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Asia-Pacific

Japan: how tense is it right now?

5.2% of the news located in Japan this week is about armed violence (war and terrorism): #38 of the 74 countries we track. Compared with its own history since 2017, that is around its usual level (39 out of 100).

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Armed-conflict intensity5.2%of its news, last 7 days
Rank#38of 74 countries
Vs its own history39around its usual level
Share of the world’s war news0.70%weighed by severity
Japan · share of its news about armed violence, last 12 months
2.4%4.7%7.1%NovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOct
31 OctDIPLOMACYU.S., South Korea, Japan vow ‘complete’ North Korea’s denuclearisationThe Hindu
Japan · weekly average since 2017 (highest: 11 July 2022)
4.2%8.5%12.7%201820192020202120222023202420252026
Week endingIntensityNearby event
11 July 202217.9%—
15 August 201711.5%—
7 October 202211.0%—
11 March 20179.9%—
11 August 20229.9%—
YearAverage intensityHighest weekTypical rank
20266.0%8.4%#39
20255.6%9.8%#43
20245.7%7.8%#41
20235.3%8.7%#47
20226.5%17.9%#36
20215.5%9.6%#43
20205.3%9.3%#42
20194.8%9.8%#48
20185.1%7.4%#44
20176.5%11.5%#36

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Frequently asked questions

How tense is Japan right now?

5.2% of the news located in Japan over the last 7 days was about armed violence (war and terrorism), which ranks it #38 of the 74 countries Riftrate tracks.

Is Japan more tense than usual?

Compared with its own history since 2017, Japan is around its usual level: it has been calmer on 39% of days.

When was Japan most tense since 2017?

The highest reading was 17.9%, in the 7 days to 11 July 2022.

Which countries in Asia-Pacific are the most tense right now?

Myanmar (16.2%), Afghanistan (13.1%), North Korea (11.0%).

Where does this data come from?

From the GDELT Project, which codes events reported in the world’s news in more than 100 languages and locates them. Riftrate measures the share of each country’s news about armed violence, excluding ordinary crime and policing. It measures the news, not casualties.

How it is measured: GDELT locates every event reported in the news. We take all the coverage of events located in the country over 7 days and measure the part about armed violence: war and terrorism, excluding ordinary crime and policing. It does not depend on the size of the country or on how many newspapers cover it. It measures the news, not the number of victims. Methodology