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An F-2 fighter jet takes part in a live fire exercise by the Japan Ground Self-Defence Force in Gotemba in 2022. Japan plans to replace the F-2 fighter, which is scheduled to begin being phased out around 2035, with the next-generation jet. Photo: AFP
Japan

Japan, UK, Italy eye Japanese factory to build fighter jet

The three nations launched the programme in 2022 to deploy the fighter jet from 2035, amid an increasingly tense global security environment.

Ukraine war

Ukraine insists Japan’s pacifist rules permit Patriot missile help

Japan

Japan courts India, Malaysia to escape US-China AI duopoly

South Korea

The underdog girl group putting the ‘K’ back in K-pop

While major labels chase global fame, Rescene won over South Korea by putting local culture front and centre.

Rescene members (from left) Zena, May, Minami, Woni and Liv. Photos: Instagram/rescene_official
Rescene members (from left) Zena, May, Minami, Woni and Liv. Photos: Instagram/rescene_official
Japan

Millions visit Japan, yet few venture north of Tokyo. Here’s why

Tohoku is just a couple of hours north of Tokyo by bullet train, yet only 6 per cent of overseas visitors visited last year.

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Japan

Japan’s overworked defence ministry plans first new bureau since 2007

The ‘long overdue’ move is expected to boost the defence ministry’s capacity to work more closely with allies and ease operational strain.

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South Korea

SK Group chief ordered to pay US$644 million in South Korea’s biggest divorce

If finalised, the High Court ruling means Chey Tae-won’s break from Roh Soh-yeong will be South Korea’s most expensive divorce ever.

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won attends a retrial regarding the division of assets with his former wife, Roh Soh-yeong, on June 26. Photo: Yonhap/AFP
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won attends a retrial regarding the division of assets with his former wife, Roh Soh-yeong, on June 26. Photo: Yonhap/AFP
South Korea

South Korea rethinks Yellow Envelope Act as labour union demands mount

Without clearer boundaries, the revised act could fuel labour disputes and create uncertainty for businesses and the economy, critics warn.

Japan

Why Japan’s fighter jet future looks ‘more optimistic’ with Canada’s entry

Analysts say the move will be ‘a starting point’ for greater cooperation among like-minded partners amid concerns about US commitment.

South Korea

Seoul drops ‘denuclearisation-first’ stance on Pyongyang

The long-term goal of denuclearisation remains unchanged but stymieing new developments will be South Korea’s focus.

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People in Seoul watch a news broadcast with file footage of a North Korean missile test, in April. 2026. Photo: AFP
Japan

Japan’s deadliest fault line shifts, frustrating megaquake forecasts

As small quakes cluster off the coast, a new seabed study shows the Nankai Trough’s ‘locked zone’ is far more fluid than scientists believed.

A collapsed road in Tohoku in Aomori prefecture, Japan, following a strong earthquake that struck the region in December last year. Photo: Kyodo/Reuters
A collapsed road in Tohoku in Aomori prefecture, Japan, following a strong earthquake that struck the region in December last year. Photo: Kyodo/Reuters
Japan

Japanese firm acts to stop 7-Eleven store staff scalping anime, game merchandise

Some owners and employees have been caught setting aside merchandise before its release or buying up large quantities for resale.

South Korea

South Korean unions push for higher payouts after Samsung’s US$400,000 bonus

What began with workers calling for Samsung and SK Hynix to share profits reaped from the AI boom is spilling over to other industries.

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Japan

Japan voters ‘pretty angry’ with PM Takaichi as support frays

Recent opinion polls show Takaichi’s approval rating slipping, reflecting the public’s disdain for her priorities, analysts say.

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Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a joint meeting of the committees of both houses on fundamental national policies at the National Diet in Tokyo on July 15. Photo: AFP
South Korea

South Korea charges former US diplomat with defaming Lee Jae Myung

Morse Tan, a former US ambassador-at-large, is accused of spreading false allegations about the president in Washington last year.

Morse Tan served as the US ambassador-at-large for global criminal justice under the first Trump administration. Photo: US Department of State
Morse Tan served as the US ambassador-at-large for global criminal justice under the first Trump administration. Photo: US Department of State
South Korea

Guilty verdict leaves South Korea’s top conservative ‘a wounded lame duck’

A campaign finance conviction threatens to end Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon’s presidential ambitions, just weeks after winning a fifth term.

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Japan

Japanese agency warns of ‘cruelly hot days’ amid 40 degrees and above heat

At least 14 people have died from heat-related causes in the past week as emergency officials describe the rising heat as ‘a disaster’.

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South Korea

Owner of Michelin-starred restaurant in South Korea faces jail for ant-topped sorbet

Prosecutors demand prison term and fine for serving unapproved imported insects to diners.

Under South Korean law, only 10 insect species are approved for human consumption, excluding black ants. Photo: Shutterstock
Under South Korean law, only 10 insect species are approved for human consumption, excluding black ants. Photo: Shutterstock
Japan

Japan seeks Southeast Asia sea lanes to avoid troubled waters in region

A proposal to map charts through five straits comes as Japan fears trade disruption from choke points in the South China Sea and off Malacca.

Cambodia

Asia-Pacific cyberscam victims lost up to US$114 billion last year: UN

The losses from online scams, mostly investment fraud, are at least triple that from 2023, reflecting a ‘dramatic scaling’, the report says.

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South Korea

Questions resurface over South Korea defence minister’s army service

Ahn Gyu-back’s accuser claims a gap in his military record reflected an absence without leave. Ahn has called it an ‘administrative error’.

South Korean Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back speaks during a ceremony at the navy’s 2nd Fleet Command in Pyeongtaek on June 29. Photo: Yonhap/EPA
Japan

Are Chinese tourists really to blame for overcrowding Japan’s Kyoto?

Data from the Kyoto City Tourism Association shows a sharp decline in Chinese overnight stays as a result of growing bilateral tensions.

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Tourists crowd a street lined with blooming cherry blossom trees in Kyoto, Japan, in March. Photo: Reuters
Tourists crowd a street lined with blooming cherry blossom trees in Kyoto, Japan, in March. Photo: Reuters
North Korea

North Korea paves way for possible Kim trip to Moscow

Pyongyang’s top diplomat met Putin to discuss the Ukraine war, munition shipments and a likely Kim visit, analysts say.

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South Korea

Beggar’s banquet: South Korea’s viral app helps youth find cheap meals

South Korea’s youth unemployment rate reached 7.4 per cent in the first quarter of 2026 – the highest since 2021.

Japan

Helicopters and hashtags: Japan’s mounting problem with unprepared hikers

Locals make up the vast majority of Japan’s mountain rescues, yet internet anger is largely reserved for ill-equipped tourists.

A traveller walks past an image of Mount Fuji in the arrivals terminal at an airport in Tokyo in May. Photo: AFP
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