author

 
Menu
Search
 
May 05, 2024
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

Meta

Steven Erlanger
For Steven Erlanger's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 10, 2022
Blinken presses China’s top diplomat on Ukraine but stresses cooperation
As Washington works to shore up alliances with its Asian allies to constrain China, it is also trying to assemble a global effort to punish Moscow for its aggression in Ukraine.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jun 30, 2022
A more muscular NATO emerges as West confronts Russia and China
The approach marks a fundamental shift for an alliance that was born in the Cold War but came to view a post-Soviet Russia as a potential ally, and did not focus on China at all.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jun 4, 2022
100 days of war: Death, destruction and loss in Ukraine
Russia's brutal invasion has ripped apart predictions, reawakened old alliances, tested others and spread death and destruction across Ukraine.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 30, 2022
For NATO, Turkey is a disruptive ally
Within an alliance that operates by consensus, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has come to be seen as something of a stickup artist.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 27, 2022
How does it end? Fissures emerge over what constitutes victory in Ukraine
Differing objectives make it all the more difficult to define what victory — or even a muddled peace — would look like.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 26, 2022
Macron’s win is also a blow to Viktor Orban’s nationalist crusade
But analysts say Macron must also learn lessons from his first term, as his penchant for announcing proposals rather than building coalitions at times annoyed his European counterparts.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 20, 2022
The U.S. races to arm Ukraine with heavier, more advanced weaponry
The West is focused on sending longer-range weapons like howitzers, anti-aircraft systems, anti-ship missiles, armed drones, armored trucks, personnel carriers and even tanks.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 14, 2022
Ukraine war pushes Germans to change. They are wavering.
Few in Germany believed Putin would invade a sovereign European country, but the war has set off a cycle of soul-searching — and re-evaluating ties to Russia.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 12, 2022
Far from defeated, Putin intends to escalate war in Ukraine
After a meeting with Putin, Austria's chancellor said he came away fearing that the Russian president intended to drastically intensify the brutality of the war in Ukraine.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 1, 2022
More mixed signals from Russia as Ukraine war enters sixth week
Western officials said they saw little evidence to support Russia's claims that it was greatly reducing its military presence around Kyiv.
Japan Times
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Mar 30, 2022
Peace talks may be little more than Russian tactics, analysts say
As signs of progress emerged during the peace talks, some saw them as Russia buying time to regroup its military forces before another offensive push in Ukraine.
Japan Times
WORLD
Mar 29, 2022
Ukraine claims some battle successes as Russia focuses on another front
Russians moved to encircle and cut off Ukrainian forces in the east, making a diplomatic resolution to the war seem as far away as ever.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Feb 25, 2022
With the Ukraine invasion, NATO is suddenly vulnerable
A Russia in control of Ukraine and Belarus would change the security architecture of Europe. Can the alliance respond effectively?
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 21, 2022
Biden strengthens his words on Ukraine after flustering European partners
The comments came a day after the president triggered alarm in European capitals with his suggestion of divisions among allies.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 13, 2022
NATO and Russia talk frankly, but past one another for now
NATO leaders rejected outright Russian demands that the alliance stop enlargement, pull back its forces from member states bordering Russia and guarantee that Ukraine will never join.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 18, 2021
Russia lays out demands for a sweeping new security deal with NATO
The proposal, coming as Moscow masses troops on the border with Ukraine, would establish a Cold War-like security arrangement in Eastern Europe that NATO officials immediately rejected.
Japan Times
WORLD
Nov 30, 2021
Iran insists on immediate lifting of sanctions as nuclear talks resume
As the first round of formal discussions ended Monday, Western negotiators tried to be upbeat.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Nov 11, 2021
As distrust of China grows, Europe may inch closer to Taiwan
An unusual flurry of diplomatic activity suggests a subtle shift may be underway in Europe, driven in part by the region's growing frustration over China's aggressive posture.
Japan Times
WORLD
Aug 17, 2021
The Taliban are back. Now will they restrain or support al-Qaida?
The United States invaded Afghanistan 20 years ago in response to terrorism, and many worry that al-Qaida and other radical Islamist groups will again find safe haven there.
Japan Times
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Aug 14, 2021
Afghanistan’s unraveling may strike another blow to U.S. credibility
The Taliban's lightning advance comes at a moment when many in Europe and Asia had hoped that President Joe Biden would re-establish America's firm presence in international affairs.
With eye on China, defense chiefs agree to bolster interoperability
From left: U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Australian defense chief Richard Marles, Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara and Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro hold a joint news conference in Honolulu on Thursday.
Harajuku strives to reclaim its former glory — and surpass it
Laforet Harajuku, which celebrated its 45th anniversary last year, has been a witness to the district's evolution over the years.
Biden calls ally Japan ‘xenophobic’ along with rivals China and Russia
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks in Syracuse, New York, on April 25.
Debate on constitutional revision at a standstill despite Kishida's pledges
With less than two months left before the conclusion of the current session of parliament, any possibility that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida can deliver constitutional reform before the end of his term as Liberal Democratic Party president in late September, as he has promised, appears remote.
Japan's May 1 intervention may have cost ¥3.66 trillion, BOJ data suggests
An electronic screen displays a graph showing Japanese yen exchange rates surging against the dollar amid signs of intervention by authorities, in Tokyo on Thursday.
Kishida sets sights on energy and climate in South America trip
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will use a policy speech in Sao Paulo to set out his vision for ties between Japan and South America, almost 10 years after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe advocated for stronger ties between the two in the same city.
Yellow sand allergy: A health issue made worse by climate change
A screenshot of the Meteorological Agency's satellite image of clouds and yellow sand (in pink) on Sunday.
Climate change, chalky grains and the risks for Japan’s rice farmers
A farmer plants seedlings in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan’s self sufficiency rate for rice is nearly 100%, compared with 38% for food overall, on a calorie basis.
Japan wants you to spend more with ‘luxury tourism’
Performers play a traditional drum unique to Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in the prefectural capital of Kanazawa on March 16 to mark the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line to Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture.
Theaster Gates’ ambitious ‘Afro-Mingei’ brings Black Chicago to Tokyo
Theaster Gates' “A Heavenly Chord” lines up church pews before seven speakers and a Hammond B3 organ, a type of electric organ prevalent in Black American churches.

Podcast

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Rows of irises resemble a rice field at the Peter Walker-designed Toyota Municipal Museum of Art.
The 'outsiders' creating some of Japan's greenest spaces
By Stephen Mansfield

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Prize winner Maki Imoto catches light with glass
Prize winner Maki Imoto catches light with glass

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER