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May 21, 2025
The Independent Voice in Asia
May 21, 2025
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Agriculture minister Taku Eto speaks during an Upper House Budget Committee meeting on Monday about his recent gaffe regarding rice.
JAPAN / Politics
Agriculture minister Taku Eto submits resignation following rice gaffe
By Gabriele Ninivaggi
Eto, who came under fire for a quip about never having had to buy rice amid soaring prices, is expected to be replaced by ex-environment minister Shijiro Koizumi.
Agriculture minister Taku Eto speaks during an Upper House Budget Committee meeting on Monday about his recent gaffe regarding rice.
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan’s chief tariff negotiator, at a news conference on Tuesday. He said that when Japan states it wants the tariffs reviewed, it means Tokyo wants them removed.
BUSINESS / Economy
Japan confirms hard-line position ahead of possible tariff talks in Washington
By Francis Tang
Tokyo wants all new levies put into place by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump completely removed.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is looking to make the cost of base service fees in water utility bills free during the summer, hoping the financial support will allow residents to turn on their air conditioners and protect themselves against heatstroke.
JAPAN / Society
Tokyo to cover cost of base service fees for water utilities through summer
By Yukana Inoue
By lowering utility fees, the metropolitan government hopes to give residents a sense of security that they can accommodate other necessary expenses.
Police have arrested a senior official of Nippon Kakekomidera, a nonprofit organization that helps vulnerable people in Tokyo’s Kabukicho district, for cocaine possession.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Youth support group official arrested for cocaine possession
By Karin Kaneko
A senior official of a group that helps youth in Tokyo's red-light district was arrested along with a woman in her 20s who is believed to have sought help from the nonprofit.
A lot at a Nissan plant in Mexico. The company may have overextended itself during the Ghosn era.
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Nissan’s troubles might go all the way back to Ghosn 
By Kazuaki Nagata
Some analysts argue that aggressive expansion by the iconoclastic executive left the company overextended.
A lot at a Nissan plant in Mexico. The company may have overextended itself during the Ghosn era.

JAPAN

While the cost and logistics of installing platform doors have proven challenging, railway operators are adopting new solutions to lower expenses and increase flexibility.
Japan sets goal of having doors on 4,000 train station platforms by fiscal 2030
By Jessica Speed
The decision to raise the target reflects ongoing safety concerns, as accidents involving passengers continue to occur.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, president of the Liberal Democratic Party, apologized on Tuesday at the Prime Minister's Office to Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki over LDP member Shoji Nishida's inappropriate remark about war-related exhibits in the prefecture.
Ishiba apologizes over LDP member's remark on World War II exhibits
LDP lawmaker Shoji Nishida called descriptions on a monument commemorating the Himeyuri corps of female students who died in the Battle of Okinawa "a revision of history."
Kanagawa man arrested for selling mopeds as battery bicycles in Tokyo
Eight universities apply for Japan's ¥10 trillion research grant program
Peruvian man held on suspicion of hitting vehicles while driving the wrong way
Nara initiative offers second chances to former prison inmates

BUSINESS

If tax exemptions are revised, small parcels containing products bought from Shein and PDD Holdings' Temu shipped into Japan could be subject to the country’s sales tax, which mostly stands at 10%.
Japan considers taxing small parcels as Shein and Temu expand
By Erica Yokoyama
An experts group has discussed problems related to existing exemptions, including concerns about the channel being a conduit for illegal drugs and counterfeit goods.
Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe says the company's investment plans for electric vehicles have been scaled back during a news conference in Tokyo Tuesday.
Honda walks back EV investment and sales targets on poor demand
By Nicholas Takahashi
Honda now sees hybrids accounting for 2.2 million of 3.6 million in global sales by 2030, up from the 2 million it previously saw.
AI poses a bigger threat to women's work than men's, says U.N. report
By Olivia Le Poidevin
Singapore envoy eyes stronger cyber and digital links with Japan
By Gabriel Dominguez
Nintendo turns to Samsung to make chips for Switch 2
By Yoolim Lee and Takashi Mochizuki
Japan’s Kato plans Bessent meet to discuss topics including FX
By Erica Yokoyama

