Japan’s Economic Revitalization Minister Ryosei Akazawa looks on during a press conference after meeting U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, at Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan, July 19, 2025. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights , opens new tab

TOKYO, July 26 (Reuters) – Japan’s $550 billion investment package agreed in this week’s U.S. tariff deal could help finance a Taiwanese firm building semiconductor plants in the U.S., Japan’s top trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa said on Saturday.

Japan agreed to the sweeping U.S.-bound investment initiative, which includes equity, loans and guarantees, in exchange for lower tariffs on its exports to the U.S.

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However, the structure of the scheme remains unclear.

“Japan, the United States, and like-minded countries are working together to build supply chains in sectors critical to economic security,” Akazawa told public broadcaster NHK.

To that end, he said projects eligible for financing under the package are not limited to U.S. or Japanese firms.

“For example, if a Taiwanese chipmaker builds a plant in the U.S. and uses Japanese components or tailors its products to meet Japanese needs, that’s fine too,” he said, without specifying companies.

The U.S. is significantly reliant on Taiwan’s TSMC (2330.TW) , opens new tab for advanced chip manufacturing, raising economic security concerns due to geographic proximity to China.

TSMC announced plans for a $100 billion U.S. investment with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in March, on top of $65 billion pledged for three plants in the state of Arizona, one of which is up and running.

Japan will use state-owned Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI) for the investments. A recent law revision has enabled JBIC to finance foreign companies deemed critical to Japan’s supply chains.

Akazawa told NHK that equity investment would account for just about 1-2% of the $550 billion, suggesting that the bulk will come in the form of loans and guarantees.

When asked about the White House statement that the U.S. would retain 90% of the profits from the package, he clarified that the figure refers only to returns on equity investment, which would represent a small fraction of the total.

While Japan initially hoped to secure half of the returns, a loss from the concession on the profit-sharing would be marginal compared to the roughly 10 trillion yen ($67.72 billion) in tariff costs that could be avoided under the deal, he said.

He added that Japan aims to deploy the $550 billion investments during Trump’s current term.

($1 = 147.6600 yen)

Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne

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The United Kingdom has condemned Hong Kong authorities for placing bounties on pro-democracy activists living in exile, even as the British government begins steps toward reinstating an extradition agreement with the Chinese territory.

On Saturday, Hong Kong’s national security police issued arrest warrants for 19 overseas activists, accusing them of subversion under sweeping national security legislation. It marks the largest such list to date.

According to police, the activists were allegedly involved in organising or contesting in the unofficial “Hong Kong Parliament” group, which authorities claim seeks to draft a new constitution and achieve self-determination.

Police accused the group of aiming “to overthrow the governments of China and Hong Kong by unlawful means,” and said further arrests were under investigation.

The activists are based in various countries, including the UK, where officials quickly responded to the announcement. On Friday, Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper issued a joint statement condemning Hong Kong’s actions.

“The Hong Kong Police Force’s issuing of further arrest warrants and bounties on individuals living in the UK is another example of transnational repression,” the statement read.

“This Government will continue to stand with the people of Hong Kong, including those who have made the UK their home. We take the protection of their rights, freedoms, and safety very seriously.”

Bounties ranging from 200,000 to one million Hong Kong dollars (approximately $25,000–$125,000 have been offered for information leading to the activists’ arrests.

This is the fourth time Hong Kong authorities have announced financial rewards for the capture of exiled democracy campaigners, actions that have drawn repeated condemnation from Western governments. In response, Beijing has accused the West of interfering in its internal affairs.

The controversy is further complicated by a recent proposal by the UK Home Office to amend extradition rules. The plan, disclosed in documents sent to Parliament on July 17 and confirmed in a letter to Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp a day later, has triggered concerns that it could pave the way for extradition arrangements with Hong Kong to resume.

In his July 18 letter, Security Minister Dan Jarvis said, It is in our national interest to have effective extradition relationships to prevent criminals from evading justice and the UK becoming a haven for criminals.”

The Home Office has also proposed restoring extradition frameworks with Chile and Zimbabwe. Jarvis noted that future cases involving Hong Kong and Zimbabwe would be considered “on a case-by-case basis.”

Extraditions to Hong Kong were suspended by the UK in 2020, shortly after China imposed a sweeping national security law that critics say has eroded fundamental freedoms in the once semi-autonomous city.

Earlier this year, Hong Kong lawmakers passed a new national security law, known as Article 23, which gives authorities broader powers to crack down on dissent under charges such as treason, espionage, sedition, and foreign interference.

Since then, Hong Kong authorities have intensified their pursuit of activists abroad, with many facing charges linked to their roles in the pro-democracy movement.

The latest moves have once again underscored the deepening rift between the UK and China over the future of Hong Kong. Once a British colony, Hong Kong was handed back to China in 1997 under a “one country, two systems” arrangement meant to preserve its freedoms and autonomy.

Critics say those guarantees have been systematically dismantled in the years since Beijing imposed its national security crackdown.

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Hong Kong’s national security police have issued arrest warrants for 19 activists based overseas, accusing them of subversion under a stringent national security law, marking the largest such tally yet.

They are accused of organising or participating in the Hong Kong Parliament, a pro-democracy group that authorities in the Asian financial hub say intended to subvert state power, under the law Beijing imposed in 2020 after months of pro-democracy protests in 2019.

