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August 21, 2025
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August 21, 2025
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Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba shakes hands with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on the sidelines of the Group of Seven leaders' summit in Kananaskis in Alberta, Canada, on June 17.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Can Ishiba and South Korea’s Lee keep the hatchet buried?
By Jesse Johnson
The South Korean leader's unprecedented visit Saturday will highlight to what extent he has put his hard-line Japan views in the rearview mirror.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba shakes hands with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on the sidelines of the Group of Seven leaders' summit in Kananaskis in Alberta, Canada, on June 17.
An illustration of a colony of the Bordetella pertussis bacterium that causes pertussis, or whooping cough. As of Aug. 10, there were 64,467 cases reported this year, according to the latest data from the Japan Institute for Health Security.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Infectious diseases to watch for in Japan this summer amid surge of cases
By Tomoko Otake
Experts believe a recent surge in infections is due to relaxed hygiene measures, drug-resistant bacteria and lowered immunity levels amid extreme heat.
Kazuhiro Nomura, president of BK Japan Holdings, which operates Burger King in Japan
BUSINESS / Companies
Big burgers and bigger ambitions for Japan's Burger King
By Kazuaki Nagata
The fast-food chain has grown fourfold in just six years.
Investigators from the Hyogo Prefectural Police examine an area near an apartment building where a 24-year-old woman was fatally stabbed in Kobe on Wednesday evening.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
24-year-old woman fatally stabbed in Kobe apartment building
Police are treating the case as a homicide and are searching for the suspect, believed to be in his 20s or 30s.
A training session at Shikoroyama stable in June 2016. Sumo training sessions are increasingly simulated or the preserve of group tours.
SUMO / Inside Sumo
Is sumo becoming a victim of its own popularity?
By John Gunning
In 2025, fans and tourists alike are all too often getting an experience that pales in comparison to what was previously possible.
A training session at Shikoroyama stable in June 2016. Sumo training sessions are increasingly simulated or the preserve of group tours.

JAPAN

Smoke rises from the US Navy vessel USS New Orleans as water is sprayed to help put out the fire, near the White Beach Naval Facility in Okinawa on Wednesday.
Fire on U.S. Navy ship off Japan put out after burning for 12 hours
Two U.S. sailors were treated for minor injuries from the fire on the USS New Orleans, anchored near Okinawa, the U.S. 7th Fleet said in a statement.
Hiroyoshi Takizawa looks at pictures from his days in wartime Manchuria as a child during an interview in Nagano in June.
A life upended by wartime mass suicides
Hiroyoshi Takizawa's life in Manchuria was comfortable at first. But when the Soviet Union invaded, his father, fearing the worst, chose mass suicide.
JR East cancels luxury train run over crew's boozing
WFP chief wants world to pay attention to Africa
Founder of video platform FC2 found guilty of hosting obscene videos
Japan calls for private investments in Africa at TICAD

BUSINESS

McDonald's Japan has canceled its plan to bundle "One Piece" trading cards with its Happy Set meals, after a similar Pokemon-themed campaign sparked a frenzy and uproar over uneaten food being discarded.
McDonald's Japan to skip 'One Piece' Happy Meal promo
The cancellation follows a similar Pokemon-themed campaign that sparked a frenzy and uproar over uneaten food being discarded.
A Shein distribution center in Whitestown, Indiana, on April 8. Shein and other e-commerce sites originating from China are believed to have taken advantage of duty exemption systems of other countries to export goods of modest value in small lots.
Duty exemptions for low-value imports face review amid exploitation
An expert panel at the government's Tax Commission has noted that overseas sellers of inexpensive goods effectively exploit tax exemption systems for small-ticket item imports.
KKR is a front-runner in Nissan’s $610 million HQ sale
By Lisa Du, Taro Fuse, Manuel Baigorri and Ryo Horiuchi
Seven & I value eclipsed by Aeon as revamp struggles to impress
By Kanoko Matsuyama
Humble coconut oil turns into a luxury on rising demand, shrinking output
By Rajendra Jadhav, Bernadette Christina and Ashley Tang
Honda taps Silicon Valley startup in self-driving software deal
By Chester Dawson

