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In first, Japanese mayor takes maternity leave
Hard Numbers

In first, Japanese mayor takes maternity leave

No elected official in the country has ever taken maternity leave before.

Japan's SoftBank zooms past Toyota
Hard Numbers

Japan's SoftBank zooms past Toyota

SoftBank surpassed the Japanese carmaker after pledging over the weekend to invest as much as €75 billion ($87 billion) to build Europe’s largest AI facility in France.

Japan’s population drops by millions
Hard Numbers

Japan’s population drops by millions

The decline — from 126.1 million to 123 million — is the biggest population drop over a five-year period since the government began collecting census data in 1920.

French President Macron shaking hand with Norway's Prime Minister of the Kingdom Jonas Gahr Støre
What We're Watching

France to extend its nuclear umbrella to Norway, Brazil to cut work week, Japan bids to boost ties with the Philippines

French President Macron extended France's nuclear umbrella to Norway this week, as Western Europe increasingly looks to Paris for security guarantees amid growing doubts about the US commitment to NATO.

PM Takaichi and President Lee Jae Myung shaking hands at a press event
Analysis

Seoul mates? South Korea and Japan get chummy

Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung meet this week for a two-day summit focused on security, energy, and critical minerals. The two leaders appear to differ on China’s engagement in the future of the region.

Participants and protesters hold posters opposing Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's administration and her policies on constitutional revision and military expansion during a Constitution Memorial Day rally in Tokyo, Japan, May 3, 2026.
What We're Watching

Japan weighs revising pacifist constitution, Europe talks collective security in Armenia, US to “help free up” ships in Hormuz

Will Japan rewrite its rules of war? Europe meets (again) to shape its own defense destiny, US to “guide” ships through Hormuz

The world hedges its bets on America
by ian bremmer

The world hedges its bets on America

Ever since Donald Trump returned to office last year, governments have been hedging bets on the future of American power and what it might mean for them.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi at the National Diet in Tokyo on April 17, 2026.
What We're Watching

Japan loosens arms export restrictions, Hungary’s Magyar shows nationalist streak, Trump looks for new friends in Europe

Tokyo announced on Tuesday that it will remove restrictions on arms exports to countries with which it already has defense agreements, escalating its feud with Beijing.

QatarEnergy's liquefied natural gas production facilities in Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar, on March 2, 2026.
Analysis

Iran conflict brings energy boon for some, doom for others

The US-Israeli war with Iran has badly damaged oil & gas producers in the Gulf and consumers in the Indo-Pacific. But not all countries within those regions will feel the pain equally.

Sanae Takaichi announces running for presidential election of the LDP
What We're Watching

Japan critical minerals deal, Military take over in Madagascar, Argentina week in NYC

Australian mining giant Lynas will sell rare earths to Japan for 12 years in a major pact meant to chip away at China’s dominance of the global market.