Sean Coughlan from BBC News:
The King’s speech talked of the close friendship between the UK and Japan.
“Ours is a partnership with deep roots,” said the King, in areas of science, culture, defence and trade."
He also referenced some Japanese contributions to popular culture, including the Hello Kitty brand and mentioned the “Pokemon phrase ‘gotta catch ‘em all’”.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the world...
From The Mainichi:
Nasu Animal Kingdom in east Japan's Tochigi Prefecture announced on June 24 that two Arctic wolf pups were born last month -- a first for a Japanese zoo.
Worth the click through to the article just to watch the video of the newborns.
From The Mainichi:
The plane is Japan Airlines' second Myaku-Myaku jet designated to fly abroad from Japan. On the aircraft, drinks are served in paper cups with the Myaku-Myaku design on them. The plane will fly until August next year to promote the expo to the world.
It is worth it to look up photos of this nightmare fuel. I can't believe that this character design made it past any kind of committee.
From Kyodo:
Naha prosecutors have indicted a U.S. Air Force member in Okinawa Prefecture for allegedly sexually assaulting and kidnapping a girl under the age of 16 in December, local authorities said Tuesday, with this latest incident involving military personnel likely to further inflame local opposition to their presence.
From The Japan Times:
These facilities will comprise areas for takeoff and landing, taxiways, parking zones, hangars, charging stations and passenger waiting lounges. The construction of these facilities is expected to be completed by the end of fiscal 2024, with trial flights scheduled for the following year.
From The Mainichi:
"We try to be the most open race in the world by respecting the diversity and identity of all participants," the foundation said.
One more step...
From Reuters:
The European Union is seeking security and defence industry partnerships with Japan and South Korea aimed at joint development of military equipment, the Nikkei reported on Sunday, citing a senior EU commission official.
These would mark the EU's first such security and defence-related collaboration with Asian nations, the Japanese business newspaper said in a report from Brussels that did not identify the official.
More defense alliances forming...
Ryo Asayama from Nikkei:
Leading Japanese retailer Aeon will take on 4,000 skilled foreign workers groupwide by fiscal 2030 amid severe labor shortages in Japan's food service sector, Nikkei has learned.
The Aeon group currently employs around 1,500 under Japan's Specified Skilled Worker program, which targets foreign workers with specialized skills in shorthanded industries. They work largely at food-processing plants that supply Aeon supermarkets.
Narumi Minagi from The Mainichi:
Of the 71 toilets at Tawaramoto Elementary School in Tawaramoto, Nara Prefecture, nearly half, or 34, are the squat type. The elementary school has lagged behind other counterparts in the town in adopting Western-style toilets, and new students have voiced their dislike of squat toilets, saying that they are "dark and scary."
As a westerner that has had a few dark and scary moments in one of these, I side with the kids.
River Akira Davis from The New York Times:
Executives from South Korea’s Naver and Japan’s SoftBank Group said they would jointly own the operator of Line, a South Korean-developed messaging app popularized in Japan. They gave the project a code name that emphasized cooperation: Gaia.
But late last year, cracks started opening in the Naver-Softbank venture.
Paywalled, but a good retelling of a century of strained relations between Japan and South Korea through the tale of a little green app called Line. For me, the cute stickers are the only good part of the Line ecosystem. The messaging portion of the app remains much like it was a decade ago and competitors like WhatsApp and Messages are taking laps around it. But it is still the king of text communication in Japan and no one seems able to topple it.