independently and impartially, while appealing to countries for support.
ICC member-state bureau urges US to withdraw sanctions immediately
The bureau of the International Criminal Court's Assembly of States Parties called on October 10 for the immediate withdrawal of US sanctions against the court. The 21-country bureau, which includes Japan, also sought the removal of sanctio…
Taiwan's Lai urges stronger defence and preservation of Taiwan Strait status quo
Taiwan President Lai Ching-te called for stronger defence in his October 10 Double Ten Day speech and accused China of trying to change the Taiwan Strait status quo. He said greater defence investment was intended to deter war rather than p…
Japan, UK, France, Germany and four others 'strongly oppose' US sanctions on the ICC
Foreign ministers of eight countries, including Japan, Britain, France and Germany, issued a joint statement saying they regret and strongly oppose the Trump administration's decision to sanction the International Criminal Court (ICC) itsel…
Japan protests to U.S. ambassador over Marine arrested in Naha killing
A U.S. Marine stationed in Okinawa was arrested on Oct. 4 on suspicion of robbery-murder after a woman died at a hotel in Naha. Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi summoned U.S. Ambassador George Glass to the Foreign Ministry and protested, …
South Korea postpones CPTPP application beyond 2026 amid farming and fishing concerns
South Korea will not apply to join the CPTPP trade pact in 2026, according to Japanese reports citing the presidential office. President Lee Jae-myung directed officials to prioritise dialogue and trust with farmers and fishers concerned ab…
Bessent to miss IMF and World Bank annual meetings in Bangkok
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will miss the IMF and World Bank annual meetings beginning in Bangkok on October 12, Japanese outlets reported. The Treasury's deputy secretary and undersecretary for international affairs will attend, ac…