The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan to tighten border controls for travelers from China
TOKYO - Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday that Japan will temporarily tighten border controls against travelers from China later this week as the number of new coronavirus cases has rapidly increased in the neighboring country.
Starting Friday, Japan will require all travelers from mainland China and those who visited it within seven days to test for COVID-19 upon arrival, Kishida told reporters.
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Scandal-hit reconstruction minister dismissed in blow to Japan PM Kishida
TOKYO - Japan's scandal-hit reconstruction minister Kenya Akiba stepped down on Tuesday, effectively dismissed by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida over scandals in a fresh blow to his Cabinet that has seen four of its members forced to leave their ministerial posts within around two months.
Kishida has tapped Hiromichi Watanabe, who served as reconstruction minister between 2018 and 2019, as Akiba's successor, the prime minister told reporters after Akiba handed in his resignation.
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U.S. intelligence included in state secrets leaked by MSDF captain
TOKYO - Intelligence gathered by U.S. forces, believed to be related to the movements of foreign militaries, was included in state secrets leaked by a Maritime Self-Defense Force captain recently dismissed for the breach, government sources said Tuesday.
The revelation that the captain gave classified information to a retired MSDF admiral has drawn criticism from the United States over lax information management by the Self-Defense Forces, causing concern within the Japanese government about the two countries' cooperation in the future, the sources said.
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Apple Japan slapped with 14 bil. yen in back tax over duty-free sales
TOKYO - Apple Inc.'s Japan branch was slapped with 14 billion yen ($105 million) in additional taxes after authorities found bulk sales of iPhones and other items to foreign visitors were incorrectly exempted from consumption tax, a source close to the matter said Tuesday.
The Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau found Apple Japan's approximately 140 billion yen tax-exempt sales over two years through September 2021 were the result of fraudulent duty-free purchases to be resold for commercial purposes, the source said.
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Video: Sea lion writes kanji character for "rabbit" ahead of 2023 Year of the Rabbit
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Taiwan's 4-month military service extended to 1 year from 2024
TAIPEI - Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said Tuesday the island's mandatory four-month military service for men will be extended to one year from January 2024, as part of efforts to beef up its defense amid increasing military pressure from China.
The island democracy decided to transition from a conscription-based military during the government of Tsai's predecessor, President Ma Ying-jeou, who took a China-friendly position.
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Japan to import 2 million tons of LNG a year from Oman
TOKYO - Japanese trading houses Mitsui & Co., Itochu Corp. and electricity firm Jera Co. have broadly agreed with the government of Oman to import over 2 million tons of liquefied natural gas a year from the Middle East country, Japanese government sources said Tuesday.
Against the backdrop of energy supply disruptions due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, oil and gas explorer Inpex Corp. also announced the same day it has signed a 20-year agreement with Venture Global LNG to import 1 million tons per annum of LNG from the United States, one of the world's leading LNG exporters.
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Japan logs record 438 COVID deaths during 8th wave of infections
TOKYO - Japan posted a record 438 daily COVID-19 deaths on Tuesday in the midst of the eighth wave of infections.
The number exceeded the previous high of 371 daily deaths marked last Friday.
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Man sent to prosecutors after 3 found dead near Tokyo
SAITAMA, Japan - Police sent a 40-year-old man to prosecutors on a murder charge Tuesday after three people were found dead with blunt trauma injuries in Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo.
Jun Saito is suspected of killing William Bishop Jr., a 69-year-old U.S. national, by hitting him with a blunt object and damaging his cervical cord on the premises of a residence in Hanno around 7 a.m. Sunday.
