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September 07, 2025
The Independent Voice in Asia
September 07, 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
By Hiroshi Hiyama
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.
Redevelopment plans for Kawayu Onsen have hit some snags — an example of how bringing tourists back to declining rural communities is far from easy work.
LIFE / Lifestyle
In rural Hokkaido, the stops and starts of tourism revival on full display
By Justin Randall
A new luxury resort might halt the decline of Kawayu, but only if locals and businesses can agree on how to move forward.
Redevelopment plans for Kawayu Onsen have hit some snags — an example of how bringing tourists back to declining rural communities is far from easy work.

JAPAN

Defense Minister Gen Nakatani
Japan defense chief to make first visit to South Korea in 10 years
It will also be the first time since South Korean President Lee Jae-myung's inauguration that the two countries' defense ministers have met in person.
A moment of silence is observed during a memorial service to mark the seventh anniversary of an earthquake in Atsuma, Hokkaido, on Saturday.
Victims of 2018 Hokkaido quake mourned on seventh anniversary of disaster
The powerful earthquake, which struck on Sept. 6, 2018, killed 44 people and partially or fully destroyed more than 2,300 houses.
Outgoing Indian envoy calls Japan 'steadfast partner'
Japan Times 2000: Prime minister pitches ‘e-Japan’ as way of life
Saitama sinkhole attributed to hydrogen sulfide corrosion
Ishiba reaffirms intent to stay on after tariffs lowered
By Sakura Murakami and Gareth Allan

BUSINESS

Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's economic revitalization minster, speaks to members of the media at the Japanese Embassy in Washington on Thursday.
Akazawa says U.S. trade deal not settled as Japan awaits pharma and chip orders
Akazawa said Japan would begin a full analysis of the economic impact of the U.S. auto tariff changes.
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. Treasury Secretary Bessent calls for big changes at Fed
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

WORLD

U.S. Homeland Security Investigations police officers execute a federal search warrant at a Hyundai Motor factory in Ellabell, Georgia, on Thursday.
Immigration raid on Hyundai-LG plant in Georgia rattles South Korea
By Choe Sang-Hun
The raid came at a sensitive time ​in trade relations​, unsettling South Korean businesses investing in the United States.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio in June.
U.S. strike on alleged cartel boat shows Rubio’s influence growing
By Eric Martin
The attack was the culmination of Trump’s yearslong interest in using unprecedented — and legally questionable — force against drug cartels.
Europe’s military limits show why it’s desperate for U.S. help
By Ellen Milligan
Thailand's next PM reaffirms promise for fresh election
South Korean president vows support to citizens arrested in U.S. immigration raid
By Hyunjoo Jin
Israeli military urges Gaza City residents to leave, then bombs high-rise tower

Sports

Aryna Sabalenka celebrates with the trophy after winning the U.S. Open on Saturday in New York.
Sabalenka crowned queen of Queens with back-to-back U.S. Open titles
By Amy Tennery
The Belarusian became the first woman to win back-to-back U.S. Opens since Serena Williams claimed three straight from 2012 to 2014.
New Zealand holds off South Africa close battle in Auckland
Gasly staying at Renault-owned Alpine F1 until 2028
Legendary Canadiens goaltender Ken Dryden, a six-time Cup winner, dies at 78
Power struggle in U.S. Open final as Sabalenka faces Anisimova

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

“The Summer Hikaru Died” is a slow-burn horror and a coming-of-age narrative, but its thematic layers and queer undertones open conversations about friendship and belonging.
Dark folklore meets teenage angst in ‘The Summer Hikaru Died’
By Mike Fu
Slow-burn horror in the countryside coupled with queer undertones makes for a memorable anime adaptation.
‘Swallows' untangles the murky ethics of selling motherhood
By Kris Kosaka
‘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.
Overnight mulberry matcha oats are the perfect answer to a busy morning
By Simon Daly
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

JT Directory Service

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SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.
We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.

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
‘Confugenics’ and East Asia's demographic crisis
By Waka Ikeda
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.
JAPAN
Japan prince comes of age as succession crisis looms
By Hiroshi Hiyama
Prince Hisahito concludes his his elaborate "kakan no gi" coming-of-age ceremony at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Saturday.
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
Japan to experience blood moon lunar eclipse on Monday
By Elizabeth Beattie
A blood moon is seen during a partial eclipse in the sky over Lake George near Canberra on March 14.
BUSINESS
Japan's $550 billion investment pledge outlined in MOU
By Francis Tang
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Ryosei Akazawa, Japan’s chief tariff negotiator, sign trade agreements on Thursday in Washington.