WASHINGTON: The United States and Japan announced Thursday a $40 billion project to build nuclear reactors in Tennessee and Alabama, after a meeting of the two countries&#39; leaders in Washington. The talks between US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi came after Tokyo agreed last year to invest $550 billion through 2029 as part of a new trade pact with Washington. Thursday&#39;s joint statement on the so-called small modular reactors (SMRs) also announced a $33 billion investment in natural gas power generation facilities in Pennsylvania and Texas. The countries announced the first tranche of projects under the new investment fund in February, with $36 billion in commitments in three infrastructure projects. Thursday&#39;s statement said the projects would ensure security by &quot;accelerating economic growth of both countries, thereby paving the way for a New Golden Age of the ever-growing Japan-US Alliance.&quot; It touted the SMRs, built by GE Vernova Hitachi, as providing &quot;a tremendous next-generation stable power source, stabilizing electricity prices for American people and strengthening the Japan-US leadership in global technological competition.&quot; Both sides also released an action plan Thursday on developing critical mineral supply chains, amid concerns about China&#39;s dominant role in the sector. It includes discussing coordinated trade policies and mechanisms, such as border-adjusted price floors, &quot;focusing in the first instance on select critical minerals.&quot;

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Asia

The United States and Japan announced a $40 billion project to build nuclear reactors in Tennessee and Alabama, after a meeting of the two countries' leaders in Washington.

 US, Japan announce $40B nuclear power project

TOKYO: Japan said on Monday it was beginning the release of its strategic oil reserves after the International Energy Agency indicated earlier that the release would begin in Asia and Oceania before other regions. IEA members agreed on March 11 to tap oil stockpiles to cushion the surge in prices caused by the US-Israeli war on Iran -- by far the largest-ever response of its kind. Japan, which depends on the Middle East for 95% of its oil imports, said Monday in a notice in its official government gazette that the level of oil reserves in the country &quot;is being lowered&quot;. The issuance of the notice compels managers of oil reserves to release part of their stockpile to meet the new standard. Many Japanese media interpreted the notice as confirmation that the release had already begun. Minoru Kihara, top spokesman for the government, said Monday the country would release 15 days&#39; worth of private-sector petroleum reserves. Strategic oil reserves Japan&#39;s strategic oil reserves are among the world&#39;s largest and stood at more than 400 million barrels as of December. The country holds reserves equivalent to 254 days of domestic consumption. Ryosei Akazawa, the minister of economy, trade and industry, said on Friday that private oil reserves would be released before government stockpiles. Takaichi said last week that the country planned to release one month&#39;s worth of national reserves. The IEA said earlier that a total of 271.7 million barrels of government-managed stocks would be released worldwide. &quot;Individual implementation plans have been submitted to the IEA by Member countries. These plans indicate that stocks will be made available by IEA Member countries in Asia Oceania immediately,&quot; said the IEA. &quot;Stocks from IEA Member countries in the Americas and Europe will be made available starting from the end of March,&quot; it added.

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Japan's strategic oil reserves are among the world's largest and stood at more than 400 million barrels as of December; the country holds reserves equivalent to 254 days of domestic consumption.



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The country holds reserves equivalent to 254 days of domestic consumption.



Japan says beginning release of strategic oil reserves

SEOUL: North Korea fired about 10 unidentified ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan Saturday, Seoul&#39;s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, days after Pyongyang warned of &quot;terrible consequences&quot; over South Korea-US military drills. Pyongyang recently dashed hopes of a diplomatic thaw with South Korea, Washington&#39;s security ally, describing its latest peace efforts as a &quot;clumsy, deceptive farce&quot;. Seoul&#39;s military detected &quot;around ten unidentified ballistic missiles launched from the Sunan area in North Korea toward the East Sea at around 1:20 pm (0420 GMT),&quot; the JCS said in a statement. Japan&#39;s defense ministry also confirmed the launch, saying on its official X account that &quot;what is possibly a ballistic missile was launched from North Korea&quot;. The announcement came hours after South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok said that US President Donald Trump thinks a meeting with Pyongyang&#39;s leader Kim Jong Un would be &quot;good&quot;. Washington has for decades led efforts to dismantle North Korea&#39;s nuclear program, but summits, sanctions and diplomatic pressure have had little impact. The Trump administration has pushed in recent months to revive high-level talks with Pyongyang, eyeing a possible summit with Kim Jong Un this year, potentially during Trump&#39;s April visit to Beijing. Seoul&#39;s Kim, who met Trump in Washington, said the US president told him that meeting Kim Jong Un would be &quot;good&quot; and the meeting could potentially happen during Trump&#39;s visit to Beijing that begins later in March. Trump said during a trip to Asia in October that he was &quot;100 percent&quot; open to meeting with Kim Jong Un, a remark that went unanswered by the North. After largely ignoring those overtures for months, Kim Jong Un recently said that the two nations could &quot;get along&quot; if Washington accepted Pyongyang&#39;s nuclear status. &#39;Terrible consequences&#39; Last month, Pyongyang&#39;s leader Kim said North Korea had &quot;absolutely no business dealing with South Korea, its most hostile entity, and will permanently exclude South Korea from the category of compatriots&quot;. Seoul and Washington kicked off their springtime military drills &quot;Freedom Shield&quot; on Monday, which will involve about 18,000 Korean troops and run until March 19. The nuclear-armed North, which attacked its neighbour in 1950 triggering the Korean War, has long described such exercises as rehearsals for invasion. Earlier this week, Kim Yo Jong, a powerful confidante of her brother Kim Jong Un, said the joint drills &quot;may cause unimaginably terrible consequences&quot;. She went on to say the drills were taking place at &quot;a critical time when global security structure is collapsing rapidly and wars break out in different parts of the world&quot;. She said the situation is caused by &quot;the reckless acts of the outrageous international rogues&quot;. Pyongyang has condemned the US-Israeli attack on Iran as an &quot;illegal act of aggression&quot;, claiming it shows the &quot;rogue&quot; nature of the United States.

North Korea fired about 10 ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, amid rising tensions over joint military drills by South Korea and the United States.

South Korea says North fires around 10 ballistic missiles

TOKYO: Japan&#39;s government plans to deploy surface-to-air missiles on one of its remote western islands near Taiwan by March 2031, the country&#39;s defence minister said on Tuesday.&nbsp;It is the first time Japan has specified the timing of the deployment.&nbsp;The ministry announced the plan in 2022 to ramp up its air defences on the island, which already hosts a Japanese military base.&nbsp;Japan&#39;s defence minister Shinjiro Koizumi said at a regular press conference in Tokyo that the deployment on Yonaguni island would take place in the 2030 fiscal year, which ends in March of the following calendar year.&nbsp;The comments come during a months-long row between Japan and China, with Beijing on Tuesday announcing that it was imposing export restrictions on dozens of Japanese firms that it said were involved in building up the country&#39;s military.&nbsp;Koizumi, who visited Yonaguni in November, said the ministry will hold a briefing for local residents next week on the island, located roughly 110 kilometres (68 miles) east of Taiwan and 1,900 kilometres southwest of Tokyo.&nbsp;Japan&#39;s conservative Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested in November that Tokyo could intervene militarily in any attack on self-ruled Taiwan.&nbsp;China views Taiwan as its territory and has not ruled out taking it by force.&nbsp;Since Takaichi made the remark, Beijing has discouraged Chinese nationals from visiting Japan, which hit tourism, one of the pillars of the Japanese economy.&nbsp;Beijing&#39;s top diplomat Wang Yi said at the Munich Security Conference earlier this month that forces in Japan were seeking to &quot;revive militarism&quot;.&nbsp;Takaichi told parliament on Friday that China was intensifying attempts to change the status quo &quot;by force or coercion&quot; in the East China Sea and the South China Sea and has said Japan needs to strengthen its defence capabilities.

Japan says it plans to deploy surface-to-air missiles on Yonaguni by 2031, strengthening defenses near Taiwan amid rising tensions with China. The move follows diplomatic friction, military warnings, and growing regional security concerns in East Asian water

