Tomoyasu Website 2026

1. US President Donald Trump has pressed the Islamic group Hamas to accept the 20-point ceasefire plan he announced last week. Trump replied “Complete obliteration!” when asked by CNN via text message on Saturday what would happen if Hamas insists on staying in power in the Gaza Strip.
2. There is just one week to go until the World Expo in Osaka draws to a close. Organizers are bracing for a surge in last-minute traffic. They are also looking ahead to preserve the legacy of the 6-month event.
3. The Nobel Prize winners for 2025 are set to be announced this week. The prizes were created by dynamite inventor Afred Nobel. They are awarded to people who have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind during the preceding year.

1. The US federal government shutdown has entered its second day while the Republicans and the opposition Democrats remain at odds over the budget for the new fiscal year.
2. European leaders have reaffirmed their commitment to work with Ukraine in countering Russian drone incursions.
3. Electric vehicle giant Tesla says its global deliveries hit a record high in the quarter ended September, driven by US orders before the expiry of EV tax credits last month.

1. The mother of a Japanese woman abducted to North Korea has urged the government to take action for the immediate return of all abduction victims, ahead of her daughter’s 61st birthday. Yokota Sakie spoke to reporters on Thursday three days before the birthday of Megumi. Megumi was kidnapped by North Korean agents on her way home from a junior high school in Niigata City on the coast of Sea of Japan on November 15, 1977. She was then 13 years old.
2. NHK has found that at least 100 fires in Japan in the roughly three and a half years to August are believed to have been caused by recalled products containing lithium-ion batteries.
3. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is trying to expand the number of hunters, and help them improve their skills, in response to threats posed by bears. Multiple Asian black bear sightings have been reported in the Japanese capital this year, especially in the mountainous areas of western Tokyo.

1. The US government has entered a partial shutdown from early Wednesday as the federal budget expired without new legislation being passed. The partial closure is the first in about seven years since December 2018 during President Donald Trump’s first term. His Republican Party and the Democratic Party clashed over funding for the construction of a wall along the US-Mexico border.
2. Japanese retail giant Aeon is tapping technology to improve efficiency as labor costs rise. Japan’s minimum wage hikes for fiscal 2025 started to kick in on Wednesday, adding to the company’s overheads for its 400,000 part-time workers nationwide. Aeon’s supermarket subsidiary started use of a hand-held device in June to speed up restocking of shelves. The device reads bar codes to tell a staffer where a product is displayed in a store. The company says this assists workers who are unfamiliar with the floor layout. Aeon plans to introduce the device at all of its outlets in Japan next fiscal year. Officials say efficiency gains will give it room to further increase wages.
3. A closely-watched survey of business sentiment in Japan shows a slight improvement among major manufacturers for the second straight quarter. The Bank of Japa’s latest “Tankan” survey was released on Wednesday. The sentiment index for manufacturers came in at plus 14. That is 1 point higher than in the previous poll. A positive number indicates there are more companies feeling optimistic about business conditions than pessimistic. Sentiment improved at nine of the 16 manufacturing sectors monitored.

1. Some US government offices may close from Wednesday as Republicans and Democrats remain divided over federal funding. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said they made proposals to the president on health care, which they think the American people are for. He said if the president will accept some of the things they asked for, a shutdown can be avoided. He said, “but there are still large differences between us.”
2. The Bank of Japan left interest rates unchanged in September, but a summary of the meeting shows more policymakers are leaning toward a rate hike in the near future. Two policymakers at the meeting did propose raising the central bank’s policy rate, but they were overvoted. However, the summary shows other policymakers indicated the bank will need to soon consider hiking interest rates.
3. Japanese beverage maker Suntory Spirits says it will change its mainstay beer-like drinks to regular beer to tap demand for beer that is expected to grow thanks to a tax. Suntory announced on Monday that the change of its Kinmugi brand will take place in or after October 2026.

1. The organizer of the 2025 World Expo in Osaka says the number of visitors has exceeded the break-even point with 15 days remaining before the event closes. The organizer announced on Sunday that preliminary data shows that the number of ticketed visitors surpassed 22 million on Saturday. That figure has been seen as the number needed to avoid a loss.
2. Yokozuna Onosato clinched his fifth sumo title on Sunday after defeating fellow grand champion Hoshuryu in a playoff.
3. US Vice President JD Vance says the United States is considering supplying Ukraine with Tomahawk cruise missiles, which have a long-range capacity that can reach the Russian capital Moscow from Ukraine.

1. US President Donald Trump has held talks with Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and called on him to stop buying Russian oil. Trump appears to be aiming for a breakthrough in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine by obtaining Turkey’s cooperation. The country is a NATO member, but also geographically near Russia and Ukraine, and has close relations with both of them.
2. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has told an American news outlet he has received support from the US. He said President Donald Trump backs him up carrying out retaliatory strikes against Russian energy targets and arms factories. News site Axios released the interview on Thursday. In it, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces are seeking additional long-range weaponry from Washington and that, if they get it, they “will use it.” He added that this should serve as a warning to leaders in Moscow. Zelenskyy said, “They have to know where their bomb shelters are. If they will not stop the war, they will need it in any case.”
3. Ukrainian officials have appealed for Japanese investment in defense and other industries to help the country rebuild from the destruction caused by Russian attacks. Organizations including the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce in Japan held an investment forum in Tokyo on Thursday. A senior official of the Ukrainian government’s investment promotion office outlined forms of preferential treatment, such as one related to corporate taxation. The deputy of Ukraine’s Sumy regional council stressed that investment will be needed in various fields to revitalize the economy after the fighting ends.

1. Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa has called for the lifting of all sanctions to support the country’s reconstruction. He made the remarks at a speech Wednesday at the United Nations General Assembly. Syrian and other media say he is the first Syrian leader to address the assembly in 58 years.
2. The Japan International Cooperation Agency, or JICA, says it will withdraw an exchange program between Japanese municipalities and African nations due to a continuing backlash from misinformation. JICA officials told reporters that incorrect information is still circulating, and protest phone calls and emails are becoming an excessive burden for the municipalities.
3. An apartment fire in Tokyo has sent six people to hospitals. Police and firefighters believe the blaze was sparked by a mobile battery charger. Police and others say a resident of the five-story building in Suginami Ward reported that a battery charger erupted in flames, shortly before 2:00 a.m. on Thursday.

1. Japan’s Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru has called for a reform of the United Nations Security Council, and indicated Japan may recognize Palestinian statehood if Israel takes further actions to block a “two-state solution.”
2. US President Donald Trump said NATO countries should shoot down Russian aircraft if they violate NATO airspace. His comment came after Russian fighters and military drones have entered the NATO airspace in recent weeks.
3. Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-15 fighter jets have arrived at an air base in Germany for defense exchanges. F-15 fighter jets have been dispatched to the United States, Canada, Britain and Germany from September 14 to October 1. Germany is the last destination. The mission is designed to strengthen cooperation with the countries through defense exchanges.

1. Russia has been condemned at an emergency UN Security Council meeting for its alleged violation of Estonian airspace.
2. Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru is on his way to New York to attend the UN General Assembly.
3. French President Emmanuel Macron said that France recognizes Palestinian statehood during a speech at the United Nations in New York on Monday.