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Tokyo

Tokyo
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Tokyo. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
Head of Government
Governor Yuriko Koike
A new poll shows most Japanese support a woman ascending to the Chrysanthemum Throne, even as the prime minister proposes a plan that preserves the male-line succession.
Japan

Video | Is Japan ready for a female emperor?

A new poll shows most Japanese support a woman ascending to the Chrysanthemum Throne, even as the prime minister proposes a plan that preserves the male-line succession.

China-Japan relations

China says embassy intrusion, bomb threat are among ‘grave violations’ in Japan

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Japan

Japan jails ex-teacher for sharing voyeuristic student images

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Japan

‘Not a reliable ally’: Japan eyes Nato as Trump erodes faith in US guarantees

Tokyo and the transatlantic security alliance have a shared problem: what happens if the US walks away?

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Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte stands in front of Japanese and Nato flags during a visit to Tokyo in April last year. Photo: AFP
Luxury Hotels

Review | Park Hyatt Tokyo reopened after a 2-year renovation – here’s a look inside

You may know it from 2003’s Oscar-winning Lost in Translation with Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson – take a look inside the iconic hotel.

Japan

Japan’s Sanae Takaichi tickled pink to meet UK band Deep Purple

The Japanese prime minister, who played in a Deep Purple tribute band in middle school, called drummer Ian Paice her ‘god’.

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Luxury Hotels

Review | The newly opened 1 Hotel Tokyo, a sustainability-driven hotel in Akasaka

1 Hotels – which has outposts in cities like London, Copenhagen, Melbourne and West Hollywood – has opened its first Asian location in Akasaka, Tokyo.

1 Hotel Tokyo’s design features plenty of natural materials such as stone and wood. Photo: Handout
Japan

Why Japanese firm’s tie-up with Ukrainian drone maker sparks concerns in Russia

The two firms plan to develop drones that can be ‘deployed quickly and at low cost in the real combat conditions of Ukraine’.

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Japan

‘Unable to handle rejection’: the forces driving Japan’s knife crime wave

Experts warn a generation raised on screens is losing the ability to handle real-world rejection.

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Japan

Safety fears bloom in Japan as ageing cherry trees collapse in Tokyo parks

People love walking or picnicking under the trees during the cherry blossom viewing season.

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People picnic outside a cordoned-off area set up to inspect the health of cherry blossom trees at Kinuta Park in Tokyo on Friday. Photo: AP
On Our Radar

Greg Girard’s photo exhibition shows five decades of Hong Kong and Tokyo

Photographer Greg Girard’s new exhibition puts two Asian metropolises – Hong Kong and Tokyo – in the frame over five decades.

Cathay Pacific 747 with Lion Rock and Kowloon Walled City (1989), by Greg Girard. Photo: courtesy Greg Girard and WKM Gallery
Hong Kong society

Letters | Hong Kong needs to start charging all bus passengers by distance

Readers discuss the decision to revise the HK$2 public transport fare scheme, and the potential of student clubs at universities.

Japan

Businesses, smokers burnt by Japan’s record US$8 billion defence budget

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has pledged to increase defence spending to 2 per cent of Japan’s gross domestic product.

Japan

Japan races to limit fallout from Chinese embassy break-in

Chinese state media seized on the breach as proof of Japan’s militarism and ‘rampant far-right ideology’.

A policeman stands guard at an entrance to the Chinese embassy in Tokyo on March 25. Photo: AFP
Japan

Litterbugs in Shibuya to be fined on the spot as visitor numbers surge

The initiative, which will see offenders fined US$12.50, reflects a broader rethink of the ward’s earlier decision to remove public rubbish bins.

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Aluminium cans, bottles, and other trash stashed next to a vending machine in Shibuya. Photo: Shutterstock
Japan

Japan rape accuser condemns prosecution’s failure to protect victims

The victim, a prosecutor herself, in 2024 accused Osaka’s then-top prosecutor of raping her 6 years ago.

Japan

The View | Japan’s wobbly economy at odds with robust property market

While the country’s economy and currency are struggling, Japan’s property fundamentals remain strong.

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Fashion

Q&A | Kim Jones on Areal, his new line with Chinese outerwear maker Bosideng

On a visit to Hong Kong, the British designer shares why his collaboration with Bosideng was years in the making – and why ‘Made in China’ is better than most people think.

Bosideng chairman and CEO Gao Dekang with designer Kim Jones at an Areal pop-up in Hong Kong during Art Basel. Photo: Handout
Mainland China

China’s looted heritage campaign: assertive, ambitious – and complicated

As the United States steps back from cultural governance, China aims to reshape how the world reclaims looted heritage – with Japan its biggest test.

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SCMP Highlights

Iran war risks, Southeast Asia’s fuel crisis, Xinjiang ‘salmon’: 7 highlights

From a fuel crisis gripping Southeast Asia to an elderly Chinese man’s undying love, here are highlights from SCMP’s recent reporting.

Japan

Japan’s cherry blossom parties could wilt as inflation strains wallets

Spending on ‘hanami’ picnics drops as rising living costs, Iran war fears and weather woes threaten to dampen this year’s festivities.

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A woman takes selfies in front of a cherry blossom tree in Kawasaki, Kanagawa prefecture, Japan. Photo: AFP
Japan

Man kills woman at Tokyo Pokemon shop before taking his own life

Despite strict gun control laws and rare violent crimes, Japan has seen a number of high-profile knife attacks in recent years.

Rescue workers walk in front of a commercial complex where a female employee at a Pokemon merchandise shop was stabbed to death at Ikebukuro district in Tokyo on Thursday. Photo: via Reuters
China-Japan relations

Japanese minister expresses regret over military officer’s arrest at Chinese embassy

Beijing says incident in which a man is accused of breaking in with a knife, reflects the growth of ‘rampant far-right ideology’ in Japan.

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China-Japan relations

Why Beijing is blaming Japanese PM as Tokyo moves to downgrade China ties status

Tokyo’s annual diplomatic blue book set to describe China ties as ‘strategic’ and ‘mutually beneficial’, a step down from ‘most important’.

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China’s military drills

New Type 055 destroyers for PLA East China Fleet tested in first live-fire drill

Exercise will ‘rapidly integrate’ the advanced vessels into the joint combat system covering Taiwan and the seas near Japan.

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Intensive targeted live-fire exercises in mid-March for the Dongguan and Anqing Type 055 super destroyers simulated a range of combat operations, official media reported. Photo: Handout
Japan

Trump’s ‘wind-up doll’? Japan’s PM faces backlash over White House fawning

White House imagery showing Sanae Takaichi cheering for a rock song and laughing at a jibe at Joe Biden left some in Japan feeling ‘ashamed’.

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A photograph published by the White House shows Takaichi arriving at an official dinner with her fists raised, handbag over one arm, apparently shouting with delight. Photo: White House
Japan

Video | Tokyo’s cherry blossom season kicks off early

This year’s sakura season is 5 days earlier than usual.

Japan

Trump’s Pearl Harbour joke falls flat in Japan over his ‘disrespectful remarks’

As Japan faces pressure over the Iran war, some observers commend Takaichi for steering her meeting with Trump towards trade deals.

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