Japan to deploy missile systems on island near Taiwan by 2031: defence minister

TOKYO:&nbsp;Japan seized a Chinese fishing boat and arrested its skipper, authorities said Friday, an incident that could deepen a spat between the Asian giants. The episode on Thursday off southern Japan came three months after Prime Minister <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/japan-pm-takaichi-basks-in-historic-election-triumph" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sanae Takaichi</a> suggested that Japan would intervene militarily if Beijing sought to take Taiwan by force. &quot;The vessel&#39;s captain was ordered to stop for an inspection by a fisheries inspector, but the vessel failed to comply and fled,&quot; Japan&#39;s fisheries agency said. Captain arrested&nbsp;&quot;Consequently, the vessel&#39;s captain was arrested on the same day,&quot; it said in a statement. The boat was inside Japan&#39;s exclusive economic zone 89.4 nautical miles (166 kilometers) south-southwest of Meshima island in the Goto archipelago, Japan&#39;s statement said. China was yet to comment. It was the first time since 2022 that the Japanese fisheries agency has seized a Chinese fishing boat. The captain was named as Chinese national Zheng Nianli, 47.&nbsp; The status of the other 10 people on board the vessel, named the Qiong Dong Yu, was unclear. Major diplomatic incident&quot;To prevent illegal fishing operations by foreign vessels, we will continue to take firm action and engage in enforcement activities,&quot; chief government spokesman Minoru Kihara said. China has a number of territorial tussles with Japan, and there have been repeated incidents around the Senkaku Islands, known as the Diaoyu in China. The 2010 arrest of another Chinese fishing boat captain off those islands in the East China Sea became a major diplomatic incident. <h2 style="line-height: 2;">Taiwan spat&nbsp;</h2>Japan and China have close economic ties but Takaichi&#39;s comments about Taiwan have sent relations spiraling downwards again. China has long insisted that Taiwan, occupied for decades by Japan until 1945, is its territory and has not ruled out force to achieve &quot;reunification&quot;. After Takaichi&#39;s comments, Beijing summoned Tokyo&#39;s ambassador, warned Chinese citizens against visiting Japan and conducted joint air drills with Russia. In December, J-15 jets from China&#39;s Liaoning aircraft carrier twice locked radar on Japanese aircraft in international waters near Okinawa, according to Japan. China also tightened controls on exports to Japan for items with potential military uses, fueling worries that Beijing may choke supplies of vital rare-earth minerals. Japan&#39;s last two pandas were even returned to China last month. <h2 style="line-height: 2;">Hawkish leader&nbsp;</h2>Takaichi, 64, was seen as a China hawk before becoming Japan&#39;s first woman prime minister in October. She won a landslide victory in snap elections on Sunday, putting her in a strong position for the next four years to stamp her mark on Japanese domestic and foreign policy. Takaichi said Monday that under her leadership Japan -- which hosts some 60,000 US military personnel -- would bolster its defenses and &quot;steadfastly protect&quot; its territory. She also said that she was &quot;open to various dialogues with China&quot;. &lsquo;Takaichi&#39;s erroneous remarks&rsquo;But China&#39;s foreign ministry said &quot;genuine dialogue should be built on respect for one another&quot;. &quot;Proclaiming dialogue with one&#39;s mouth while engaging in confrontation -- no one will accept this kind of dialogue,&quot; foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said Tuesday. &quot;If Japan truly wants to develop a strategic and mutually beneficial relationship with China, it&#39;s very easy and clear: withdraw Takaichi&#39;s erroneous remarks about Taiwan,&quot; he said.

The 2010 arrest of another Chinese fishing boat captain off those islands in the East China Sea became a major diplomatic incident.

