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Edo Naito
With the next prime minister needing to be selected soon after the recent election, there are questions about whether the Democratic Party For the People and Nippon Ishin no Kai will support Shigeru Ishiba in his bid to remain Japan’s leader.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 31, 2024
Ishiba's future in question as support from allies wavers
The question now is whether the DPP and Ishin will support the LDP nominee to ensure victory, or if they will nominate their own candidates.
Yoshihiko Noda, head of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, walks past a monitor displaying Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba of the Liberal Democratic Party. Neither party gained a majority in Sunday's general election.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 28, 2024
A general-election postmortem
The LDP is left to pick up the pieces of Ishiba's disastrous decision to call a snap election, putting him at risk of becoming Japan's shortest-lived prime minister.
In Japan, terms like "progressive," "liberal," "conservative," and "nationalist" may sound familiar but do not align with their meanings in other democracies.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 25, 2024
How to understand labels in Japanese politics
The issues that define political labels are often unique to Japan. As a result, quite a few Western authors will pick them up and use them.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 12, 2022
SOFA exempts U.S. forces from Japan’s laws, as it does its COVID safety measures
Beyond the issues associated with the U.S. military's lax COVID-19 containment measures, SOFA has a long history of incidents.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 24, 2021
Mass COVID-19 testing: Does it save lives?
Would Japan have seen far greater fatalities if it opted for mass COVID-19 testing like other countries rather than just targeting vulnerable group as it did?
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / Perspectives
Nov 8, 2021
What Japan needs to change to better prepare for the next pandemic
COVID-19 won't be the last deadly contagion to strike Japan. Here are six things the government can do right now to ensure it can respond better when the next crisis strikes.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / Perspectives
Oct 2, 2021
Has Japan’s COVID-19 response really been that bad?
Mainstream media has painted a bleak narrative about how Japan has handled the pandemic, but comparative data shows it has, for the most part, responded much better than its G7 peers.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies / Commentary
Jun 24, 2019
Will Nissan reforms finally bring end to corporate governance woes?
In many ways, the problems surrounding Nissan Motor Co. have spawned renewed interest in the state of Japan's corporate governance.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Apr 17, 2019
Examining Carlos Ghosn and Japan's system of 'hostage justice'
As the Carlos Ghosn saga continues to unfold, domestic and international attention continues to mount on what many are calling a "hostage justice" system.

Longform

Akira Oishi (left) and Shinichi Okanobori have taken on the responsibility of surveying the flora and fauna of Mount Tenran and Mount Tonosu in Saitama Prefecture.
Inside Japan's 100-year project to monitor its deteriorating biodiversity