Tag - iran

 
 

IRAN

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during the Liberal Democratic Party's annual convention in Tokyo on Sunday.
JAPAN
Apr 18, 2026
Japan pledges ‘all possible measures’ for Hormuz safety
Momentum for a lasting peace has been building, with Tehran saying Friday that Hormuz is open for commercial shipping after Israel agreed to a ceasefire in Lebanon.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an event at Dream City Church in Phoenix on Friday.
WORLD
Apr 18, 2026
Defiant message from Iran as vessels attempting to cross Hormuz report gunfire
At least two merchant vessels reported they were hit by gunfire as they attempted to cross the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday.
Oil pump jacks outside Almetyevsk in the Russian Republic of Tatarstan in June 2023
WORLD
Apr 18, 2026
U.S. renews Russian oil waiver after pressure from countries dealing with Iran war price shocks 
U.S. lawmakers from both sides of the political aisle accused the government of going easy on Moscow ​as its war on Ukraine grinds on.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks during a news briefing in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Apr 18, 2026
Bessent’s busy week clashes with global thirst for U.S. attention
At the IMF and World Bank spring meetings, some participants grumbled that U.S. officials were reluctant to discuss the U.S.-war driven oil shock.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron leave a news conference after the multinational virtual summit at the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 18, 2026
European leaders offer military help to secure Strait of Hormuz
Trump said the waterway is “open and ready for business,” though a U.S. naval blockade would remain in place until a broader agreement is reached.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping talk as they leave after a bilateral meeting at Gimhae International Airport, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, in Busan, South Korea, last October.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 18, 2026
China steps up Iran diplomacy while seeking smooth summit with Trump
China is accelerating its efforts to end the Iran war, walking a diplomatic tightrope as it prepares for a summit next month with U.S. President Donald Trump while trying not to alienate Tehran.
A seal for the Department of War appears on the podium, after the Trump administration renamed the Department of Defense to the Department of War in 2025, on the day of a briefing on the Iran war at the Pentagon in Washington on Thursday.
WORLD
Apr 18, 2026
U.S. to delay weapons deliveries to some European countries due to Iran war
The delays underline ​the degree to which the war against Iran has ‌begun to ‌stretch U.S. supplies of some critical weaponry and ammunition.
An oil refinery in Yokohama. The government has stressed that the total volume of oil needed for Japan as a whole can be sourced from reserves and alternate locations that do not require transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 17, 2026
Japanese government urges suppliers not to hold back critical materials from the market
It insists that shortages are in part the result of companies limiting sales due to fear of future scarcity.
The guided-missile destroyer USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. sails in the Arabian Sea in support of Operation Epic Fury during the Iran war on March 18.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 17, 2026
Blockade as war: The perilous logic of strangulation
Under Protocol I of the Geneva Conventions (1949), starving civilians as a method of warfare or inflicting disproportionate suffering on a population is explicitly prohibited.
Chairperson Hiroyuki Nagahama (center rear) and others attend a House of Councilors constitutional review committee hearing at the Diet building on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 17, 2026
Four things to understand in Japan’s constitutional debate
Japan’s legislature started debate on constitutional amendment as Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi pledged to have a proposal ready in a year.
U.S. President Donald Trump gestures during a roundtable focused on tax cuts in Las Vegas on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 17, 2026
Trump tries economic reset as Republicans fret over high gas prices
Spiking prices nationwide have shaken the U.S. economy, and ​with it, U.S. President Donald Trump’s clout to drive support to fellow conservatives in November’s midterm elections.
Displaced people react as they return to their homes after a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel went into effect, in Sidon, Lebanon, on Friday.
WORLD
Apr 17, 2026
Trump says Iran war should end ‘soon’ as Lebanon-Israel ceasefire begins
Trump said a two-week ceasefire, which ends next week, could be extended, although he did not believe that would be necessary as Tehran wanted a deal.
Crude oil buyers in Japan led the charge to purchase May-loading cargoes from the U.S. early in the month, along with South Korean, Singapore and Thai processors.
BUSINESS
Apr 17, 2026
Asia relying on U.S. crude to replace Middle East supply
U.S. exports of oil, including crude and refined products, reached a record 13 million barrels a day last week, government data showed.
The LNG Aquarius liquefied natural gas tanker in the Java Sea, off Indonesia.
BUSINESS
Apr 17, 2026
Iran war pushes Asia to think twice before doubling down on LNG
The near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the serious damage sustained by Qatar’s LNG export plant has sent prices higher and buyers scrambling for alternatives.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand. With the fragile U.S.-Iran ​ceasefire in mind, analysts and investors warn Thailand faces another difficult year.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Apr 16, 2026
Foreign investors flee Thailand as Iran war dashes hope for economic revival
The conflict has sent global oil prices up to near $100 a barrel, sharpening the focus on Asia’s reliance on energy supplies from the Gulf.
A vessel is seen in the Strait of Hormuz, off the coast of Oman’s Musandam province, on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 16, 2026
Iran proposes allowing ships to exit Oman side of Hormuz free of attack, source says
The proposal hinges on whether Washington is prepared to meet ​Tehran’s demands, the ​source added.
Seria President Eiji Kawai says customers are shifting from competitors to the company’s more than 2,000 stores offering snacks, stationery and household goods.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 16, 2026
Japan ¥100 retailer Seria doubles down while rivals raise prices
While competitors test higher price tiers, Seria is betting it can attract cost-conscious consumers and reinforce its brand as prices rise across the economy.
U.S. allies should resist distancing themselves from Washington over Donald Trump and instead strengthen long-term economic and defense ties with the U.S. to safeguard their interests against emerging global rivals.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 16, 2026
The case for ‘hardened engagement’ with America
Allowing a distaste for one U.S. president (no matter how bombastic) to sever the ties that bind the free world is not only bad policy, it’s a recipe for strategic irrelevance.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the plenum of the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, in Jerusalem in January. His approval ratings have slipped and, with legislative elections due by late October, the political risks he faces are rising.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 16, 2026
Despite Israeli firepower, Netanyahu struggles for political gains in Iran war
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is paying ​a political price for a military campaign launched with U.S. President Donald Trump that has not delivered a decisive outcome.
Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi
JAPAN
Apr 16, 2026
Japan foreign minister urges diplomacy in call with Iran
Toshimitsu Motegi reiterated the importance of keeping the fragile ceasefire between Iran and the U.S. in place in his latest conversation with Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi.

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