Japan seizes Chinese fishing vessel, arrests captain

TOKYO: Japanese giant Sony hiked its full-year forecasts on Thursday, as a weaker yen compensates for its ageing PlayStation games console and a memory chip crunch.&nbsp;Sony now expects net profit of 1.13 trillion yen ($7.2 billion) in the 2025-26 fiscal year, up from its previous projection of 1.05 trillion yen, and a 6%&nbsp;rise on last year.&nbsp;It also projected a 20.6%&nbsp;rise in operating profit and revenues of 12.3 trillion yen, up 2.2%, as well as an improved operating margin of 12.5%, a statement said.&nbsp;For its third quarter, Sony&#39;s net profit rose 11%, and revenues were up 1%. Operating income of 515 billion yen beat analysts&#39; expectations.&nbsp;Sony&#39;s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/marvels-wolverine-trailer-delivers-cuttingedge-graphics-gritty-violence" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">PlayStation 5</a>&nbsp;(PS5), launched in 2020, is beginning to get old, and sales volumes of the games console fell 16%&nbsp;in the last quarter.&nbsp;The company offered steep discounts on the device last year in an attempt to boost demand.&nbsp;However, the Japanese group, like its competitors worldwide, is suffering from a growing shortage of memory chips.&nbsp;That is driving up the prices of the chips and eroding the profit margins of all sorts of electronic goods.&nbsp;Shares in Nintendo, maker of the rival Switch 2, dived 11%&nbsp;on Wednesday over concerns about software sales and the impact of the memory chip supply crunch.&nbsp;Sony shares initially soared almost 6%&nbsp;on Thursday but were flat in late trade in a falling overall market.&nbsp;&lsquo;AI boom&rsquo;The artificial intelligence boom has pushed up prices and shipments of conventional NAND and DRAM memory chips, while demand for high‑bandwidth memory (HBM) chips used in AI servers has soared.&nbsp;&quot;It will definitely get more difficult to offer reduced prices (of the PS5) this year than in 2025,&quot; gaming industry consultant Serkan Toto told AFP.&nbsp;Sony did not comment on the chip issue in its earnings release, which analysts say could also hit its hardware products, such as cameras, TVs, and smartphones, as well as its image sensor segment.&nbsp;Last month, Sony said it was spinning off its home entertainment business, which includes TVs, into a joint venture with Chinese giant TCL.&nbsp;It might also force Sony to delay the launch of a potential PlayStation 6 to the second quarter of 2028, Yasuo Nakane from Mizuho said in a recent note. &#39;Grand Theft Auto VI&#39;&nbsp;The hotly anticipated upcoming release of &quot;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/grand-theft-auto-vi-video-game-delayed-again-until-nov-2026" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Grand Theft Auto VI</a>&quot; is also important for PlayStation&#39;s continued sales.&nbsp;GTA&#39;s creators, Rockstar Games, delayed the launch again last year, this time until November.&nbsp;&quot;In 2026, GTA VI will do to PS5 what Covid did a few years ago to Sony: provide a massive boost, enough to carry the platform to 2028,&quot; Toto said.&nbsp;&quot;Nobody doubts that GTA VI will be the biggest game launch (and perhaps of an entertainment product) of all time.&quot;&nbsp;Sony is also banking on growth in the music division thanks to increased sales related to concerts and merchandise, while results are expected to stagnate in film and consumer electronics.&nbsp;It began reducing its exposure to this low-margin sector several years ago to focus on entertainment and imaging technologies, its main growth drivers.&nbsp;Sony&#39;s forecast for the estimated impact of tariffs this year imposed on Japanese imports by US President Donald Trump&#39;s administration remained at 50 billion yen.

People walk past the Sony headquarters in Tokyo on February 10, 2025. (Photo: AFP/File)

It also projects a 20.6% rise in operating profit and revenues of 12.3 trillion yen, up 2.2%, as well as an improved operating margin of 12.5%, a statement said.

Sony hikes forecasts even as PlayStation falters

TOKYO: Official campaigning began in Japan on Tuesday ahead of a snap election on Feb. 8. Here are five key issues in a high-stakes vote where Prime Minister <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/japans-ruling-party-elects-sanae-takaichi-as-new-leader-likely-to-become-first-female-pm" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Sanae Takaichi</a>has laid her political future on the line. Race to the pollsCandidates&#39; posters are up, vans topped with loudspeakers are cruising the streets, and Takaichi held her first rally Tuesday in central Tokyo, where dozens gathered to hear her speak. The lower house of parliament was officially dissolved on Jan. 23, 16 days before the vote -- the shortest window between the two in the postwar era. Yet the brevity of this pre-election period &quot;will likely not have much of an effect&quot;, said Michael Cucek, assistant professor of Asian Studies at Temple University&#39;s Japan Campus. &quot;There is no need for time to introduce or explain anything: the parties are offering strikingly similar policy programmes,&quot; he told AFP, adding that the weather would likely have more impact on voter turnout, with severe snowstorms hitting the north. Takaichi&#39;s slipping popularityAppointed in October as Japan&#39;s first woman prime minister, hardline nationalist Takaichi is banking on strong poll numbers to boost her unpopular Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which holds only a slim majority in the powerful lower house. Takaichi has staked her political future on the vote, saying she will resign immediately if her coalition fails to win a majority. Her government&#39;s once sky-high popularity, while still solid, has started to slip: its approval rating fell from 75% in December to 67%, according to a survey by the Nikkei newspaper. Voters are raising questions over a recent tax-cut pledge to counter inflation and how it would be financed, while many are also frustrated by the snap election, which has slowed parliamentary debate on the 2026-27 budget. Ryutaro Kono, chief economist at BNP Paribas, said that &quot;the surveys ... suggest that the prime minister&#39;s popularity does not necessarily translate into a significant increase in votes for the Liberal Democratic Party.&quot; &quot;Delaying the passage of the budget to proceed with the general election likely caused a significant number of supporters to leave (Takaichi).&quot; Rivals uniteFacing the LDP -- a powerful party that has governed Japan almost continuously since 1955 -- and its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party (JIP), opposition forces have vowed to fight. The Constitutional Democratic Party (CDP) and the small Buddhist Komeito party -- a former LDP coalition partner -- are joining forces under a &quot;Centrist Reform Alliance.&quot; Analysts believe the election could be tight depending on the success of the new alliance, but the opposition&#39;s chances of victory remain slim. &quot;There are no significant policy differences among the parties. This election is shaping up as a referendum on Takaichi,&quot; Hideo Kumano, an economist at the Dai-ichi Life Research Institute, told AFP. Inflation looms largeJapan has grappled with a surge in living costs in recent years, and public anger over inflation played a major role in the downfall of Shigeru Ishiba, Takaichi&#39;s predecessor. Seeking to ease the pain, Takaichi unveiled in November a $135 billion stimulus package and, if elected, has pledged to waive the consumption tax on food for two years, joining opposition promises to cut various taxes. This risks further inflating the country&#39;s already colossal debt, rattling bond markets and reviving memories of the short-lived British leader Liz Truss, who resigned after alarming investors. According to the Nikkei poll published Monday, 56% of Japanese believe the promised tax exemption would not be effective against inflation. Takaichi defended the measure on Monday, saying she was paying &quot;considerable attention to fiscal sustainability.&quot; Foreigners, diplomacy&nbsp;Another voter concern is the role of foreigners in Japan, although immigration levels there remain low compared with those of other rich economies. Sanseito, a populist anti-immigration party, made a notable breakthrough in mid-2025 upper house elections. Sanae Takaichi is promising a clampdown. On Friday, a cabinet meeting proposed tougher action against foreigners staying illegally and stricter controls on property buyers, while pledging support for those who have the right to stay. International issues may also loom over the campaign. Takaichi, who rolled out the red carpet for US President Donald Trump, played drums with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, and took selfies with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, has thrown herself onto the diplomatic stage. But relations with Beijing have worsened since she suggested in November that Tokyo could intervene militarily if China attacked Taiwan. In retaliation, Beijing announced tighter export controls to Japan, and the economic cost of this diplomatic crisis is worrying Japanese voters.

