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TOKYO
September 06, 2025
The Independent Voice in Asia
September 06, 2025
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Prince Hisahito concludes his his elaborate "kakan no gi" coming-of-age ceremony at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Saturday.
JAPAN
Japan prince comes of age as succession crisis looms
The nephew of Emperor Naruhito, Prince Hisahito, on Saturday received a black silk and lacquer crown at the ceremony, which marks the beginning of his royal adult life.
Prince Hisahito concludes his his elaborate "kakan no gi" coming-of-age ceremony at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Saturday.
Mazda cars at the company's main plant in Fuchu, Hiroshima Prefecture, in July.
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
U.S. tariffs still spell big pain for Japan's small automakers
By Daniel Leussink and Maki Shiraki
Smaller automakers Mitsubishi Motors, Mazda and Subaru are less able to absorb the tariff shock than bigger rivals like Toyota and Honda.
The Liberal Democratic Party's headquarters in Tokyo. Recent polls paint a bleak picture for Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s chances of avoiding an early leadership contest than previous surveys.
JAPAN / Politics
Ruling LDP moving toward calling presidential election, polls show
The latest polls paint a far bleaker picture for Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s chances of avoiding an early leadership contest than previous surveys.
U.s. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore in June 2018. Trump approved a 2019 Navy SEAL operation to plant a listening device in North Korea, a mission that unraveled amid a series of mistakes and resulted in the SEALs killing North Korean civilians.
ASIA PACIFIC
How a top secret SEAL Team 6 mission into North Korea fell apart
By Dave Philipps and MATTHEW COLE
The 2019 operation, greenlit by President Donald Trump, sought a strategic edge. It left unarmed North Koreans dead.
“Swallows” examines the intersections of class and reproductive issues with a focus on its protagonist who is talked into becoming a surrogate for a wealthy couple.
CULTURE / Books
‘Swallows' untangles the murky ethics of selling motherhood
By Kris Kosaka
“Swallows” examines the intersections of class and reproductive issues with a focus on its protagonist who is talked into becoming a surrogate for a wealthy couple.
“Swallows” examines the intersections of class and reproductive issues with a focus on its protagonist who is talked into becoming a surrogate for a wealthy couple.

JAPAN

A construction crew works at the site of a massive sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, in February.
Saitama sinkhole attributed to hydrogen sulfide corrosion
Hydrogen sulfide was detected in corroded concrete fragments recovered from the accident site.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba heads toward the Upper House hall in Tokyo on Aug. 1.
Ishiba reaffirms intent to stay on after tariffs lowered
By Sakura Murakami and Gareth Allan
In a further sign of his intention to stay on, he also announced later in the day that his government will compile an economic package this autumn.
Japan Times 2000: Prime minister pitches ‘e-Japan’ as way of life
Japan has ‘strictest standard in the world’ when it comes to CBD products
By Yukana Inoue
Man served new arrest warrant over access to Japanese comedian's account
After China’s military parade, Japan and Australia agree to elevate defense ties
By Gabriel Dominguez

BUSINESS

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a dinner with members of his Cabinet and members of Congress, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington on Friday.
Trump signs order offering some tariff exemptions to countries with U.S. trade deals
The exemptions could come for trading partners who strike deals on exports of certain metals, as well as pharmaceutical compounds and chemicals.
U.S. President Donald Trump listens to Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent as he signs executive orders at the White House in Washington on Friday.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent calls for big changes at Fed
Bessent called for renewed scrutiny of the Federal Reserve, including its power to set interest rates, saying the "Fed must change course."
Trump threatens trade actions after EU fines Google over ads
Tesla offers unprecedented $1 trillion pay package to Musk
Japan to hike minimum wage by record amount, backing BOJ’s rate hikes
By Erica Yokoyama and Keiko Ujikane
Japan's $550 billion investment pledge outlined in MOU
By Francis Tang