WORLD

A common house mosquito in the eastern suburbs of Paris on Aug. 12. A record number of outbreaks of mosquito-borne illnesses have been reported in Europe.
Record number of mosquito-borne disease outbreaks in Europe: health agency
Climate change is causing longer and more intense transmission seasons for mosquito-borne diseases in Europe.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (center) talks with the main commanders of the Korean People's Army's overseas operations units that participated in the war alongside Russia, at the headquarters of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea in Pyongyang on Wednesday.
North Korea has 'undeclared' ICBM base near China border: report
The facility in North Pyongan province likely houses six to nine nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles and their launchers.
Online behavior under scrutiny as Russia hunts 'extremists'
City girls snub traditional Hindu face tattoos in Pakistan
By Sameer MANDHRO
Senior IS member killed in U.S. military operation in Syria, official says
By Idrees Ali, Suleiman Al-Khalidi and Karam al-Masri
Meloni offers plan to aid Ukraine in a day if Russia resumes war
By Donato Paolo Mancini

Sports

Sho Tsuboi said the opportunity to drive a Formula One car at Fuji Speedway was a dream come true.
Sho Tsuboi realizes ‘dream’ with Haas F1 test at Fuji Speedway
By Jamie Klein
An impressive performance, which also coincides with Toyota’s modest return to F1, could signal the start of something more substantial.
LA28 basketball to start two days before opening ceremony
By Aadi Nair
Olympic champion wrestler Steveson set for MMA debut
By Aadi Nair
Cowboys optimistic Micah Parsons will play Week 1 despite trade request
Injury setback could delay Caitlin Clark's return to Fever

Opinion

Jimmy Lai at the Next Digital offices in Hong Kong in 2020. The national security trial of the Hong Kong media mogul, which began in late 2023, entered its final stages on Aug. 14, as lawyers present closing arguments.
Why Jimmy Lai’s persecution should worry Japan
Mark L. Clifford
The trial of 77-year-old publisher is showing how Beijing uses Hong Kong as a laboratory for silencing critics worldwide, from students to exiles.
Ads ruined social media. Now they’re coming to AI.
By Parmy Olson
Urban mining eases the critical minerals crunch 
By Brad Glosserman
Currency dominance in the digital age
By Helene Rey
On economic policy, the White House is its own worst enemy
By Clive Crook

ENVIRONMENT

A commuter uses a portable fan on an underground train at rush hour during a heat wave in the City of London financial district.
As temperatures soar in London, regulations, not costs, put cooling beyond reach
By Olivia Rudgard
The British capital has seen a surge in demand for air-conditioning units in high-end homes as climate change raises summer temperatures.
Is historically arid Beijing ready for a wetter future?
By Laurie Chen
Tourism deal puts one of Egypt's last wild shores at risk
By Lobna Monieb
Mozambique's illegal miners reap risky rewards but land suffers
By Samuel Come
Man who bred world’s biggest rhino herd charged with horn smuggling
By Antony Sguazzin

CULTURE

A Japanese soldier (Eiji Funakoshi) with tuberculosis struggles to survive in the Filipino countryside during World War II in “Fires on the Plain.”
‘Fires on the Plain’: Haunting imagery in restored 1959 war film stands the test of time
By Mark Schilling
Now restored in 4K, Kon Ichikawa’s film is a far from simple survival story that stares into humanity’s darkest corners.
'Kokuho' rakes in over ¥10 billion at the box office
Sho Miyake's 'Tabi to Hibi' wins top prize at Locarno Film Festival
Osaka Asian Film Festival gets an expo boost
By Matt Schley
Samansa bets on commuter cinema
By Ryne Hisada

