Guido Alberto Casanova

The energy crisis aggravated by sanctions against Russia is breathing new life in Japan’s nuclear energy programme. For the first time since the Fukushima disaster, a majority of public opinion is in favour. Currently, three quarters of Japan's energy comes from imported fossil fuels. The safety of communities near nuclear plants remains a key issue.

Approved last summer, the legislation seeks to force tech giants to allow its app customers to access third-party payment systems. However, Google has announced that as of 1 June it will remove apps that outlink to non-Google payment systems.

The Liberal Democratic Party has presented the Prime Minister and the Defence Minister with recommendations on revising national security policy. There are two objectives: to raise the budget to 2% of GDP within five years and to equip itself with "counter-attack capabilities". A controversial proposal that contradicts the pacifist post-war constitution.

A few days before taking office, the outgoing parliament is expected to vote on a law limiting the powers of the attorney general, the post held until a few months ago by the new president. In the background is the fear that the new political course will rekindle the cycle of judicial investigations. But conservatives are appealing to the Constitutional Court.

Under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, Japan and Russia must agree on cooperation fees for Japanese fishermen to be allowed to fish salmon and trout in Japan’s own exclusive economic zone. This year, negotiations have been delayed by political considerations and Japan’s fishing industry is in danger of collapse, especially in Hokkaido.

Yoon visited North Gyeongsang Province this week to mend fences with local conservatives. The Park administration ended in 2016-17 amid a corruption scandal. The former president was released from prison in December. Elections for the mayor of Daegu are set for June.

The International Monetary Fund and the Central Bank downgrades growth estimates. In a country lacking in natural resources, such as Japan, the soaring price of raw materials is a major problem. But the aftermath of the latest wave of Covid-19, the heaviest in numerical terms experienced by Japan, is also being felt.

The staff of the new conservative president is allegedly courting the popular Korean band. Also on the table is the question of exemption from compulsory military service. But fans rise up: no to exploitation.

The Ministry of Education has published evaluations of textbooks indicating 14 passages "not in conformity" with the 2021 resolution which the government defined as inappropriate regarding the imperial army's role in forced labor and "comfort women". Protests by Korean civil society: Commitment to honest treatment of historical facts disregarded.

Disabled rights activists have been protesting recently at Seoul subway stations to make them more wheelchair accessible. Controversy follows social media posts by the leader of the country’s ruling conservative party who blames advocates of “playing the minority” card to hold others hostage. Meanwhile, the presidential transition committee has promised action.

South Korea’s outgoing president and his successor have not yet met for the handover in May. The two disagree over appointments to government positions and a possible pardon for former President Lee Myung-bak, a conservative who is currently in jail. They have also clashed over Yoon's desire to move the presidential residence.

The combination of an earthquake and very low temperatures has brought eastern Japan to the brink of blackouts in millions of homes. The authorities have appealed for energy saving effort: signs have been switched off, thermostats lowered and lights dimmed even in TV studios. But the problem of the electricity shortage is structural.