Japanese armed forces
FILE - In this July 17, 2021, file photo, banners with the words "I still have the support of 50 million Korean people," are removed from balconies at the the Olympic athletes' village in Tokyo. South Korea removed the banners that the IOC ruled to be provocative, Seoul said it received an IOC promise that the displaying of the “rising sun” flag would also be banned at stadiums and other Olympic venues. (Jin Sung-chul/Yonhap via AP, File)
EXPLAINER: Why Japan 'rising sun' flag provokes Olympic ire

By Hyung-Jin Kim And Mari Yamaguchi Jul. 22, 2021 08:42 PM EDT

A nurse waits in an observation room to watch for adverse effects in people who have just received the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl Court/Pool Photo via AP)
Japan opens mass vaccine centers 2 months before Olympics

By Mari Yamaguchi May. 23, 2021 11:10 PM EDT

FILE - This October 2015, aerial file photo shows U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan, Okinawa, southern Japan. Japanese defense minister said on Tuesday, July 14, 2010 that officials have discovered "a number of problems” with the U.S. military's coronavirus measures for its service members stationed in Japan after about 100 Marines have tested positive for the virus in a massive outbreak at multiple bases in Okinawa. Most of cases are at the air station. (Kazuhiko Yamashita/Kyodo News via AP, File)
Japan: US military coronavirus policy has multiple problems

By Mari Yamaguchi Jul. 14, 2020 07:57 AM EDT

FILE - This Jan. 27, 2018, aerial file photo shows U.S. Marine Air Station Futenma in Ginowan, Okinawa, southern Japan. Okinawan officials said Saturday, July 11, 2020 that dozens of U.S. Marines have been confirmed to have infected with the coronavirus at two bases, Futenma and Camp Hansen, on the southern Japanese island in what is feared to be a massive outbreak, and demanded adequate explanation from the U.S. military officials. (Kyodo News via AP, File)
Okinawa governor wants tougher action as 61 Marines infected

By Mari Yamaguchi Jul. 11, 2020 10:37 PM EDT

FILE - This Jan. 27, 2018, aerial file photo shows U.S. Marine Air Station Futenma in Ginowan, Okinawa, southern Japan. Okinawan officials said Saturday, July 11, 2020 that dozens of U.S. Marines have been confirmed to have infected with the coronavirus at two bases, Futenma and Camp Hansen, on the southern Japanese island in what is feared to be a massive outbreak, and demanded adequate explanation from the U.S. military officials. (Kyodo News via AP, File)
Dozens of US Marines in Japan's Okinawa get coronavirus

By Mari Yamaguchi Jul. 11, 2020 07:45 AM EDT