LIFE

Beniya Mukayu, a traditional "ryokan" inn located in Ishikawa Prefecture, considers itself at "the heart of onsen towns, local residents, farmers, fishermen, sake brewers and artisans" — all of which need new, sustainable methods of serving visitors to survive into the future.
In preserving Japanese hospitality, ‘details are everything’
By Melinda Joe
As part of a new UNESCO initiative, the elite Relais & Chateau hospitality group will empower its Japan-based members to preserve the country’s “omotenashi” culture.
From a piquant paste to a crisp crust, sesame shines in many forms
By Simon Daly
A seaside hotel built on competitive Japanese cycling
By Jessica Kozuka
Reading the Japanese clock: Are times a-changin'?
By Peter Backhaus
In a coffee-mad neighborhood, a gin distillery is a clear alternative
By Melinda Joe

COMMUNITY

In honor of his longstanding ties and contributions to Japan's business, legal and nonprofit communities, Carl J. Green was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette in 2018.
Carl J. Green, mentor to a generation of ‘Japan hands,’ dies at 85
By Matthew Goodman
A lawyer and scholar with deep ties to Tokyo’s business and legal communities, Green opened the Ford Foundation’s Tokyo office.
Handsome cat looking for brighter days ahead
Solidarity with Tokyo’s homeless residents, one day at a time
By Shyam Bhardwa
Kindred spirits, kindergarten connections: From Buenos Aires to east Tokyo
By Francisco J. Villarreal
A campaign to preserve Hiroshima’s historic trees for another 1,000 years
By Patrick Parr

Editors' Picks

JAPAN
Tokyo crowned No.1 'workation' spot
By Elizabeth Beattie
Workations were a burgeoning trend in the corporate world for years before the COVID-19 pandemic turbocharged it.
CULTURE
Atsushi Kitagawara’s exhibition finds poetry in architecture
By Gendel Gento
The inverted cone, one of Atsushi Kitagawara’s six signature elements in architecture, is a key feature of the Nakamura Keith Haring Collection museum building.
BASEBALL
Candidates preparing to make final pitches for Sawamura Award
By Jason Coskrey
Hawks pitcher Livan Moinelo has a 1.13 ERA in 19 starts this season.
JAPAN
Winning warship bid gives Japan confidence boost as Tokyo eyes more exports
By Gabriel Dominguez
Australia’s decision to select Japan's upgraded Mogami-class warship, seen in this computer-generated image, has been “well received across Japanese industry," a Defense Ministry official said.
LIFE
In Paris, chefs Chizuko Kimura and Kei Kobayashi make their mark
By Kyoko Nakayama
Chef Kei Kobayashi is France's only Japanese chef with three Michelin stars.

Podcast

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

Longform

Members of the nonprofit group Japan Youth Memorial Association search for the remains of dead soldiers in a cave in Okinawa Prefecture in February.
The long search for Japan’s lost soldiers
By Tomoko Otake

JT Directory Service

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SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Ishii Iron Works remakes self for workers, new energy
Ishii Iron Works remakes self for workers, new energy

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
JICA to designate four Japanese cities as 'hometowns' for African nations
By Yukana Inoue
The Japanese flag (left) with the flag of the African Union
JAPAN
103-year-old remembers Soviet attack right after WWII
Shoichi Takahashi holds a photo of himself when he was younger, in Otaru, Hokkaido, on May 17.
JAPAN
Schools get students involved in revision of unreasonable ‘black rules’
At Yawata Junior High School in Nagoya, there are no more rules on clothing and hairstyles. Students are free to wear either the school's uniform or clothes of their own choosing.
JAPAN
Tokyo crowned No.1 'workation' spot
By Elizabeth Beattie
Workations were a burgeoning trend in the corporate world for years before the COVID-19 pandemic turbocharged it.
JAPAN
Japanese man suspected of ordering double murder in Manila
Two suspects arrested over the killing of two Japanese last week are held in restraints in Manila on Tuesday.