By Tim Kelly, Yukiko Toyoda, John Geddie TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan is considering offering support for a $44 billion gas pipeline in Alaska as it seeks to court U.S. President Donald Trump and forestall potential trade friction,

The defense chiefs of Japan and the United States have agreed to strengthen the bilateral alliance under the administration of US President Donald Trump.

Japanese authorities have asked hundreds of residents near Tokyo to evacuate as a sinkhole at an intersection grew to more than 40 meters wide, hampering rescuers racing to reach an elderly truck driver whose vehicle was swallowed by the hole.

US military personnel are stationed in Japan, mostly in Okinawa, east of Taiwan. Read more at straitstimes.com.

Japan received reassurances of continued close ties with its U.S. ally including confirmation that a security treaty covers the disputed Senkaku Islands from new Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Jan.

As Donald Trump re-enters the presidential office, the durability of these efforts will be tested, with his administration likely to reshape — though not entirely abandon — this critical partnership.

Japan's biggest drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical posted third-quarter profits on Thursday that trailed analyst estimates but raised its full-year earnings guidance. Operating profit in the three months through end-December stood at 66.

Japan's top LNG buyer, JERA, plans to increase its purchases of liquefied natural gas from the United States to diversify its supply and meet demand growth spurred by data centres and AI, a senior executive told Reuters.

Japan is belatedly addressing an issue described as critically urgent: how to protect undersea cables used for internet traffic from sabotage and eavesdropping.

Japanese police say they have arrested a Canadian national on suspicion of smuggling hundreds of kilograms of methamphetamine into Japan hidden inside large industrial machinery that he had shipped in

Japan is considering offering support for a $44 billion gas pipeline in Alaska as it seeks to court U.S. President Donald Trump and forestall potential trade friction, according to three officials familiar with the matter.