Tag - defense

 
Menu
Search
 
July 11, 2026
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

DEFENSE

JL-3 intercontinental-range submarine-launched ballistic missiles are displayed during a military parade to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, in Beijing last September.
EDITORIALS
Jul 10, 2026
China’s missile test exposes Beijing’s misdirection
Japan has called out Chinese behavior because it is threatening. That is the simple truth. Do not be distracted.
U.S. President Donald Trump attends a NATO summit in Ankara on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 10, 2026
NATO weathers another Trump storm but braces for more after Ankara summit
The summit ended with relief after months of severe strains triggered by Trump’s efforts to take Greenland from ‌fellow NATO ‌member Denmark and divisions over the Iran war.
Japan, the United States and Australia aim to enhance interoperability through flexibly sharing fuel and equipment.
JAPAN
Jul 10, 2026
Air Self-Defense Force begins logistics cooperation with U.S. and Australia
The three nations aim to improve interoperability by flexibly sharing fuel and equipment under the framework.
U.S. President Donald Trump attends a news conference at the NATO summit in Ankara on Wednesday. The U.S. leader's approach to alliances means American security guarantees can no longer be taken for granted.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 10, 2026
Trump just made Japan’s security dilemma more urgent
Japan should respond to growing uncertainty over U.S. security commitments by taking greater responsibility for protecting its own maritime and strategic interests.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a news conference during a NATO leaders' summit in Ankara on Wednesday.
WORLD / FOCUS
Jul 10, 2026
From threats to praise, Trump keeps allies guessing at NATO summit
NATO leaders, who endured a roller coaster at last year’s summit, have grown accustomed to coaxing out a friendlier U.S. President Donald ⁠Trump, through flattery if need be.
"(Japan) must now start to vigorously promote the domestic production of defense drones," Terra Drone President Toru Tokushige said in a recent interview.
BUSINESS
Jul 9, 2026
Japan’s Terra Drone to mass-produce defense drones domestically
The Tokyo-based company aims to speed up work to establish supply chains that do not rely on imports by promoting the development and production of drone components at home.
Latin American countries often spend roughly 1.2% to 1.3% of GDP on defense, according to a senior U.S. Defense Department official.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 9, 2026
Pentagon urges Latin American countries to raise defense budgets
The U.S. Department of Defense wants increased security spending to fight organized crime.
Turkeish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump during the NATO Summit at Bestepe Presidential Compound in Ankara on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 9, 2026
Trump’s visit a win for Turkey’s Erdogan, NATO tensions aside
The summit was a diplomatic success for Turkey, which wants to boost its stature within the bloc and also overcome longstanding issues with Washington.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and U.S. President Donald Trump meet on the sidelines of the NATO leaders' summit in Ankara on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 8, 2026
Trump turns on Spain and demands Greenland as NATO summit exposes cracks
The U.S. president’s remarks overshadowed a summit that European leaders had hoped would ‌project ‌unity and support for Ukraine
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi (second from right) and Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi (third from right) join other Indo-Pacific Four officials for a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Ankara on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 8, 2026
Japan and NATO share concerns about Chinese military activities
Tokyo has sought to keep NATO interested in the Indo-Pacific region even as the alliance focuses on beating back claims by the U.S. that it has outlived its usefulness.
An American soldier demonstrates how to fly a drone during a training exercise at a U.S. military facility in Hohenfels, Germany, on April 30.
COMMENTARY
Jul 8, 2026
America’s battlefield dominance is under serious threat
The U.S. still possesses the most capable military, but its ability to dominate a battlefield is under threat due to the rapid evolution of warfare.
The Philippines is looking to receive five Abukuma-class vessels from Japan in the next two to three years as part of broader efforts by Tokyo to boost the defense capabilities of like-minded neighbors amid growing Chinese military assertiveness in the region.
JAPAN
Jul 8, 2026
Japan set to deliver five retired MSDF warships to Philippines in ‘two to three years’
Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. says administrative details are being finalized, but it’s “already a done deal.”
Children walk past a display marking the founding anniversary of the Chinese Navy, during a media tour at the navy's Submarine Academy in Qingdao, China, in April 2024.
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Jul 7, 2026
Missile test marks new phase in expansion of China’s nuclear-armed submarine force
Monday’s launch was the first known full-range — or near-full-range — flight test of a Chinese long-range submarine-launched ballistic missile.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announces that Canada picked Germany’s TKMS to build 12 submarines for its navy, at HMC Dockyard in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 7, 2026
Canada’s Carney cites NATO and melting Arctic as Germany wins submarine contract
Prime Minister Mark Carney has pursued closer integration with European defense initiatives as the U.S. under President Donald Trump takes a more skeptical approach toward NATO.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (right) meets with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte at the ahead of the NATO summit in Ankara on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 7, 2026
NATO defense push already strains Europe’s budgets
Under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, members of the 32-country military pact agreed at last year’s summit to boost defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035.
Japanese Ambassador to NATO Osamu Izawa during an interview in Brussels on Friday
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 6, 2026
Japan’s NATO envoy highlights importance of European stability
Japan’s ambassador to NATO also said the organization’s unity, based on collective defense, is unwavering, while adding that the alliance is “rock-solid.”
Journalists inspect a concept model of the new Global Combat Air Program sixth-generation military jet at the BAE Systems factory in Warton, England, in July 2025.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 6, 2026
NATO needs to create its own defense market
Strengthening defense capabilities is not only about security policy. It is also industrial policy.
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi attends an annual training session near Mount Fuji at Higashifuji Training Field in Gotemba, Shizuoka Prefecture, on June 7.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jul 5, 2026
‘Defense,’ not ‘warfare,’ stressed as pacifist Japan beefs up capabilities
The move is seen as at least partially aimed at winning public support for boosting the country’s defense capabilities.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un observes an assessment of the newly built naval destroyer Kang Kon's combat systems, including the test firing of a strategic cruise missile, at an unknown location in the country on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 5, 2026
North Korea’s Kim oversees latest naval weapons tests
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw weapons tests last week of the 5,000-ton destroyer Kang Kon, including cruise missile launches and “electronic warfare means,” state media reported Sunday.
Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi delivers a speech during a meeting with NATO permanent representatives at the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo in April.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 4, 2026
Japan foreign and defense ministers to attend NATO events in Turkey
Tokyo had initially considered having Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attend the events, but decided against it because of her parliamentary commitments.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Trump says ‘Japan’ instead of Iran at meeting in Ankara
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a news conference during a NATO leaders' summit in Ankara on Wednesday.
World’s first fully sealed vertical-farming facility opens in Tokyo
Fully sealed units are stacked on top of each other at Plantx's vertical-farming facility in Tokyo's Koto Ward on Wednesday.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.
Filmmaker explores history of discrimination against foreign nationals in Japan
Takashi Nishihara, the director of "Now and Then," in Tokyo on Wednesday. The director has spent 10 years traversing politically charged terrain while exploring youth-driven grassroots political movements that scrutinize the status quo.
Okinawa’s prized seaweed under threat as oceans warm
Local harvesters gather <i>mozuku</i> during low tide at Hyakuna Beach in the city of Nanjo, Okinawa Prefecture. As the planet warms, rising ocean temperatures are placing increasing pressure on the seaweed industry.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Destination Restaurants 2026 award ceremony report
Destination Restaurants 2026 award ceremony report

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER