Varnish from the Far East (5)

I believe the answer is:

japan

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'varnish' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

I cannot understand how the remainder of the clue works.

(Other definitions for japan that I've seen before include "Land of the Rising Sun" , "Nippon" , "East Asian island nation" , "Glossy, black varnish; country" , "East Asian country" .)

I've seen this clue in The Irish News.

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