Japan's Prime Minister and President of the Liberal Democratic Party Sanae Takaichi delivers her first campaign speech for the House of Representatives election in Tokyo on January 27, 2026. (Photo by Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi faces slipping approval ratings, rising inflation concerns, a fragile parliamentary majority and a newly unified opposition, as voters weigh economic strain, foreign policy risks and domestic political stability.

Japan's election campaign kicks off: Five things to know

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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Japan held the 8th Government-Business Joint Dialogue and the Pakistan Business Forum in Tokyo to deepen economic ties and promote trade and investment cooperation, the Embassy of Pakistan in Tokyo said in a press release on Tuesday. The Dialogue, convened in Tokyo for the first time since December 2018, was co-chaired by Pakistan&rsquo;s Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Commerce and Industry Rana Ihsaan Afzal Khan&nbsp;and Japan&rsquo;s Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Takuo Komori.<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; line-height: 2;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-2" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-2&features=eyJ0ZndfdGltZWxpbmVfbGlzdCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOltdLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2ZvbGxvd2VyX2NvdW50X3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9iYWNrZW5kIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19yZWZzcmNfc2Vzc2lvbiI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZm9zbnJfc29mdF9pbnRlcnZlbnRpb25zX2VuYWJsZWQiOnsiYnVja2V0Ijoib24iLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X21peGVkX21lZGlhXzE1ODk3Ijp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRyZWF0bWVudCIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3Nob3dfYmlyZHdhdGNoX3Bpdm90c19lbmFibGVkIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19kdXBsaWNhdGVfc2NyaWJlc190b19zZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdXNlX3Byb2ZpbGVfaW1hZ2Vfc2hhcGVfZW5hYmxlZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdmlkZW9faGxzX2R5bmFtaWNfbWFuaWZlc3RzXzE1MDgyIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRydWVfYml0cmF0ZSIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfbGVnYWN5X3RpbWVsaW5lX3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9mcm9udGVuZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9fQ%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2013159364975050993&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=6a22852af20e5782161273426ab9c5b3a452b7a4&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 574px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div></div> The discussions focused on strengthening bilateral economic relations, improving trade and investment environments, and advancing practical cooperation in key sectors, including minerals and mining, agriculture, agri-food products, and information technology. According to the press release,&nbsp;Japanese participants shared perspectives on the operating environment for Japanese companies in Pakistan and discussed areas where continued engagement could further facilitate business activity. Separately, the Pakistan Business Forum, co-organized by the Pakistan embassy and Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), featured sectoral presentations highlighting cooperation opportunities. Komatsu outlined its involvement in Pakistan&#39;s mining sector, while Pak Suzuki Motor Company presented a biogas pilot initiative that converts agricultural waste into an alternative fuel. Pakistan&#39;s Ambassador to Japan, Abdul Hameed, noted improved business confidence among Japanese firms operating in Pakistan, citing JETRO&#39;s 2025 survey showing better profitability outlooks and expansion intentions among Japanese companies in the country.<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; line-height: 2;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-3" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-3&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2013477527101243478&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=6a22852af20e5782161273426ab9c5b3a452b7a4&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 648px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div></div> Both sides reaffirmed the importance of sustained government-to-government engagement, supported by close coordination with the private sector, to advance mutually beneficial economic cooperation, the embassy said.

