Israeli bereaved families mourn alone abroad on Memorial Day | Israel Hayom
Forty-two bereaved families scattered across the diaspora – half of them lone soldiers' relatives – face Israel's Memorial Day in countries where the world keeps moving. Israel's Defense Ministry has built a quiet support network to reach them, but the grief of marking the day alone remains.
Partners line up for arms deals as Japan opens defense industry door
'A number of countries' have approached Tokyo with 'expressions of interest and various needs' about Japanese defense equipment, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said.
In major policy shift, Japan scraps limits on lethal arms exports
The changes come amid intensifying geopolitical rivalries and Japan's growing engagement in international defense-industrial projects.
China sent naval vessels through a waterway near Amami Oshima off Kagoshima Prefecture for training in the Pacific Ocean in apparent pushback against a Maritime Self-Defense Force warship transiting the Taiwan Strait.
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/04/20/japan/china-japan-pacific-naval-drills/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #china #chinajapanrelations #defense #defenseministry #taiwan #sdf #eastchinasea #pla
Chinese military warships train in western Pacific after MSDF Taiwan Strait transit
China has dispatched naval vessels led by one of its most advanced warships through a waterway near Amami Oshima off Kagoshima Prefecture for training in the western Pacific.
North Korea test-fires flurry of ballistic missiles, Takaichi says
The weapons were believed to have fallen outside Japan's exclusive economic zone, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said.
The Chinese military sent naval and air forces for "joint combat readiness patrols" in the waters and airspace of the East China Sea on Saturday, a day after a Japan warship transited the Taiwan Strait.
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/04/18/asia-pacific/china-east-china-sea-military-exercises/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #china #pla #eastchinasea #taiwan #defense #defenseministry #sdf
Chinese military holds joint drills in East China Sea after MSDF's Taiwan Strait transit
Beijing said the exercises were 'a routine arrangement organized in accordance with the annual plan, aiming at testing the joint operations capabilities.'
Japan is making progress toward its goal of bringing defense spending to 2% of GDP, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said, with spending for this fiscal year set to rise to just short of that threshold, at 1.9%.
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/04/18/japan/japan-defense-spending-gdp/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #defense #defenseministry #budgets #sdf #china #shinjirokoizumi
Japan's defense spending to reach 1.9% of GDP this fiscal year
Defense-related spending in the fiscal year through March 2027 would total ¥10.6 billion, approaching the gold standard 2% of GDP level.
Japan seals largest-ever defense contract with frigate sale to Australia
Tokyo will supply Australia with the first three of a planned fleet of 11 new warships in a deal that highlights the progress of Japan's defense industry over the past decade.
Japanese drone maker notes tailwind as demand jumps and China frozen out of U.S.
Escalating geopolitical tensions might present opportunities for Japanese companies in a market long dominated by China's DJI.
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi has denied claims that the national anthem performance by a Ground Self-Defense Force sergeant at a Liberal Democratic Party convention constituted a political act.
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/04/15/japan/politics/self-defense-forces-member-national-anthem/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #sdf #defenseministry #ldp
Koizumi says GSDF officer's performance at LDP convention not a political act
Opposition parties have argued that the performance violated Article 61 of the Self-Defense Forces law, which restricts political activities by SDF members.
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