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May 18, 2024
 

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Leonid Bershidsky
For Leonid Bershidsky's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 9, 2016
Putin strikes a defiant note with concert in Syria
Vladimir Putin is signaling to the world that his forces have not really withdrawn from Syria and that any peace will be made on Russian terms.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 8, 2016
Trump won the GOP's stand-up competition
Donald Trump's remarkable run, however it ends, could be a harbinger of things to come, and future races may well be won by the person with the best stand-up routine.
COMMENTARY / World
May 4, 2016
Trump is riding on a warped 1980s nostalgia
There's no DeLorean time machine to take Americans to the Reagan '80s, and if it existed, it would take them elsewhere. It's time to move on.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 28, 2016
Chernobyl's lessons unlearned
No post-Soviet leaders seem to have drawn the right conclusions from the Chernobyl tragedy that took place 30 years ago this week.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 27, 2016
Being a Russian media mogul is dangerous
Putin now controls almost every wide-reaching news outlet in Russia. All he has to do is jerk the leash from time to time.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 12, 2016
Putin puts an army at his personal command
Once again, instead of opening up and liberalizing, the embattled Putin regime is closing in on itself, and the man sitting on top of it is taking on more and more direct powers.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 20, 2016
Political violence is an American tradition
This election may not be a showcase for the intelligence and statesmanship of the U.S. elite, but the passion and engagement it has infused into U.S. politics could have a silver lining.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 17, 2016
Look for Putin's hidden agenda in Syria pullout
Russian President Vladimir Putin's unexpected announcement that Russian troops would pull back from Syria shouldn't be taken at face value.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 11, 2016
Russia missed its chance to be more like America
Russians have shown a clear preference for a powerful state that interferes with the workings of a free market.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 6, 2016
It's risky to bash Donald Trump on talk radio
Talk radio, a bastion of the right wing in the U.S., has gone easy on Donald Trump throughout the campaign.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 1, 2016
U.S. is hardly ripe for a fake Mussolini
Donald Trump's utterances are weaponized sound, not speech.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 24, 2016
Why Russia didn't go further than Crimea
A newly released document sheds light on why Russia's annexation of Crimea was bloodless, and on the limits of Putin's aggressiveness.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 19, 2016
Apple-FBI legal battle isn't about encryption
Apple is standing up for iPhone users' privacy rights now, but there's no guarantee its stance won't change in the future.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 12, 2016
The business of being Bowie
David Bowie could see the future more clearly than most people.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 5, 2016
Russia's isolationism is official
Russia's latest National Security Strategy provides valuable material for the study of the angst, paranoia and befuddlement now gripping the Kremlin.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 4, 2016
Russia and Ukraine are finally breaking up
The ongoing political and economic separation of Russia and Ukraine will likely be completed this year.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 29, 2015
Germany is right to flout Russia sanctions
Germany has rallied Europe in support of Ukraine-related sanctions against Russia, but has been less diligent in their implementation.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 23, 2015
Tallying up Putin's 2015 foreign policy score card
His saber rattling and his willingness to talk and compromise have once again made Russian President Vladimir Putin a player to be reckoned with.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 21, 2015
Putin up close and personal: not a pretty picture
Vladimir Putin splits the world into friends and loyal allies on one side, and enemies and those who only deserve to be manipulated on the other.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 15, 2015
A toothless treaty can't stop climate change
The only good that has come out of the Paris deal is that most of the world's nations acknowledge climate change and the need to do something about it.
Japanese stripper bids to have her porn movies taken off internet
Plaintiff Miyuki Ariga (left) speaks at a news conference along with her lawyer, Yoshitomo Morohashi, after filing a lawsuit at the Tokyo District Court on Monday.
Japan passes bill to introduce 'blue ticket' fines for cyclists
A new system under which bicycle riders pay fines for minor traffic violations to escape criminal punishment is expected to be introduced in Japan no later than 2026.
Japan changes law to allow joint custody after divorce
Legislation that allows the option of joint custody of children after divorce is passed at the Upper House plenary session on Friday.
U.S. envoy to Japan makes landmark visit to front-line island near Taiwan
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel meets with members of the Self-Defense Forces stationed on Yonaguni, Okinawa Prefecture, on Friday.
Japan to review romanization system for first time in 70 years
An advisory panel to the education ministry will consider how the Japanese language should be transcribed into the Latin alphabet, including unifying different romanization styles currently in use.
Can AI-generated inventions be patented? A Tokyo court says no.
The Tokyo court's ruling comes amid ongoing debates on how to regulate generative AI and is part of a transnational class action lawsuit.
A new initiative rethinks old Tohoku crafts
The colored patterns of Tsuguru "nuri," made in Aomori Prefecture, are achieved by applying multiple coatings of lacquer, which are later polished down to reveal layers of colors beneath.
Xi and Putin mark ‘new era’ amid efforts to counter U.S. ‘containment’
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping attend an event in Beijing on Thursday. During Putin's visit, the leaders showed off their growing alignment amid efforts to push back against the U.S.-led world order.
Unraveling the Japanese prose of Yukio Mishima
Author Yukio Mishima accepts the Arts Festival Award in the drama category at the 20th Arts Festival Award Ceremony on Jan. 22, 1966.
New Taiwan president to set tone for ties with China at inauguration
Taiwan President-elect Lai Ching-te arrives at the CyberSec 2024 Exhibition in Taipei on Wednesday.

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