Information about Japan

1. Visa and Immigration Control
2. Generalities on Japan
3. Governmental Structure of Japan
4. Policies and Diplomacies of Japanese Government
   Generalities, View towards World War 2
5. Activities of Their Majesties The Emperor and Empress of Japan
6. History and Culture
   Generalities, Columns and Essays, Archives and Galleries
7. Foreign Affairs: Conflict, War and Friendship
   Generalities and Miscellaneous, World War 2, China, India, Ireland, Korea, Russia, UK, US
8. Miscellaneous

Visa and Immigration Control

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
  • Visiting Japan Links
  • Embassies and Consulates of Japan
  • Visa
• The Ministry of Justice of Japan
  • Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act
    • Residence and Departure
    • Annexed Table
• National Police Agency
  • Basic Traffic Rules in Japan

Generalities on Japan

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
  • Visiting Japan Links
• Web-Japan, a Gateway for all Japanese Information
  • Japan Fact Sheet
    • Geography and Climate
    • National Flag and Anthem
    • Regions of Japan
    • Flora and Fauna
  • Kids Web Japan
    • Explore Japan
  • Nipponia
  • Japan Links - A Comprehensive Directory of Useful Websites
• Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco
  • FAQ on Japan

Governmental Structure of Japan

• Web-Japan, a gateway for all Japanese information
  • Japan Fact Sheet
    • Govermental Structure (PDF)
    • The Constitution of Japan (PDF)
• National Diet Library
  • Birth of the Constitution of Japan
    • The Constitution of the Empire of Japan, 1889
    • Imperial Rescript on the Construction of a New Japan, 1946 (in Japanese)
    • Gen. MacArthur Sees Liberalism in Imperial Rescript, 1946
    • The Constitution of Japan, 1946
• Prime Minister of Japan and His Cabinet
  • Abe Cabinet E-mail Magazine
  • Koizumi Cabinet E-mail Magazine
    • Picture of Tokyo, 1945 and 2005
  • Cabinet System of Japan (brief history)
• National Diet of Japan
  • House of Councillors ("Upper House")
  • House of Representatives ("Lower House")
    • From Imperial Diet to National Diet (history of democracy in Japan)
• Supereme Court of Japan
• Imperial Household Agency
  • The Imperial Palace and other Imperial Household Establishments
    • Imperial Palace
    • Imperial Palace (with many photos)
    • Kyoto Imperial Palace (with many photos)
    • Shosoin Repository
    • Ryobo (Mausolea and Tombs)

Policies and Diplomacies of Japanese Government

Generalities

• Prime Minister of Japan and His Cabinet
  • Abe Cabinet E-mail Magazine
  • Koizumi Cabinet E-mail Magazine
• Minstry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
  • Foreign Policy
  • Announcement
    • Speeches and Statements by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
    • Speeches and Statements by Foreign Minister Taro Aso
  • Speeches and Statements by Past Prime Ministers
    • Speeches by Former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi

View towards World War 2

• Asian Women's Fund
  • Project to Lern from History (with substantial files of documents in Japanese)
• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
  • Statement by Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama "On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the war's end", August 15, 1995
  • Speech by H.E. Mr. Junichiro Koizumi, Prime Minister of Japan, at Asian-African Summit, April 22, 2005
• Prime Minister of Japan and His Cabinet
  • Statement by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, August 15, 2005

Activities of Their Majesties The Emperor and Empress of Japan

The Emperor shall be the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people, deriving his position from the will of the people with whom resides sovereign power.
      — The Constitution of Japan, 1946

• Imperial Household Agency
  • Press Conference by Their Majesties The Emperor and Empress of Japan
    • His Majesty's Birthday, December 2000
    • His Majesty's Birthday, December 2001 (The `feel kinship' claim)
    • His Majesty's Birthday, December 2002
    • His Majesty's Birthday, December 2003
    • His Majesty's Birthday, December 2004
    • His Majesty's Birthday, December 2005
    • His Majesty's Birthday, December 2006
    • Their Majesties' visit to the United Kingdom and the Kingdom of Denmark (1998)
    • Commemoration of the 10th Anniversary of His Majesty's Accession to the Throne (1999)
    • Their Majesties' visit to the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Kingdom of Sweden (2000)
    • Their Majesties' visit to the Republic of Poland and the Republic of Hungary (2002)
    • Their Majesties' visit to the Kingdom of Norway and to Ireland (2005)
    • Their Majesties' Visit to the Republic of Singapore and the Kingdom of Thailand (2006)

History and Culture

Generalities

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
  • Culture

Columns and Essays

• Web-Japan, a Gateway for all Japanese Information
  • Japan Fact Sheet
    • Japanese language (PDF)
    • PDF files:
      Religion, Architecture, Art, Literature, Noh and Kyogen, Music, etc.
    • Sumo, Kendo, etc.
    • Japanese Food Culture
  • Kids Web Japan
    • Japanese Language Lessons
    • Folk Legends
    • Sumo, Yabusame and Kyudo, etc.
    • Origami, Exploring Origami, etc.
    • Ukiyo-e
  • Nipponia

Archives and Galleries

• National Diet Library
  • Scenic Memories of Japan
  • Portraits of Modern Japanese Historical Figures
  • Modern Japan in archives
• National Archive of Japan
  • Digital Gallery
• University of Tokyo Library System
  • Digital Exhibision
• Tohoku University Library
  • The Kano Collection - Image database
• Kyushu University digital archives
  • Gallery
• Historiographical institute, The Univsersity of Tokyo
  • History of Japan through documents (in Japanese)

Mischellaneous

• Other Sources
  • Charter Oath (or the Oath in Five Articles)

Foreign Affairs: Conflict, War and Friendship

Generalities and Miscellaneous

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
  • Historical Issue Q&A
  • Asia > Historical Issue
  • Posting of Translations of Japanese Junior High School History Textbooks on Internet Website
• Database Project `The world and Japan'
  • Post WWII Japanese Politics and Diplomacy
    • Basic Documents of Postwar International Politics
• National Diet Library
  • Modern Japan in archives
• Other Sources
  • Paris Peace Conference, 1919
    Proposal: The equality of nations being a basic principle of the League of Nations, the High Contracting Parties agree to accord, as soon as possible, to all alien nationals of States members of the League equal and just treatment in every respect, making no distinction, either in law or in fact, on account of their race or nationality.

World War 2

• Database Project `The world and Japan'
  • Basic Documents of Postwar International Politics
    • Atlantic Charter, August 14, 1941
    • Imperial Rescript, December 8, 1941
    • Cairo Declaration, November 27, 1943
    • Proclamation Defining Terms For Japanese Surrender, July 26, 1945
    • Imperial Rescript, August 14, 1945
    • Instrument of Surrender, September 2, 1945
    • San Francisco Peace Treaty with Japan, September 8, 1951
    • Japan's Application for U.N. membership, June 16, 1952
    • Declaration of the Japanese Goverment on its U.N. membership, June 16, 1952
    • Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between Japan and the United States of America, January 19, 1960
  • Prime Minsterial Addresses outside of the national Diet
    • Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida's Speech at the San Francisco Peace Conference
• National Diet Library
  • Birth of the Constitution of Japan
    • Atlantic Charter
    • Cairo declaration
    • Yalta agreement
    • Potsdam Declaration
    • Instrument of surrender
• Other sourses
  • United States Note to Japan, November 26, 1941 (known to Japanese as `Hull Note')
  • Declarations of a State of War with Japan by the President of the United States of America, December 8, 1941
  • Radio Address by the President of the United States Broadcast from the White House, December 9, 1941
  • Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact, April 13, 1941
  • Treaty of Peace between the Governments of India and Japan, June 9, 1952

Japan-China

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
  • The Basic View on the Sovereignty over the Senkaku Islands
• Database Project `The world and Japan'
  • Basic Documents of Postwar International Politics
    • Treaty of Peace between Japan and the Republic of China, April 28, 1952
    • Joint Communique of the Government of Japan and the Government of the People's Republic of China, September 29, 1972
    • Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and the People's Republic of China, August 12, 1978
• Other sources
  • Treaty of Shimonoseki, April 17, 1895
• Video
  • Address of H.E. Mr. Wen Jiabao, Premier of the State Council, People's Republic of China, at the to Joint Session of the DIET of Japan, April 12, 2007, Tokyo (36 minutes)

Japan-India

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
  • "Confluence of the Two Seas" Speech by H.E.Mr. Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan at the Parliament of the Republic of India (in English)
    Hindi version (PDF, in Hindi)
• Other sourse
  • Treaty of Peace between the Governments of India and Japan, June 9, 1952
  • Dr. Manmohan Singh's banquet speech in honour of Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, April 29, 2005, New Delhi
  • Address of Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India, to Joint Session of the DIET of Japan, December 14, 2006, Tokyo  
• Video
  • Address of Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India, to Joint Session of the DIET of Japan, December 14, 2006, Tokyo (22 minutes)

Japan-Ireland

• The University of Tokyo, Komaba
  • Visit of the President Mary McAleese (PDF, in Japanese and English)

Japan-Korea

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
  • Asia > Historical Issue
  • Issue known as "Wartime Confort Women".
    • Statement by the Chief Cabinet Secretary Yohei Kono on the result of the study on the issue of "comfort women", August 4, 1993.
    • The issue of Wartime "Comfort Women", August 4, 1993. Cabinet Councillors' Office on External Affairs
    • Statement by the Chief Cabinet Secretary, June 14, 1995.
  • The Issue of Takeshima
    • SCAPIN 677 (PDF)
    • SCAPIN 1033 (PDF)
    • SF Treaty of Peace with Japan, Chapter II (PDF)
    • Letter from Ambassador of Korea to the Secretary of US (PDF)
    • Reply to Ambassador of Korea (PDF)
  • Issue of the Name of the Sea of Japan
• Database Project `The world and Japan'
  • Basic Documents of Postwar International Politics
    • Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea, June 22, 1965
  • Japan-Korea documents (in Japanese)
    • Agreement Between Japan and the Republic of Korea Concerning the Settlement of Problems in Regard to Property and Claims and Economic Cooperation, June 22, 1965 (in Japanese, see below for English translation)
• Asian Women's Fund
  • Project to Lern from History (with substantial files of documents in Japanese)
• Japan Coast Guard
  • Naming of "Japan Sea"
• Other sources
  • Treaty of Shimonoseki, April 17, 1895
  • Treaty of Annexation of Korea by Japan, August 22, 1910
  • Agreement Between Japan and the Republic of Korea Concerning the Settlement of Problems in Regard to Property and Claims and Economic Cooperation, June 22, 1965 (in English)

Japan-Russia

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
  • Japan's Northern Territories
    • Joint Compendium of Documents on the History of Territorial Issue between Japan and Russia
    • Japan's Northern Territories, Panphlet (pdf file)
  • ``Our Northern Territory'' (in Japanese)
    • Main Text of the leaflet (pdf file in Japanese with some photographs)
    • Attached Data (pdf file in Japanese with some photographs)
• Japan Center for Asian Historical Records
  • Russo-Japanese War
    • Photographs related to Russo-Japanese War
    • The Anglo-Japanese Alliance, 1902
    • Bloody Sunday, Russia, 1905
    • Treaty
    • Ratification
  • US-Japan War Talks
    • Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact, April 13, 1941 (in Japanese and in Russian)
• Hokkaido Local Government
  • Northern Territories Countermeasures
  • Northern Territories Countermeasures (in Russian)
• Historiographical institute, The Univsersity of Tokyo
  • Visit of Russians to Japan, 1804 (pdf, in Japanese)
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  • Leaflet; 150th Anniversary of Japan-Russia relationship (pdf, in Japanese and in Russian)
• Other sources
  • Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact April 13, 1941
  • Treaty of Commerce, Navigation. and Delimitation between Japan and Russia (in Russian)

Back to the top of  Links to Information about Japan

Japan-UK

• Japan Center for Asian Historical Records
  • The Anglo-Japanese Alliance, 1902

Japan-US

• Consulate General of Japan in New York
  • 150 Years of Shared History
• Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco
  • History of Japan
• Historiographical institute, The Univsersity of Tokyo
  • Visit of Commodore M.C. Perry to Japan, 1853 and 1854 (pdf, in Japanese with pictures)
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  • Dawn of Japan-US relationship: 1852-1866 (in Japanese)
    • Letter from President A. Lincoln of United State to Shogunate of Japan, 1861
• Japan Center for Asian Historical Records
  • US-Japan War Talks
    • Documents (with attachments in English)
      • United States Note to Japan, Oral note, Novermber 26, 1941
      • United States Note to Japan, Novermber 26, 1941
      • Letter from the President of the United States to His Majesty the Emperor of Japan, December 6, 1941
      • Memorandum of Japan to the United State, December 6-7, 1941
      • Message of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan, December 8, 1941
    • Photographs of Key Persons
      • Japan
      • United States
    • Various photographs
• Other sourses
  • Treaty of Kanagawa between the United States and Japan; March 31, 1854
  • United States Note to Japan, November 26, 1941 (known to Japanese as `Hull Note')
  • Declarations of a State of War with Japan by the President of the United States of America

Miscellaneous

• Koizumi Cabinet E-mail Magazine
  • Picture of Tokyo, 1945 and 2005