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September 03, 2025
The Independent Voice in Asia
September 03, 2025
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Takeshi Niinami, who has resigned as Suntory Holdings chairman and CEO, speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Ex-Suntory CEO Niinami says he is confident he has 'broken no laws'
By Jessica Speed
His comments came a day after Tuesday’s shocking revelation that he is the target of a police investigation over illegal drugs.

More coverage

Niinami, a tough and respected leader, remains at helm of Keizai Doyukai for now
Takeshi Niinami, who has resigned as Suntory Holdings chairman and CEO, speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Dan Kerrigan, CEO of Interactive Brokers Securities Japan, said inflation is here and more money is likely to move into stocks.
BUSINESS / Companies
Last man standing is bullish on Japanese stocks
By Kazuaki Nagata
Dan Kerrigan, the CEO of Interactive Brokers, has been here for decades and seen it all.
A research team led by the University of Tokyo’s Miyuki Harada has developed artificial intelligence models that can help deliver personalized infertility treatments by predicting the number and quality of eggs that a woman has.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Japan team develops AI models to help deliver personalized infertility treatment
By Yukana Inoue
The group study led by a University of Tokyo researcher found their models to be more accurate than the standard method of assessing ovarian function.
Japan Post has been under investigation by the transport ministry since it was revealed that improper alcohol and health checks were widespread across the company.
JAPAN
Japan Post ordered to suspend delivery vans at 100 post offices
By Yukana Inoue
Light commercial vans are the company’s primary means of transportation for deliveries, but Japan Post says it will continue operations as usual.
YJ-19 hypersonic anti-ship missiles are displayed in Beijing on Wednesday during a military parade to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
At parade, China shows off powerful new weaponry to keep rivals at bay
By Gabriel Dominguez and Jesse Johnson
From hypersonic “carrier killer” missiles to new fifth-generation fighter jets, Wednesday’s military spectacle highlighted Beijing’s growing prowess.
YJ-19 hypersonic anti-ship missiles are displayed in Beijing on Wednesday during a military parade to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.

JAPAN

With his administration still on shaky ground, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has yet to release a message commemorating the end of World War II as he seeks the best timing to do so.
Ishiba still seeking best timing to express view on war's end
The prime minister's reluctance comes as his administration remains on shaky ground within the Liberal Democratic Party.
A revamped 3D diorama of the Chiran airfield and its surroundings is displayed at the Chiran Peace Museum in Minamikyushu, Kagoshima Prefecture, on July 31.
Hometown donations program used to help preserve wartime memories in Japan
Initiatives are under way in some regions to keep the tragic history of World War II from fading by using digital technology to renovate exhibition facilities.
Bodies of two Japanese men killed in Manila arrive at Haneda Airport
Anger in Japan after Instagrammer drinks burial site offering
U.S. deploys cutting-edge missile system in Okinawa
Over the moon: Fake astronaut scams lovestruck Japanese octogenarian

BUSINESS

Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief tariff negotiator, is reportedly planning to travel to Washington on Thursday for another round of talks over tariffs.
Akazawa likely to leave Thursday for 10th round of tariff talks with U.S.: report
By Francis Tang
Akazawa abruptly canceled a to the United States just before departure last week, raising concern that the trade deal reached by the two countries on July 22 was in danger.
A partly-used, 10 gram bag of semaglutide powder made by China-based Sinopep-Allsino Biopharmaceutical, at a compounding pharmacy in Arlington, Virginia, in December 2024.
Chinese companies turn to generics as patents expire on weight-loss drugs
By Patrick Wingrove
U.S. regulators have restricted the sale of cheap copies of the drugs, slowing demand for raw ingredients Chinese firms supplied over the past two years.
From Coldplay kiss cam to Nestle, office romances are costing CEOs their jobs
By Sabah Meddings and Matthew Boyle
Lotte’s sweet deal aims to capitalize on Japan’s tourism boom
By Elizabeth Beattie
FSA urges rural banks to help companies get equity funding
By Taiga Uranaka and Nao Sano
Ishiba meets with BOJ's Ueda to discuss economy and markets
By Yoshiaki Nohara and Akemi Terukina

WORLD

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.
Xi — joined by Kim and Putin — delivers stark warning at military parade
By Jesse Johnson
Chinese leader Xi Jinping warned in a speech that the world is facing a choice of war or peace, as his country marked 80 years since Japan’s defeat in World War II.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (left) and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker at a news conference in Chicago on Tuesday. Pritzker said he has learned details of U.S. President Donald Trump's plans for troop deployments to Chicago from government sources and reporters, not the Trump administration itself.
'We're going in': Trump to send national guard troops to Chicago
By Idrees Ali, Phil Stewart and Nandita Bose
The U.S. president's extraordinary effort to militarize the country's third-largest city is likely to trigger a legal battle.
Hot mic catches Xi and Putin talking about organ transplants and immortality
By Francis Tang
Three killed in stabbing at Seoul pizza restaurant
Rights group says 10 killed in Indonesia protests
Hope dwindles for survivors days after deadly Afghan quake