WORLD

Chinese leader Xi Jinping attends a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, in Beijing on Wednesday.
With diplomatic tour de force, China's Xi shows he's 'totally in charge'
By James Pomfret, Laurie Chen, Mei Mei Chu and Antoni Slodkowski
The recent display of geopolitical ambition has helped quell concerns about the 72-year-old president's vitality and so-far-unknown succession plans.
Russian President Vladimir Putin visits an interactive exhibition in Vladivostok, Russia, on Thursday.
Putin says foreign troops in Ukraine would be legitimate targets
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said thousands of foreign troops could be deployed to his country under postwar security guarantees.
Suspected 'large shark' kills man off Sydney beach
Trump plays down regime change in Venezuela as U.S. deploys stealth fighter jets
U.S. appeals court says Trump cannot continue foreign aid cuts
U.S. agents arrest 475 in raid on South Korea's Hyundai-LG plant in Georgia

Sports

Members of the Japanese team for the World Athletics Championships pose for photos at Meiji Kinenkan on Thursday.
Team Japan seeks ‘passionate support’ at World Athletics Championships
By Sam Byford
The World Athletics Championships kick off at Tokyo’s National Stadium on Sept. 13.
Itochu sells Japan’s first orange bonds for gender equality
By Takahiko Hyuga
Naomi Osaka inspired by performance as U.S. Open run ends in semifinals
Tokyo organizers begin final countdown to World Athletics Championships
By Sam Byford
Super Bowl champion Eagles hold off rival Cowboys in NFL season opener

Opinion

East Asia’s fertility plunge is driven not just by financial costs but by perfectionist cultural expectations that burden parents with intense educational and social demands.
‘Confugenics’ and East Asia's demographic crisis
Waka Ikeda
The numbers are staggering when you dig into them. Parents in Japan covered half of higher education costs in 2024 — more than double the OECD average.
Putin sees only U.S. weakness in Ukraine
By Max Hastings
China looks to the past to signal its future
AI doesn’t just lie — it can make you believe it
By F.D. Flam
Who’s winning the U.S.-China artificial intelligence race?
By Stephen S. Roach

ENVIRONMENT

Scorched land following a wildfire in the village of San Vicente de Leira, in Galicia, Spain, on Aug. 21.
How Europe lost an area the size of Cyprus to wildfires this year
By Laura Millan and Joe Wertz
Climate change is playing a major role in Europe, the world's fastest-warming continent, as searing heat and drought fueled this summer’s blazes.
Scientists assail ‘cherry-picking’ of Trump administration climate report
By Eric Roston
New wave: Sea power turned into energy at Los Angeles port
By Romain FONSEGRIVES
Ancient tombs unearthed in Iraq due to drought
How Tokyo's Ueno Zoo helps their animals cope with extreme heat
By Carolina Pichardo

CULTURE

“Swallows” examines the intersections of class and reproductive issues with a focus on its protagonist who is talked into becoming a surrogate for a wealthy couple.
‘Swallows' untangles the murky ethics of selling motherhood
By Kris Kosaka
“Swallows” examines the intersections of class and reproductive issues with a focus on its protagonist who is talked into becoming a surrogate for a wealthy couple.
Dark folklore meets teenage angst in ‘The Summer Hikaru Died’
By Mike Fu
‘How Dare You’ turns environmental activism into a youthful adventure
By Mark Schilling
‘A Pale View of Hills’: A chilling, borderless adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s first novel
By Mark Schilling
English textbook targets a skills gap in Japan’s growing anime industry
By Matt Schley

LIFE

At Syn, chef Naoto Ohno's playfulness is evident in the "Apple," a replica fruit filled with applejack-flavored foie gras and served on a plate decorated with a familiar logo.
With a global approach, Syn gives French cuisine plenty of latitude
By Phoebe Amoroso
Up-and-coming chef Naoto Ohno draws from his rich travel experiences to redefine cooking traditions at his restaurant in Fukuoka.
In rural Hokkaido, the stops and starts of tourism revival on full display
By Justin Randall
Racehorses, anime girls and gambling: Umamusume’s recipe for success
By Owen Ziegler
Italian fashion icon Giorgio Armani dead at 91
By Ella IDE
Vogue appoints Chloe Malle to replace fashion doyenne Anna Wintour

