Japan

Support rate of Japan's ruling LDP at record low amid slush fund scandal: poll

TOKYO, Jan. 21 (Xinhua) -- Approval ratings for Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has sunken to a record low in the wake of its slush fund scandal, according to the latest opinion poll.

Public support rate for the LDP dropped to 14.6 pct, down 3.7 percentage points from the previous month, Japanese news agency Jiji Press said in its latest survey.

It marked the lowest rate since the monthly poll started in 1960, excluding periods when the LDP was an opposition party, showed the January survey released on Thursday.

U.S. wants Japanese shipyards to help keep warships ready to fight in Asia

YOKOSUKA, Japan, Jan 19 (Reuters) - The United States and Japan are looking to make a deal for Japanese shipyards to regularly overhaul and maintain U.S. Navy warships so they can stay in Asian waters ready for any potential conflict, U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel said on Friday.

"China watches what ships are coming in and out. It is not like this is a secret, they know what's happening. So therefore, they take an evaluation of your deterrence," Emanuel told reporters at the Yokosuka naval base near Tokyo.

Japan's largest LDP faction to be dissolved amid fund scandal: media

TOKYO, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- The largest faction of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), at the center of the enduring slush fund scandal, has decided to dissolve itself, local media reported on Friday.

The decision of the faction formerly led by the late former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, or Seiwaken, was learned from multiple sources close to the matter, said Japan's national daily Sankei Shimbun.

Japan’s first moon lander is aiming for a very small target

TOKYO (AP) — As Japan’s space agency prepares for its first moon landing early Saturday, it’s aiming to hit a very small target.

The Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, a lightweight spacecraft about the size of a passenger vehicle, is using “pinpoint landing” technology that promises far greater control than any previous moon landing.

While most previous probes have used landing zones some 10 kilometers (6 miles) wide, SLIM is aiming at a target of just 100 meters (330 feet).

Japan counts down to precision 'moon sniper' landing mission

TOKYO, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Japan aims to become the fifth country to put a spacecraft on the moon when it attempts a precision landing on Friday, in what would be a boost for a space programme that has suffered a wave of setbacks and been eclipsed by rival China.

Dubbed the "moon sniper", the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) probe is attempting to land within 100 metres (328 feet) of its target, a technology JAXA says is unprecedented and essential in the search for moon water and human habitability.

Japan signs agreement to purchase 400 Tomahawk missiles as US envoy lauds its defense buildup

TOKYO (AP) — Japan signed a deal with the United States on Thursday to purchase up to 400 Tomahawk cruise missiles as part of its ongoing military buildup in response to increased regional threats.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government has pledged to double its annual defense spending to around 10 trillion yen ($68 billion) by 2027, which would make Japan the world’s third-biggest military spender after the United States and China.

Japanese automaker Daihatsu to recall up to 320,000 vehicles amid safety scandal

TOKYO, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- Japan's automaker Daihatsu Motor Co. on Wednesday said it plans to recall two mini-vehicles with a door defect.

The recall, which would potentially involve about 320,000 units, was announced a day after Japan's transport ministry instructed the company to consider recalling the Cast model sold under the Daihatsu brand and the Pixis Joy sold under the marque of its parent Toyota Motor Corp. following the scandal that the company had rigged safety tests for most of its models.

2 passenger planes slightly collide at Japan's New Chitose Airport

TOKYO, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- Two passenger planes made contact on the ground at New Chitose Airport in Japan's northern prefecture of Hokkaido on Tuesday evening, with no reports of injuries so far.

At around 5:30 p.m. local time, a Korean Air aircraft and a Cathay Pacific plane "came into contact with each other," according to national broadcaster NHK, citing the operator Hokkaido Airports Co., Ltd. as saying.

A Japanese domestic flight returns to airport with crack on a cockpit window. No injuries reported.

TOKYO (AP) — An All Nippon Airways domestic flight turned back to Japan’s northern airport of Sapporo after a crack was found on the cockpit window, according to the airline and media reports.

ANA Flight 1182 was en route to Toyama airport in central Japan on Saturday but had to return to the New Chitose airport for repairs, the airline said. There were no reports of injuries among the 65 people on board.

The crack was found on one of the cockpit windows and the cause is under investigation, according to local media reports.

Japan ANA Boeing 737-800 flight turns back due to cockpit window crack

TOKYO, Jan 13 (Reuters) - A domestic flight of Japan's All Nippon Airways (9202.T) returned to its departure airport on Saturday after a crack was found on the cockpit window of the Boeing 737-800 aircraft midair, a spokesperson for the airline said.

Flight 1182 was en route to Toyama airport but headed back to the Sapporo-New Chitose airport after the crack was found on the outermost of four layers of windows surrounding the cockpit, the spokesperson said, adding there were no injuries reported among the 59 passengers and six crew.

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