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Sangmi Cha
For Sangmi Cha's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
People walk past a television screen showing a broadcast with file footage of South Korean lawmaker Bae Hyun-jin, at a railway station in Seoul on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jan 26, 2024
South Korean lawmaker treated for cuts to head following attack
Bae Hyun-jin, of the ruling party, was struck several times by the assailant who was wearing a dark coat and had his face covered.
South Korean Ambassador to Japan Yun Duk-min speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Sep 22, 2023
South Korea seeks revived China-Japan summit to shore up ties
Senior officials from the three Asian nations are set to meet in Seoul on Sept. 26.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 11, 2023
North Korean weapons cache gives Kim a role in the Kremlin’s invasion
Kim Jong Un is expected to cross into Russia this week for his first trip outside the peninsula in four years for talks with Vladimir Putin.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks during a ceremony commemorating the 70th Anniversary of the Korean War Armistice Agreement at Busan Cinema Center in Busan, South Korea, on July 27.
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 16, 2023
South Korea leader seeks breakthrough in deterring Kim Jong Un
Yoon expects the summit with Kishida and Biden will lead to agreement on ways to enhance their response to nuclear threats from North Korea.
People attend a mass rally denouncing the U.S. in Pyongyang on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 27, 2023
North Korea, China and Russia mark Korean War anniversary
The celebrations come at a crucial time for Kim Jong Un as he seeks to ease up on pandemic border controls that slammed the brakes on his economy.
Russian and North Korean flags fly above a street in Vladivostok, Russia, in 2019. As Pyongyang prepares to mark the Korean War's 70th anniversary, Kim Jong Un's regime has Russia to thank.
WORLD
Jul 26, 2023
North Korea’s depleted coffers are filling up again thanks to Russia
New funds are enabling Kim Jong Un to ignore financial incentives designed to bring North Korea back to the negotiating table.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 13, 2023
Time for a change? Seoul faces pressure to send weapons to Ukraine.
The Ukrainian government believes South Korea 'could do much to make our victory closer.”
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 10, 2023
North Korea threatens to shoot down U.S. spy planes
A spokesman for North Korea’s Defense Ministry said the U.S. was engaging in 'the most undisguised nuclear blackmail” by planning to bring a nuclear-armed submarine to the Korean Peninsula.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 5, 2023
South Korea salvages North’s spy satellite in intelligence win
Experts said the recovered pieces could provide information about the secretive state’s rocket program and give clues about possible sanctions violations.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 23, 2023
Two Koreas speed up drone race after unprecedented incursions
South Korea’s cabinet this week approved plans for a new drone command to be set up by the military.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 18, 2023
Failed North Korean rocket is intelligence win for Kim’s foes
A North Korean satellite launch that ended in failure will provide a trove of information about the secretive state’s rocket program as South Korea salvages large sections from the bottom of the sea.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 24, 2023
Korea space race heats up with North and South planning launches
The North is upgrading its space center to accommodate the increased demands of leader Kim Jong Un, raising alarm in Seoul.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 10, 2023
North Korea cuts phone link with South after slamming ‘traitors’
South Korea’s Unification Ministry said that North Korea failed to respond for a fourth straight day to regularly held calls on an inter-Korean liaison communications channel.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 3, 2023
South Korean rocket ambitions pose a fresh challenge to SpaceX
Cash from arms sales to Ukraine’s neighbors is helping to fund Hanwha Aerospace's efforts to expand its 2-year-old space business.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 28, 2023
North Korean defectors are dying lonely deaths in wealthy South Korea
Nearly 90% of defectors in Seoul said they’ve had trouble settling into their new homes after a decade, with many experiencing mental health problems and other adjustment issues.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 3, 2023
U.S. in talks with Seoul on deterring North Korea from using nukes
Following a meeting last year, U.S. President Joe Biden and South Korean counterpart Yoon Suk-yeol asked their teams to plan for a coordinated response to a range of scenarios.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 30, 2022
Kim Jong Un to ring in New Year with missiles and nuclear threats
Pyongyang will likely look to continue honing his ability to deliver a credible nuclear strike against the U.S. and its allies.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 9, 2022
Almost everyone is about to get a year younger in South Korea
The bill passed by the National Assembly on Thursday would scrap the country's widely used 'Korean age” counting standard, which typically added a year or even two to a person's age.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 9, 2022
South Korea’s arms sales double amid Russia’s war in Ukraine
South Korea is now the world's eighth largest weapons exporter, with plans to become No. 4 by 2027, amid trailing exports and a chip slump.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 30, 2022
Kim Jong Un’s ‘precious child’ shows regime to stay
It's still not known whether the regime views his 'precious child” as Kim's heir, or whether that status would belong to the older brother she's rumored to have.

Longform

Later this month, author Shogo Imamura will open Honmaru, a bookstore that allows other businesses to rent its shelves. It's part of a wave of ideas Japanese booksellers are trying to compete with online spaces.
The story isn't over for Japan's bookstores