Tokyo’s busiest train line to be partially shut down this weekend as part of Shibuya renovations

here’s no more convenient way to get around downtown Tokyo than the Yamanote Line. Operated by East Japan Railway, the Yamanote is a loop line the encircles the center of the city, with trains leaving once every few minutes to carry passengers to the…[Read more]

Kishida invited by Biden for state visit in early 2024

apanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Thursday he has been invited by U.S. President Joe Biden to make a state visit early next year, an announcement made as the two countries step up cooperation bilaterally and trilaterally with South Korea in the face of increasing security challenges…[Read more]

China, Japan reaffirm strategic relationship in rare leader talks

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida committed to pursuing mutually-beneficial relations in their first face-to-face talks in a year, a sign that Asia’s two largest economies are looking to patch up strained ties.

The two leaders also discussed…[Read more]

Japan panel proposes child care plan covering 100% of income

In the hope of encouraging more fathers to take paternity leave, a health ministry panel on Monday proposed a plan to increase child care leave allowance so that it covers 100% of income — up from around 80% — if both parents each take 14 days of leave or more.
When working parents tak…[Read more]

Mass Production of Bio-Jet Fuel in Japan: Embracing the Challenge

Sanyu Plant Service is working to be the first in Japan to mass-produce bio-jet fuel, answering the aviation industry’s need for sustainable fuel alternatives.

n business for 75 years, Sanyu Plant Service (Sagamihara City, Kanagawa Prefecture) has established a reputation for…[Read more]

Turkey’s Erdogan calls Israel a ‘terror state’, criticises the West

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called Israel a “terror state”, stepping up his condemnation of the Israeli assault on the besieged Gaza Strip ahead of a sensitive visit to Germany.

Erdogan said on Wednesday that Israel’s military campaign against the Palestinian…[Read more]

Turkish charity Mavi Marmara to send aid flotilla to Gaza

The Mavi Marmara Freedom and Solidarity Association will launch another flotilla of ships carrying humanitarian aid into blockaded Gaza.

“As the Mavi Marmara Association, we are setting out again toward Gaza as a civil and independent movement in line with the decision we made with the…[Read more]

Anchovy in danger of extinction due to overfishing

Despite the abundance of anchovies, which have been caught in limited amounts in the Black Sea last year, experts are concerned about next year because of “excessive fishing.”

With the start of the fishing season in the Eastern Black Sea on Sept. 1, fishermen continue to cast their nets into the…[Read more]

Influencers on agenda over money laundering

Social media influencers have recently been in the spotlight over allegations of money laundering and tax evasion, following a series of investigations and arrests of high-profile figures.

Justice Ministry took action following the investigation of social media influencers Dilan Polat and Engin Polat,…[Read more]

German police crack down on pro-Palestine rallies, raising alarm

Berlin, Germany – Early-afternoon on Saturday in central Berlin, officers led an elderly German woman away to a police van so her sign could be checked.

She was preparing to attend a march calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Her banner, which said she was ashamed to be G…[Read more]

Wind of change: Germany gets serious about plans to make military ‘fit for war’

The return of full-scale armed conflict to Europe has Germany dramatically reframing its security policy.

With Russia and Ukraine still locked in combat after nearly two years and a major Israeli-Palestinian conflict underway, the European Union and NATO are feeling…[Read more]

Far-right German politician arrested after ‘Sieg Heil’ salutes heard

A legislator with the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party was arrested on Monday on charges including displaying forbidden totalitarian symbols, with neighbours of his fraternity complaining of often hearing the Nazi “Sieg Heil” victory salute.

Newly elected…[Read more]

Why Germany’s economic miracle is facing a new reality

Germany has come a long way in 100 years. Back in November 1923, people were trundling wheelbarrows stacked high with cash through its streets to buy a loaf of bread. Now its reputation is that of an economic powerhouse.

That episode of hyperinflation left deep scars on the nation’s psy…[Read more]

Canadian PM Justin Trudeau tells Israel to stop ‘killing of babies’

Canadian rime Minister Justin Trudeau has called on Israel to “exercise maximum restraint,” saying the killing “of women, of children, of babies” in Israel’s war on Gaza must stop.

The Israeli military stormed the Al-Shifa hospital, the largest in Gaza, on Wednesday in what it…[Read more]

How to mobilize cultural relations for climate action?

Climate Culture(s) Creative Lab
The EUNIC Climate Culture(s) Creative Lab occurred in Berlin from 22 to 28 June 2023. As part of the Goethe-Institut’s presidency of EUNIC in 2022-2023, the Lab brought new connections and collaboration among EUNIC members on environmental, climate, and c…[Read more]

German government tightens belt in new budget

After three years of big spending to cope with the COVID and Ukraine crises, Germany is imposing wide-ranging cuts in its new budget to reduce debt.

The German government presented its 2024 budget to the parliament on Tuesday, with Finance Minister Christian Lindner, of the neoliberal Free Democratic…[Read more]

Germany’s top court annuls move to repurpose COVID funding

Germany’s highest court has ruled that the government’s 2021 reallocation of unused coronavirus pandemic credit is unconstitutional. The government’s climate action budget is now €60 billion short.

What was the government planning?
In December 2021, the German coalition government a…[Read more]

German publisher halts sale of top author’s books after leak reveals he received €600,000 from Putin ally

A German publisher has announced a stop to the sale of books authored by a leading journalist and Russia expert after an investigation showed he had received at least €600,000 (£522,000) in undisclosed offshore payments from companies linked…[Read more]

Gaza war pushes tumultuous Israel-Turkey ties into ‘deep freezer’

Istanbul, Turkey – The mounting death toll in Gaza has seen Turkish politicians, especially President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, become increasingly direct in their criticism of Israel.

Erdogan recently said he had severed ties entirely with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netan…[Read more]