Is Japan Getting Cold Feet ABout ISS?

Time to reconsider intl space station, Daily Yomiuri

“The government should take the U.S. postponement of the next space shuttle launch and its potential impact on the building of the International Space Station more seriously. … Prospects for a successful completion of the program are dimming. The issue is not only about space shuttle launch costs. Tokyo will be responsible for annual ISS running costs of about 40 billion yen [~$340 million USD], although it has not been determined how many years the station will remain operational after it is completed.”