WORLD

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te delivers an address to mark the first anniversary of his inauguration at the Presidential Office in Taipei on Tuesday.
Taiwan willing to talk to China, Lai says, as island boosts defenses
By Amber Wang and Joy Chiang
Lai, a staunch defender of Taiwan's sovereignty and detested by Beijing, delivered wide-ranging remarks on the need "to prepare for war to avoid war."
Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer is among the key Democrats who have raised concerns about Middle East chip deals.
Democrats warn Trump’s Middle East chip deals imperil U.S. security
By Mackenzie Hawkins and Michael Shepard
Key U.S. Senate Democrats have urged the administration of President Donald Trump to revisit new artificial intelligence deals with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, saying that expanded sales of AI chips to the Middle Eastern countries risk exposing advanced technology to China and Russia,...
Elections, Gaza and polarization drive political crime to record high in Germany
By Thomas Escritt
Trump's mass layoff threat drives U.S. government workers to resign
By Tim Reid
Low-income migrants fined up to $1.8 million by Trump administration
By Ted Hesson and Kristina Cooke
First blood test for Alzheimer’s to be available in U.S. in June
By Kanoko Matsuyama

Sports

Carp pitcher Hiroki Tokoda has seven hits this season, including a double.
Can the Central League hold out against designated hitters?
By Jason Coskrey
There have been plenty of calls for the league to adopt the DH over the years. But some prefer the status quo.
Europa League final offers financial savior for Man Utd and Spurs
By Kieran CANNING
Caitlin Clark and Fever players support investigation into fan behavior
U.S. Open venue to undergo $800 million transformation
By Amy Tennery
Scheffler installed as U.S. Open favorite

Opinion

China’s Made in China 2025 program set an ambitious agenda, and a decade later, initial assessments conclude it had mixed success but maintain its goals will shape Chinese policy for years to come.
Ten years of Made in China 2025 sees mixed success
Brad Glosserman
MIC2025 set an ambitious agenda, and a decade later, early reviews say it has had mixed success but maintain that its goals will shape Chinese policy for years to come.
Success of ‘Minecraft’ shows the future of movies is games
By Gearoid Reidy
German rearmament is a welcome 'war dividend'
By John Authers
U.S. Navy faces tough resource allocation challenges
By Keitaro Ushirogata
Moody’s tells us what we already know about U.S. debt
By Robert Burgess

ENVIRONMENT

The Dinorwig Power Station is nestled in the mountains of Llanberis, U.K. The power station is hidden away in the North Wales mountains and has been drained down as part of a £1 billion refurbishment program to extend the life of the plant.
The U.K.’s clean power future relies on a 100-year-old technology
By Eamon Farhat
For years, water has rushed through Dinorwig’s subterranean tunnels to drive vast power turbines, but the channels currently lie empty — for the first time in four decades.
Polar bear biopsies shed light on Arctic pollutants
By Olivier MORIN and Etienne FONTAINE
For Formula E, ‘sustainability is at the heart’
By Joel Tansey
A 26-year-old asked to help shape Japan’s climate goals has a warning
By Shoko Oda
Huge ice falls at Argentina's Perito Moreno glacier stir awe and concern
By Bernat Parera

CULTURE

Teru Hasegawa, Esperanto name Verda Majo, wrote leftist political essays during WWII.
A window into the mind of Esperantist and political activist Teru Hasegawa
By Martin Laflamme
During WWII, a young Japanese woman resisted her country's descent into fascism by writing leftist essays, now collected and translated in "Whispers of a Storm."
Women fight for the spotlight in India's macho movie industry
By Seema SINHA
On a high: Austria's JJ wins Eurovision 2025
Traditional performing arts are plugging into modern audiences
By Phoebe Amoroso
Netflix to stream Studio Ghibli's 'Grave of the Fireflies' in Japan

LIFE

With the weather warming up, there's no better time to make a bowl of chilled "surinagashi-jiru" (pureed soup).
Flaunt your seasonal greens with Japan’s traditional pureed soup
By Elizabeth Andoh
Get the best flavor out of your peas and pods by simmering them in a dashi-based broth.
A Japanese dining icon gets a (minor) facelift
By Weiwen Lin
Fighting Osaka Expo fatigue? Walk the 21-km Loop Line for a cure.
By Edward J. Taylor
Closing the gap between what you learn and what you say in Japanese
By Yuko Tamura
Speak like you scroll: A roundup of recent Japanese slang
By Yuko Tamura

COMMUNITY

FemUniti was founded in 2024 by Setsu Suzuki (right) and Meagan Ward (second from left) to empower women entrepreneurs and connect them to resources and opportunities.
Detroit-Nagoya network empowers women-owned businesses around the world
By Jessica Kozuka
Supporting women in business is a “blueprint for the future,” says the cofounder of femUniti — and she has the data to back it up.
Ayano Kikuchi: ‘People need to take care of themselves holistically’
By Olivia Boissel
Kotomi Li: 'I refuse to choose death'
By Kat Joplin
Reclaiming Sanya, one meal at a time
By Kim Kahan
Arunima Mazumdar: ‘Japanese literature has a niche but deeply engaged readership in India’
By Megha Wadhwa

Editors' Picks

JAPAN
Random stabbing cases in Japan raise fears: Could the next victim be me?
By Karin Kaneko
Police officers stand guard on May 7 outside Todaimae Station in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward after a random stabbing that injured a University of Tokyo student.
MORE SPORTS
The race for more time: Japanese runner decided to freeze eggs for her future
By Mai Yoshikawa
Tomomi Bitoh, seen crossing the finish line in Antarctica, on the first stop of the World Marathon Challenge, is one of the very few Japanese athletes to speak publicly about her experience with egg freezing.
BUSINESS
Agnes b. Japan CEO hopes to evolve the brand with focus on sustainability
By Elizabeth Beattie
Laurent Patouillet, the CEO and president of Agnes b. Japan, says the focus of its business is to remain independent, and evolve and adapt.
LIFE
Flaunt your seasonal greens with Japan’s traditional pureed soup
By Elizabeth Andoh
With the weather warming up, there's no better time to make a bowl of chilled "surinagashi-jiru" (pureed soup).
LIFE
In Nintendo’s backyard, foreign indie game devs are thriving
By Gendel Gento
Kyoto's gaming landscape is dominated by Nintendo's headquarters, but a contingent of foreign-born indie developers is also working in the gaming giant's shadow.

Podcast

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

Longform

A sinkhole in Yashio, which emerged in January, was triggered by a ruptured, aging sewer pipe. Authorities worry that similar sections of infrastructure across the country are also at risk of corrosion.
That sinking feeling: Japan’s aging sewers are an infrastructure time bomb
By Alex K.T. Martin

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SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Looking ahead to Yokohama’s Green × Expo 2027
Looking ahead to Yokohama’s Green × Expo 2027

WHAT’S TRENDING

JAPAN
Man falls to his death from Osaka condo, killing cyclist below
Osaka's Kita Ward. Two men died Monday morning in the ward after a man fell from a high-rise condominium and struck a passing cyclist below, according to local police.
JAPAN
Random stabbing cases in Japan raise fears: Could the next victim be me?
By Karin Kaneko
Police officers stand guard on May 7 outside Todaimae Station in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward after a random stabbing that injured a University of Tokyo student.
BUSINESS
Japan confirms hard-line position ahead of possible tariff talks in Washington
By Francis Tang
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan’s chief tariff negotiator, at a news conference on Tuesday. He said that when Japan states it wants the tariffs reviewed, it means Tokyo wants them removed.
JAPAN
Amid rice shortage, farm minister comes under fire for saying he gets plenty
By Gabriele Ninivaggi
Agriculture minister Taku Eto has come under fire for saying at the weekend that he receives so much rice from his supporters that he has enough to sell it.
BUSINESS
Nissan’s troubles might go all the way back to Ghosn 
By Kazuaki Nagata
A lot at a Nissan plant in Mexico. The company may have overextended itself during the Ghosn era.