Sports

Yokozuna Hoshoryu and Hello Kitty, an ambassador for sumo's upcoming tour to London, at Tokyo's Kokugikan on Tuesday
London’s calling and sumo’s top division — along with Hello Kitty — are ready to answer
By John Gunning
Ahead of professional sumo's highly anticipated return to Europe, the release of the September rankings confirms who will be on the plane to England.
Injured Olympic 200-meter champion Thomas to miss Tokyo worlds
Djokovic sets up Alcaraz blockbuster at U.S. Open as Sabalenka advances
By Rob Woollard
Inoue says taunts 'missed the target' ahead of world title clash
Venus Williams exits U.S. Open in style after age-defying run

Opinion

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba meets with his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, in Tokyo on Friday.
Can India and Japan deliver on their energy agenda?
Parul Bakshi
As geopolitics in the Indo-Pacific shifts, energy has become central to how India and Japan define their partnership.
Bangladesh is a South Asian time bomb
By Brahma Chellaney
The disturbing message behind China’s ‘grand parade’
By Stephen R. Nagy
India’s diplomatic dance: Cosmetic rapprochement and an enduring rivalry
By Jonathan Berkshire Miller
The fissures beneath China’s positive GDP numbers
By Naoko Eto

ENVIRONMENT

Fumes rise from the coal-fired Hunter Power Plant in Castle Dale, Utah, in 2024. A 141-page Energy Department report challenged by more than 85 scientists in a joint analysis appeared almost in tandem with a proposal by the Environmental Protection Agency to rescind a 2009 endangerment finding — the bedrock of many U.S. greenhouse gas regulations.
Scientists assail ‘cherry-picking’ of Trump administration climate report
By Eric Roston
The report appeared almost in tandem with a proposal by the Environmental Protection Agency to rescind a 2009 finding that's the bedrock of many U.S. greenhouse gas regulations.
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
Sky-high electricity costs hindering the U.K.'s progress toward net zero
By Kate Holton and Susanna Twidale

CULTURE

“Sympathy Tower Tokyo” is centered around Sara Machina, a star architect designing a new experimental prison in central Tokyo.
ChatGPT controversy is the least interesting part of 'Sympathy Tower Tokyo'
By Thu-Huong Ha
In Rie Qudan’s futuristic Tokyo, AI and architects take on the prison system.
YouTube Music Weekend is where Japan’s internet-born performers go global
By Patrick St. Michel
Sakurazaka46 wants the world to dance along
By Patrick St. Michel
In pictures: Koenji Awa Odori 2025
By Johan Brooks
Virtual singer Kaf's music becomes magic in 'Kamitsubaki City Under Construction'
By Alicia Haddick

LIFE

Tattoos have a complex history in Japan, but new types of temporary ink are letting locals curious about body art experiment without the commitment.
Japan is warming up to tattoos — just not permanent ones
By Saki Toi
Tokyo’s tattoo artists say natural dyes and ‘made-to-fade’ inks are helping to push back on the long-held stigma against body art.
Vogue appoints Chloe Malle to replace fashion doyenne Anna Wintour
Mark Japan’s Sleep Day by making some lifestyle changes
By Yuko Tamura
A fuss-free Okinawan stir-fry to boost your energy in the heat
By Makiko Itoh
Sip a bespoke coffee for ¥4,000
By Melinda Joe

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
Tosca turns a new leaf in a new home
More Than Music makes space for creative communion
By Shyam Bhardwa

Editors' Picks

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.
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.
JAPAN
Why Stalin didn’t invade Hokkaido still largely unknown, 80 years after WWII
By Eric Johnston
During a survey to collect the remains of victims from the Taito Maru, one of the vessels involved in the Three Ships Incident, a metal helmet was found near the stern of the vessel on Aug. 5, 1984, at Rumoi Port. No human remains were discovered.
JAPAN
More sweltering days forecast for September after hottest summer on record
By Jessica Speed
By the end of August, 8,341 people had been transported by ambulance for heatstroke in Tokyo alone.
ASIA PACIFIC
Surrounded by Chinese bases, a tiny Philippine island stands firm
By Gabriel Dominguez
A Philippine Navy sailor looks at a China Coast Guard vessel just off the coast of Pag-asa Island in the disputed South China Sea last month.

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

JAPAN
More sweltering days forecast for September after hottest summer on record
By Jessica Speed
By the end of August, 8,341 people had been transported by ambulance for heatstroke in Tokyo alone.
JAPAN
‘Mount Fuji Lawson’ becomes a symbol of Japan’s overtourism problem
By Jessica Speed
A couple poses for a wedding photo in front of a Lawson in the town of Kawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture, on Aug. 25.
ASIA PACIFIC
Surrounded by Chinese bases, a tiny Philippine island stands firm
By Gabriel Dominguez
A Philippine Navy sailor looks at a China Coast Guard vessel just off the coast of Pag-asa Island in the disputed South China Sea last month.
JAPAN
Woman dies after possible knife attack in Setagaya
By Jessica Speed
Police investigate the scene where a woman was found bleeding on a street in Tokyo's Setagaya Ward on Monday.
BUSINESS
Suntory CEO Takeshi Niinami resigns over alleged possession of illegal drugs
By Jessica Speed and Kanako Takahara
Takeshi Niinami, then-chief executive officer of Suntory Holdings, in May 2024