Japan

TOKYO (AP) — Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is visiting Tokyo to meet with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Friday, in hopes of easing a nuclear impasse between Tehran and Washington and reduce tensions in the Middle East.

The visit is the first by an Iranian president in 19 years and comes just before Japan is expected to announce a plan to deploy its troops to the region to ensure the safety of Japanese vessels transporting oil.

Japan is keen to restore stability in the Middle East, the source of more than 80% of Japan’s oil.

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares meandered in a narrow range on Friday despite another session of record highs on Wall Street.

There was little apparent reaction Friday after U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that a preliminary trade deal with China was ready for signing in early January. Mnuchin told CNBC that he was “very confident” the deal would help rebalance trade and open Chinese markets to more American products and services.

TOKYO (AP) — Tokyo Olympic organizers said Friday they are spending 1.35 trillion Japanese yen — about $12.6 billion — to stage next year’s games. Organizers said the expenditure is unchanged from a year ago, although robust sponsorship and ticket sales have generated a contingency fund of an extra $30 million.

However, Japan’s National Audit Board, in a 177-page report prepared for the national legislature, said next year’s Olympics will cost much more than organizers say.

TOKYO, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.5 struck off the coast of Japan's Aomori Prefecture on Thursday, the weather agency here said.

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), the temblor, which occurred at 3:21 p.m. local time, was centered off the coast of Aomori Prefecture, Japan's northernmost part of Honshu Island, with its epicenter at a latitude of 40.5 degrees north and a longitude of 142.2 degrees east, and at depth of 50 km. Enditem

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were mostly lower Wednesday after Wall Street logged fresh record highs as investor optimism faded about an interim U.S.-China trade deal announced last week.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 0.5% to 23,935.44. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained nearly 0.1% to 6,851.40. South Korea’s Kospi was little changed but inched down to 2,195.29. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 0.2% to 27,802.23, while the Shanghai Composite fell 0.3%, to 27,802.23. Shares were higher in Thailand, India and Indonesia but lower in the Philippines.

TOKYO, December 17. /TASS/: Former USSR president Mikhail Gorbachev said in an interview with Japan’s Asahi newspaper, published on Tuesday, that by quitting nuclear arms control treaties, Washington is seeking to gain absolute military supremacy.

"The underlying cause of US withdrawal from treaties is their determination to remove all kinds of restrictions in the military sphere and to gain absolute military supremacy," the paper quoted Gorbachev as saying. "However, in the modern world, a hegemony of one country is impossible."

TOKYO (Reuters) - Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will visit Japan on Dec. 20-21 and will meet with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, as Japan looks to help ease tensions in the Middle East, the Japanese government’s chief spokesman said on Tuesday.

“Our country will persistently continue to support diplomatic efforts in cooperation with the United States, Iran and various other related countries aimed at easing tensions in the Middle East,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a news conference.

He said the two leaders will meet on Dec. 20.

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares rose Tuesday following a rally on Wall Street that sent the major indexes to record highs, cheered by surprisingly strong economic reports out of China.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 added 0.5% to 24,071.31. South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.1% to 2,191.29. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 1.1% to 27,815.17., while the Shanghai Composite stood at 3,013.25%, up 1.0%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was little changed at 6,847.10.

TOKYO (AP) — During Pope Francis’ recent visit to Japan, Harumi Suzuki stood where his motorcade passed by holding a sign that read: “I am a survivor.”

Katsumi Takenaka stood at another spot, on another day, holding up his banner that read, “Catholic child sexual abuse in Japan, too.”

The two are among a handful of people who have gone public as survivors of Catholic clergy sexual abuse in Japan, where values of conformity and harmony have resulted in a strong code of silence.

FUTABA, Japan (AP) — The torch relay for the Tokyo Olympics will kick off in Fukushima, the northern prefecture devastated almost nine years ago by an earthquake, tsunami and the subsequent meltdown of three nuclear reactors.

They’ll also play Olympic baseball and softball next year in one part of Fukushima, allowing Tokyo organizers and the Japanese government to label these games the “Recovery Olympics.” The symbolism recalls the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, which showcased Japan’s reemergence just 19 years after World War II.