The Latest Breaking News from Shinzo Abe

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida recently unveiled an ambitious plan to double the country's defence budget to ¥43 trillion, roughly 2% of Japan's GDP, over the next five years. Notably, the country's massive rearmament programme, its biggest since the end of World War II, has not triggered a political or…

There's a significant sea change affecting Japanese defence policy. Some would say it's the result of a political tsunami. Others would argue it's a long overdue wake-up call.

When an opinion posted online got thrust into the spotlight during Diet deliberations, it triggered alarm bells about the risk of views expressed on social media influencing policymaking.

Tokyo’s dramatic and hawkish turn towards defence in the face of China's growing influence is likely to have ramifications for New Zealand. Geoffrey Miller explains.