TOKYO (AP) — Eight people were rescued and three remained missing after a U.S. Navy plane crashed into the western Pacific Ocean on Wednesday, the Navy said. The C-2 “Greyhound” transport aircraft came down about 500 nautical miles (925 kilometers) southeast of Okinawa as it was bringing passengers and cargo from Japan to the USS … Continue reading
TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were slightly higher Friday following a record high close on Wall Street, except for Japan, where a pause in the dollar’s strengthening dampened optimism about exporters. KEEPING SCORE: Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 0.3 percent to 20,305.04 in morning trading, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained nearly 0.1 percent to 5,675.20. … Continue reading
TOKYO (AP) — Several hundred American service personnel who say they became sick from radiation after participating in relief operations for the 2011 tsunami that set off the Fukushima nuclear disaster are now getting high-profile support in Japan. Junichiro Koizumi, prime minister from 2001 to 2006, told reporters Wednesday he has set up a special … Continue reading
TOKYO (AP) — Although he’s behind one of the biggest fashion brands to come out of Japan, Issey Miyake detests being called a fashion designer. Maybe a designer, even a sculptor, but not that frivolous, trend-watching, conspicuous consumption known as fashion. What he has pursued since he started in the 1970s is more timeless. His down-to-earth clothing is meant to … Continue reading
TOKYO (AP) — John Woo was surprised to receive an award honoring trailblazers who have made outstanding contributions to the art of filmmaking. “I have made a lot of films, but it hardly qualifies as making a special contribution. I’m just a hard-working filmmaker,” the Hong Kong director said in Tokyo before the award presentation. … Continue reading
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s ambitions for a trouble-free 2020 Tokyo Olympics to showcase the country’s economic revival are facing an unexpected obstacle course as planners lurch from one fiasco to the next. The 2020 games were dubbed the clinching “fourth arrow” of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s ambitious strategy to restore Japan’s star stature after two … Continue reading
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese police said they arrested a man on Thursday accused of making bomb threats against the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo, and media reports said he is also a possible suspect in recent death threats against Ambassador Caroline Kennedy. Tokyo police arrested Mitsuyoshi Kamiya, a resident of the southern island of Okinawa, … Continue reading
TOKYO (AP) — U.S. first lady Michelle Obama is visiting Japan and Cambodia, who are among Asia’s richest and poorest nations, to highlight cooperation on helping girls finish their educations. The five-day trip that began in Tokyo on Wednesday is Mrs. Obama’s first visit to Japan. In Tokyo she plans to announce, along with Japanese … Continue reading
TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese diplomat emerged from talks in Jordan on Monday with no signs of progress in securing the release of a freelance journalist held hostage by the extremist Islamic State group. Japanese officials refused direct comment on the contents of the talks in Jordan, where Japanese Deputy Foreign Minister Yasuhide Nakayama … Continue reading
Spartan Echo 