COMMUNITY

The Betsukai Pilot Spirits welcomed new players (left to right) Yuta Yamanaka, Roman Guthrie, Scott Bellina and Leo Jiminian this year, pictured here with Yassir Lachkar of the Ishikari Red Phoenix.
Overseas sluggers step up to bat in small-town Hokkaido
By Justin Randall
The residents of Betsukai, Hokkaido — where cows outnumber people 7-to-1 — have extended a warm welcome to five players from overseas who joined the Pilot Spirits.
Smiley, spirited Hampen will run into your arms
Jesse Kirkwood: ‘Languages are entire cultural universes with all sorts of baggage’
By Kris Kosaka
More Than Music makes space for creative communion
By Shyam Bhardwa
Seri Yanai: ‘We mix modern and analog to create something new’
By Ayako Nakano

Editors' Picks

SUMO
London’s calling and sumo’s top division — along with Hello Kitty — are ready to answer
By John Gunning
Yokozuna Hoshoryu and Hello Kitty, an ambassador for sumo's upcoming tour to London, at Tokyo's Kokugikan on Tuesday
BUSINESS
Resonac creates 27-member consortium to pursue advanced chip developments
By Kazuaki Nagata
Representatives from member companies of JOINT3, a consortium working together on semiconductor-related developments announced by Resonac, pose for a photo in Tokyo on Wednesday.
CULTURE
Haru Nemuri’s radical new album refuses easy listening
By Patrick St. Michel
Musician Haruna Kimishima, better known as Haru Nemuri, confronts Japan’s politics, nationalism and censorship on her recent output.
COMMUNITY
Overseas sluggers step up to bat in small-town Hokkaido
By Justin Randall
The Betsukai Pilot Spirits welcomed new players (left to right) Yuta Yamanaka, Roman Guthrie, Scott Bellina and Leo Jiminian this year, pictured here with Yassir Lachkar of the Ishikari Red Phoenix.
ASIA PACIFIC
Xi — joined by Kim and Putin — delivers stark warning at military parade
By Jesse Johnson
Chinese leader Xi Jinping walks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un before a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II, in Beijing on Wednesday.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past
By Alex K.T. Martin

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SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Tokyo Gas lights the way to carbon neutrality
Tokyo Gas lights the way to carbon neutrality

COMFACTS

Tsunan Sake Brewery Launches Limited-Edition “Yukigesho Castella” Featuring Sake Lees at “Tsunan Sake Brewery Sunflower Festival 2025”
Tsunan Sake Brewery Launches Limited-Edition “Yukigesho Castella” Featuring Sake Lees at “Tsunan Sake Brewery Sunflower Festival 2025”
TSUNAN SAKE BREWERY

WHAT’S TRENDING

COMMENTARY
Bangladesh is a South Asian time bomb
By Brahma Chellaney
Many Bangladeshis hoped that the overthrow of long-time leader Sheikh Hasina last year would revitalize the country’s democracy after an authoritarian lurch under the “iron lady.” Instead it has led to proliferating human-rights abuses, intensifying repression and widespread Islamist violence.
JAPAN
Tropical Storm Peipah brings heavy rain to parts of western Japan
Tropical Storm Peipah made landfall in western Japan on Friday, prompting the Japan Meteorological Agency to issue warnings of landslides and other disasters due to heavy rainfall in several areas.
BUSINESS
Trump signs order reducing tariffs on Japanese autos
By Francis Tang
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Ryosei Akazawa, Japan’s chief tariff negotiator, shake hands.
BUSINESS
Tamagotchi hatches 100 million shipments worldwide thanks to ’90s nostalgia
By Elizabeth Beattie
The latest version of Tamagotchi, called Tamagotchi Paradise, is awarded the best digital toy at Tokyo Toy Show on Aug. 28.
BUSINESS
Japan alerting consumers to cash-on-delivery problems
In fiscal 2024 through March this year, the National Consumers Affairs Center received inquiries and gave advice on problems associated with cash-on-delivery services.