Pakistan–Japan Private Sector Business Dialogue Tokyo (Photo: X/ @PakinJapan)

Foreign Affairs

Economy

Pakistani, Japanese, and business leaders discussed investment conditions and sector-specific cooperation in mining, agriculture, and technology, reflected in improved profitability outlooks and expansion plans.

Pakistan, Japan hold economic dialogue in Tokyo after six-year gap

FILE: An excavator loads a truck with rare earth at the Port of Lianyungang in Lianyungang city, east China's Jiangsu province, 31 October 2010. (AFP)

Japan embarks Sunday on what it says is the world's first bid to tap deep-sea rare earths at a depth of 6,000 meters, greater than the height of Mount Fuji, to curb dependence on China.

Japan to test deep sea rare earth mining to cut China reliance

TOKYO: Beijing&#39;s actions are &quot;not conducive to regional peace,&quot; Japan&#39;s defense minister and US counterpart Pete Hegseth agreed during a call after Chinese aircraft locked radar on Japanese jets near Taiwan, Tokyo said on Friday. The radar incident was followed this week by Chinese-Russian air patrols around Japan, and came after comments by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Taiwan that infuriated China. Hegseth and Japan&#39;s Shinjiro Koizumi &quot;exchanged candid views on the increasingly severe security situation in the Indo-Pacific region, including the radar incident,&quot; the Japanese defense ministry said after the call. They &quot;expressed serious concern over any actions to increase regional tensions, as China&#39;s actions are not conducive to regional peace and stability,&quot; the statement added. Koizumi said on X that the two men &quot;expressed grave concern over the behaviors that heighten tensions in the region.&quot; He said he had also told Hegseth that China was &quot;disseminating information that is completely contrary to the facts&quot; about the radar incident. &quot;However, Japan has made clear that it does not seek escalation and that we are responding calmly while making necessary rebuttals, and we are keeping the door open for dialogue,&quot; Koizumi added. There was no immediate statement from the United States about the call. Takaichi had suggested on Nov. 7 that Japan would intervene with military force in any Chinese attack on Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own and has not ruled out seizing by force. Last week, J-15 jets from China&#39;s Liaoning aircraft carrier twice locked radar on Japanese aircraft that had scrambled in international waters near Okinawa, according to Japan. Fighter jets use their radar for fire control to identify targets and for search and rescue operations. China&#39;s foreign ministry on Wednesday accused Japan of sending the jets &quot;to intrude into the Chinese training area without authorization, conduct close-range reconnaissance and harassment, create tense situations, and... &nbsp;maliciously hype up the situation.&quot; On Tuesday, two Russian Tu-95 nuclear-capable bombers flew from the Sea of Japan to rendezvous with two Chinese H-6 bombers in the East China Sea, then conducted a joint flight around the country, Japan said. Japan said that it scrambled fighter jets in response. Japan and the United States air forces on Wednesday conducted their own joint air drills in a show of force, Tokyo said. The &quot;tactical exercises&quot; over the Sea of Japan involved two US B-52 bombers, three Japanese F-35 fighter jets, and three Japanese F-15s, Tokyo said. South Korea said on Tuesday that Russian and Chinese warplanes also entered its air defense zone, with Seoul also deploying fighter jets that same day. Beijing confirmed on Tuesday that it had organized drills with Russia&#39;s military in accordance with &quot;annual cooperation plans.&quot; Moscow also described it as a routine exercise, saying it lasted eight hours and that some foreign fighter jets followed the Russian and Chinese aircraft.

US Secretary of War Hegseth, Japan's Koizumi exchange “candid views on the increasingly severe security situation in the Indo-Pacific region, including the radar incident." 

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