Japan's government plans to convene an extraordinary Diet session on October 5, with proposed legislation to reduce the consumption tax on food and plans to cut the number of seats in the House of Representatives expected to be among the main issues. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi moved on September 28 to strengthen Japan’s intelligence functions as her government prepared for an extraordinary Diet session that is expected to test its ability to pass tax relief, defend its economic policy and manage rising security pressure from China. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is entering the autumn political season under growing pressure to show that her government can manage relations with Washington and Beijing while keeping Japan’s economic policy on a credible path after the Bank of Japan’s latest rate hike. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi returned to Japan on the morning of September 24 following talks with US President Donald Trump and immediately headed to the Prime Minister's Office to finalize key appointments within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party ahead of an extraordinary Diet session in October. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and U.S. President Donald Trump met in New York on September 22, confirming close cooperation on security and economic issues ahead of Trump’s planned summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping. (News On Japan)

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and US President Donald Trump held talks at United Nations headquarters in New York in the early hours of September 23 Japan time, demonstrating the strength of the Japan-US alliance and confirming close cooperation on China ahead of an upcoming US-China summit. (News On Japan)

China held commemorative events across the country on September 18 to mark the 95th anniversary of the Mukden Incident, the 1931 railway explosion that Japan's Kwantung Army used as a pretext to seize Manchuria and which became a major turning point in the deterioration of relations between Japan and China. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi launched her first cabinet reshuffle since taking office, keeping core economic, foreign-policy and security ministers in place while replacing a broad group of other ministers in an attempt to stabilize her government before a difficult autumn of tax, budget, monetary policy and diplomatic battles. (News On Japan)

Japan's Air Self-Defense Force has concluded that a large Global Hawk unmanned reconnaissance aircraft that lost communication off Tottori Prefecture on September 15 crashed into the sea. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi launched a new Liberal Democratic Party executive team on September 16, retaining most of the party’s senior leadership while pledging to unite the government and ruling party to overcome a difficult political and economic environment. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government entered a decisive political week on September 15 after approving an outline for food-tax relief and household payouts without settling how the package will be funded, keeping fiscal concerns alive just days before the Bank of Japan is expected to decide whether to raise interest rates again. (News On Japan)

A Japan Air Self-Defense Force Global Hawk unmanned reconnaissance aircraft went missing over international waters about 50 kilometers north of Tottori Prefecture on September 15, with floating debris and oil later found in the area where communications were lost. (News On Japan)

Japan's government is set to approve tax reform guidelines on September 15 that will reduce the consumption tax on food from the current 8% to 1% for two years starting in April 2027 as part of measures to ease the burden of rising prices. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said the victory of Genta Koja in the Okinawa gubernatorial election reflected the wishes of prefectural residents seeking stronger economic growth, with senior ruling party officials viewing the result as a boost for her administration. (News On Japan)

Genta Koja, a former deputy mayor of Naha who accepts the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma to Henoko in Nago, won the Okinawa gubernatorial election on September 13, defeating incumbent Governor Denny Tamaki and bringing an end to 12 years of prefectural administrations committed to blocking the project. (News On Japan)

Japan has asked for changes to an Equal Earth world map that depicts the Russian-controlled Northern Territories in the same color as Russia, prompting the map's creator to say the Japanese-language version will be revised while the English version will remain unchanged. (News On Japan)

The Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly elected a new chairman after the resignation of longtime power broker Isao Kuranouchi, while a photograph showing an opposition lawmaker striking a pose reminiscent of the movie Titanic during an overseas inspection trip has triggered a fresh political controversy. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government faced a sharper market test on September 9 as the yen’s rapid rebound began pressuring global carry trades, turning expectations of a Bank of Japan rate hike into a political challenge for an administration still trying to balance household relief, fiscal discipline and economic security. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi entered the final stretch before the Bank of Japan’s September policy meeting facing a new version of the currency problem that has shaped her summer: the yen is no longer collapsing, but its sharp rebound is now forcing her government to explain how far it is prepared to tolerate higher interest rates to restore market confidence. (News On Japan)

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is accelerating preparations for a Cabinet reshuffle that could take place as early as next week, considering ministerial posts for senior Liberal Democratic Party officials while weighing the treatment of Internal Affairs Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and a new Cabinet member from the Japan Innovation Party. (News On Japan)