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August 28, 2025

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COMMENTARY / World

Apr 28, 2005

Has China learned a lesson?

By Masamichi Hanabusa

It is naturally welcome that Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of Japan and President Hu Jintao of China reaffirmed in Jakarta that friendly Japan-China relations are desirable not only for the two countries but also for Asia at large. It is beyond doubt that good Japan-China relations promote peace and...

COMMENTARY

Apr 27, 2005

Electoral fatigue takes a toll on Britain

By Hugh Cortazzi

LONDON -- The British general election takes place May 5. It was formally announced April 3 but electioneering has been going on for months and many voters had become bored even before the dissolution of Parliament. It is widely feared that boredom and disillusionment with politicians of all the parties...

COMMENTARY / World

Apr 26, 2005

Japan and the United Nations

By Kazuo Ogoura

On Dec. 18, 1956, Japanese Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu stood before the General Assembly of the United Nations to make a speech marking Japan's admission to the organization. In this address he stated that as the only nation to suffer the ordeal of atomic bombing, Japan hoped with all its heart...

COMMENTARY / World

Apr 25, 2005

Enough blame to go around

By Brad Glosserman and Scott Snyder

HONOLULU -- Deteriorating relations among Japan, South Korea and China underscore the failure of leadership in all three countries. Recent events have triggered a downward spiral in relations, but this shift hasn't occurred in a vacuum. All three governments share the primary burden to set a strategic...

COMMENTARY

Apr 25, 2005

Koizumi policy seeded storm

By Kiroku Hanai

In recent weeks, mass anti-Japanese protests, the largest since Tokyo and Beijing normalized diplomatic relations in 1972, have occurred in major Chinese cities. As a result, Sino-Japanese relations, already considered cold on the political front, could cool economically.

COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK

Apr 25, 2005

Knight still mounted on a tethered horse

By Hiroaki Sato

NEW YORK -- In 1958 there was a political upheaval in Iraq, which, as far as that country at that particular juncture in history was concerned, was the final rejection of Western rule. But Japan's reaction was shifty and muddled. Or so writer Yukio Mishima (1925-70) thought.

COMMENTARY / World

Apr 24, 2005

Getting Yangon to show a little respect

By George Sioris

CHANG MAI, Thailand -- There has been a lot of discussion recently about Myanmar's assumption of the presidency of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations next year. It is obvious that most members wish to prevent this anomaly from happening. Let's reflect on some of the more realistic,...

COMMENTARY

Apr 24, 2005

A provincial pitch for votes

By David Howell

LONDON -- Britain is now in the grip of a general election campaign with voting due May 5. As with political campaigns generally in the modern world, this one is heavily oriented toward domestic issues and disputes. Globalization and the worldwide information revolution seem to have had the opposite...

COMMENTARY / World

Apr 24, 2005

Purge U.N. panel of the freedom-haters

By Per Ahlmark

STOCKHOLM -- For Sweden, my homeland, the United Nations is a sacred cow. But today, many Swedes, like others around the world, are having second thoughts. Three events incited these doubts. The first was the slaughter in Rwanda a decade ago of more than 800,000 people within 100 days -- probably the...

COMMENTARY

Apr 23, 2005

China and Japan have their work cut out

By Tom Plate

LOS ANGELES -- It is true that the issue of Japan's behavior a half century ago is not moot, especially if there is reason to believe that aggression against its neighbors is not truly a thing of the distant past.

COMMENTARY / World

Apr 23, 2005

Academic freedom for all

By Michael R. Czinkota

WASHINGTON -- Academic freedom is close to the hearts of many. Being able to teach what "needs" to be taught, to speak out and to pursue thoughts to wherever they may lead are some of the most crucial components of academia. In light of this accepted axiom it is surprising to learn about opposition to...

COMMENTARY / World

Apr 22, 2005

CCP smacks of hypocrisy

By David Wall

LONDON -- At the end of his visit to India last week, China's Premier Wen Jiabao made a strong political attack on Japan. With respect to Japan's bid for a seat on an expanded U.N. Security Council (UNSC) Wen opined that "Only a country that respects history, takes responsibility for history and wins...

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.

From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past

By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after

Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after

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