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Japan announces it has begun successfully drilling and retrieving deep-sea sediment containing rare earth minerals near the remote island of Minamitorishima in the Pacific Ocean, as the country seeks to reduce its reliance on China for critical minerals for use in its defense industry and automotive industry.
2026-02-2

Japan and the Philippines sign a defense pact to mutually allow tax-free provision of ammunition, fuel, food, and other forms of aid.
2026-01-15

Japan reports that seafood exports to China have resumed for the first time since China imposed a ban in August 2023 over treated wastewater releases from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. However, China maintains restrictions on products from Fukushima and surrounding prefectures.
2025-11-7

Typhoon Ragasa makes landfall in Luzon, Philippines, killing at least three people and leaving six others missing, and triggering alerts and evacuation orders in nearby Hong Kong and southern China.
2025-09-22

China's coast guard reports that a "Datu Cabaylo"-class multi-mission offshore vessel of the Philippine fisheries bureau rammed a Chinese coast guard vessel near the disputed Scarborough Shoal, while the Philippines say Chinese ships used water cannons that damaged the Filipino vessel and injured a crew member.
2025-09-16

China approves the establishment of a national nature reserve at Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, a territory also claimed by the Philippines and Taiwan.
2025-09-10

Australia, India, Japan, and the United States announce a joint initiative to work towards securing minerals necessary for new technologies and reduce reliance on Chinese sources.
2025-07-2

A Chinese crew member is killed when Chinese sand barge vessel "M-V Hong Hai 16" capsizes off Rizal, Occidental Mindoro, Philippines. A search and rescue operation is launched by the Philippine Coast Guard for missing crew members, which includes seven Filipinos and three Chinese.
2025-04-15

Foreign ministers from Japan, China, and South Korea meet in Tokyo to discuss cooperation on shared challenges like aging populations and climate change, seeking to improve relations and prepare for a leaders' summit. Japan raises security concerns about North Korea while China criticizes protectionism and the politicization of science.
2025-03-22

Philippine President Bongbong Marcos states that he is careful of possible surveillance of the country's air and naval bases as well as the movement of vessels supplying Philippine garrisons in the South China Sea following a series of arrests of suspected Chinese spies in the Philippines.
2025-01-31