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Idrees Ali
For Idrees Ali's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Aug 13, 2022
China's military drills near Taiwan offer spying opportunity for U.S. and allies
The drills provide an opportunity to scrutinize the missiles China would use to drive off foreign militaries intervening in any future invasion.
Japan Times
WORLD
Aug 6, 2022
U.S. readies new $1 billion Ukraine weapons package
The Biden administration's next security assistance package will be one of the largest so far, and could include munitions for long-range weapons and armored medical transport vehicles.
Japan Times
WORLD
Aug 3, 2022
Biden's al-Qaida counterterrorism win masks some concerns with strategy
The CIA drone strike that killed al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri relied on a perfect set of conditions, analysts say.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 27, 2022
U.S. and Ukraine discuss danger of escalation as new arms extend Kyiv's reach
U.S. President Joe Biden's administration and U.S. allies have been increasingly willing to give Ukraine longer-range weaponry, including M777 howitzers, as Kyiv battles Russian forces.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 2, 2022
U.S. cancels ICBM test due to Russia nuclear tensions
The U.S. military has canceled a test of its Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile in a bid to lower nuclear tensions with Russia during the war in Ukraine.
Japan Times
WORLD
Mar 2, 2022
What happened to Russia's Air Force? U.S. officials and experts are stumped.
The first six days of Russia's assault on Ukraine have confounded expectations and seen Moscow act far more delicately with its air power.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 3, 2022
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin tests positive for COVID-19
Austin said he planned to attend meetings virtually when possible and he would retain all authorities in running the Defense Department and overseeing military activities around the world.
Japan Times
WORLD
Aug 20, 2021
Planes, guns and night-vision goggles: The Taliban's new U.S.-made war chest
Launching airstrikes against large equipment like helicopters has not been ruled out, but the main goal at the moment is evacuating people.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 30, 2021
Philippines' Rodrigo Duterte fully restores key troop pact with U.S.
The agreement has assumed additional importance as the United States and its allies contend with an increasingly assertive China.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 26, 2021
With eye on China, Pentagon chief heads to Southeast Asia
Lloyd Austin will seek to emphasize the importance Washington places on fortifying ties in the region while pushing back against China.
Japan Times
WORLD / FOCUS
Jul 10, 2021
Afghan pilots assassinated by Taliban as U.S. withdraws
Afghan Air Force Maj. Dastagir Zamaray had grown so fearful of Taliban assassinations of off-duty forces in Kabul that he decided to sell his home to move to a safer pocket of Afghanistan's sprawling capital.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 24, 2020
How Trump fell out of love with his generals, and why the feeling is mutual
The president has ridiculed his top generals, ignoring their advice on some key issues and questioning their intelligence, courage and commitment to their soldiers.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 25, 2020
Washington report says Huawei and Hikvision backed by Chinese military
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has determined that top Chinese firms, including telecoms equipment giant Huawei Technologies and video surveillance company Hikvision, are owned or controlled by the Chinese military, laying the groundwork for new U.S. financial sanctions, according to a document seen by Reuters on Wednesday.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 22, 2018
Planned drawdown in Afghanistan imperils U.S. push for peace
U.S. President Donald Trump will upend his own strategy to bring peace to Afghanistan and end America's longest war if he proceeds with plans to withdraw about half of the 14,000 U.S. troops there, according to veteran diplomats and U.S. officials.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Nov 10, 2018
U.S. defense chief works to keep rising Sino-American tensions from boiling over
When the United States imposed sanctions on China's military this fall, China retaliated by canceling Defense Secretary Jim Mattis' plans to meet his counterpart in Beijing. But just days later, a Chinese general visited the Pentagon with a reassuring message: Beijing valued the importance of military ties between the two countries.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Oct 20, 2018
U.S. weighs new warship passage through Taiwan Strait amid heightened tensions with China
The United States is considering a new operation to send warships through the Taiwan Strait, U.S. officials tell Reuters, a mission aimed at ensuring free passage through the strategic waterway but which risks heightening tensions with China.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 28, 2018
Anti-American rhetoric of Pakistan's Khan has Washington wary
Over the years, Pakistan's Imran Khan has been known for his anti-American rhetoric, once even suggesting he might, as prime minister, order the shooting down of U.S. drones targeting al-Qaida figures along the Pakistan-Afghan border.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jun 23, 2018
U.S. Navy drafts plans to house 25,000 immigrants at a cost of $233 million over half a year
The U.S. Navy is drafting plans to house up to 25,000 immigrants on its bases and other facilities, at an estimated cost of about $233 million over six months, as the Trump administration seeks to ease a mounting crisis on the Mexican border, a U.S. official said on Friday.

Longform

When trying to trace your lineage in Japan, the "koseki" is the most important form of document you'll encounter.
Climbing the branches of a Japanese family tree