The activists are accused of having launched a referendum or run as candidates in the unofficial Hong Kong Parliament group, which authorities say aims to achieve self-determination and draft a Hong Kong constitution.

Police said the organisation sought to overthrow the governments of China and Hong Kong by unlawful means, and that further arrests may follow.

Among those named are the businessman Elmer Yuen, the commentator Victor Ho, and the activists Johnny Fok and Tony Choi. Four of them are subject to previous arrest warrants, each carrying a reward of 1m Hong Kong dollars (£95,000).

View image in fullscreen Elmer Yuen shows his Hong Kong passport during an interview in Vancouver in 2023. Photograph: Canadian Press/Shutterstock

Among the remaining 15, for each of whom police are offering a reward of 200,000 Hong Kong dollars, are those said to have organised or run in the election and been sworn in as its councillors.

Feng Chongyi, a China studies professor at the University of Technology Sydney who was also listed, decried the bounty against him as “ridiculous”.

“They’ve got the power, they’ve got the influence overseas, they want to control everything even overseas,” he told the Sydney Morning Herald.

The UK’s foreign and home secretaries condemned the move in a joint statement, calling the arrests “another example of transnational repression” and saying it damages Hong Kong’s international reputation.

“[The UK] will not tolerate attempts by foreign governments to coerce, intimidate, harass or harm their critics overseas,” they said in a statement on Friday.

In response, the Chinese embassy in the UK said the British government’s remarks “constitute a gross interference” in China’s internal affairs and the rule of law in Hong Kong.

“China urges the UK to abandon its colonial mentality, stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs … stop shielding criminals,” it said.

Australia’s foreign minister, Penny Wong, also strongly objected to the arrest warrants. “Freedom of expression and assembly are essential to our democracy,” she said on X.

“We have consistently expressed our strong objections to China and Hong Kong on the broad and extraterritorial application of Hong Kong’s national security legislation, and we will continue to do so.”

The former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997 with the guarantee of a high degree of autonomy, including freedom of speech, under a “one country, two systems” formula.

Critics of the national security law say government are using it to stifle dissent. Chinese and Hong Kong authorities have repeatedly said the law was vital to restore stability after the city was rocked for months by sometimes violent anti-government and anti-China protests in 2019.

Police reiterated that national security offences were serious crimes with extraterritorial reach and urged the wanted individuals to return to Hong Kong and surrender.

“If offenders voluntarily give up continuing to violate the crime, turn themselves in, truthfully confess their crimes, or provide key information that helps solve other cases, they may be eligible for reduced punishment,” they said in a statement.

Police also said that aiding, abetting, or funding others to participate in the Hong Kong Parliament group could be a criminal offence.

MOSCOW, July 26 (Reuters) – Peace talks and a settlement in Ukraine have never been on the real agenda of the West, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Saturday, in her first comments on negotiations since Russian and Ukrainian officials held talks on Wednesday.

If the West wanted “real peace” in Ukraine, it would stop supplying Kyiv with weapons, Zakharova said in comments reported by TASS news agency. Earlier, in her weekly briefing on Thursday, she had declined to comment on the talks.

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The bounties issued by Hong Kong range from about US$25,000 (S$32,000) to US$125,000, depending on the individual.

– An academic in Australia who was among 19 people whom Hong Kong issued bounties for has criticised the “ridiculous” arrest warrants and warned that the region was trying to exert its power beyond its borders.

The authorities from the Chinese city announced cash rewards on July 25 for information leading to the arrest of 19 overseas activists involved in “Hong Kong Parliament” – a pro-democracy group established in Canada.

The bounties range from about US$25,000 to US$125,000 (S$32,000 to S$160,000) , depending on the individual .

Among those named was Professor Feng Chongyi, a China studies professor at the University of Technology Sydney. “It’s certainly ridiculous,” he told The Sydney Morning Herald in an interview published on July 26. “They’ve got the power, they’ve got the influence overseas, they want to control everything even overseas.”

Prof Feng told the publication that he joined the group as an academic. “I feel very sad, I’m extremely upset that the autonomous Hong Kong has been destroyed. It’s unbearable for me,” he said.

“Hong Kong was such a beautiful, dynamic place – the best part of Chinese culture, the combination of the East and the West.”

The former British colony – handed back to China in 1997 – has seen political dissent quashed since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law in 2020 following huge and at times violent pro-democracy protests.

Prof Feng, who has conducted research into China’s pro-democracy groups, was detained for a week in China in 2017. At the time, his lawyer said he was “suspected of harming national security and could not leave China”.

The July 25 announcement of bounties was the fourth from the Hong Kong authorities, which has previously drawn strong criticism from Western countries.

The bounties are seen as largely symbolic, given that they affect people living abroad in nations unlikely to extradite political activists to Hong Kong or China.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on July 26 she strongly objected to the arrest warrants. “Freedom of expression and assembly are essential to our democracy,” she said on social media platform X.

“We have consistently expressed our strong objections to China and Hong Kong on the broad and extraterritorial application of Hong Kong’s national security legislation, and we will continue to do so.”

Britain also condemned the move as “another example of transnational repression”, according to a statement from British Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper.

The Hong Kong government hit back on July 26, calling Britain’s reaction “untrue and biased”.

“Those absconders hiding in the UK and other Western countries are wanted because they continue to blatantly engage in activities endangering national security,” it said, demanding that Britain “stop interfering in Hong Kong matters, which are purely China’s internal affairs”. AFP