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August 30, 2025
 

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COMMENTARY / World
May 22, 2007
Strengthen India-Japan ties
By Geethanjali Nataraj
Japan and India are two of the largest democracies in Asia, sharing a commitment to the rule of law and respect for human rights. Japan and India have continued to develop friendly relations founded on a long history of exchanges.
EDITORIALS
May 21, 2007
Will the profit growth last?
Many big companies are enjoying record profits, reflecting the steady expansion of the Japanese economy and growth in foreign sales. The depreciation of the yen and the robust economies of the United States and China have helped increase their exports. But future prospects do not warrant optimism. A...
EDITORIALS
May 21, 2007
More state control of education
The Lower House has passed three education reform-related bills that will pave the way for more control of education by the central government. Regrettably, the Lower House did not make sufficient efforts to protect the education scene from unnecessary intervention. The Upper House must thoroughly discuss...
COMMENTARY / World
May 21, 2007
Europe's second chance in the Balkans
By Morton Abramowitz
NEW YORK — Confronting the disintegration of Yugoslavia in 1991, former EU Council President Jacques Poos made his famous but now derided statement: "This is the hour of Europe not the hour of the Americans."
EDITORIALS
May 20, 2007
Don't be shy about study abroad
A recent report has found that fewer Japanese students than ever are studying abroad. After a peak in the early 1990s, the numbers have declined to the lowest level in years. Remaining in Japan without experiencing life abroad will have repercussions that may last far into the future. More students should...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
May 20, 2007
An exemplar of where the war-crimes buck stops
By Roger Pulvers
Over the coming months in this column, I will return a few times to a film titled "Ashita e no Yuigon (Best Wishes for Tomorrow)." I have been very fortunate to be able to write the script for this together with its director, Takashi Koizumi, whose last film, "Hakase no Aishita Sushiki (The Professor...
EDITORIALS
May 19, 2007
Last recourse for parents
A Catholic hospital in Kumamoto disclosed a plan in November to set up a "baby hatch" in which women or parents could anonymously leave newborn babies. The hospital was especially thinking of women in desperate situations. The Kumamoto municipal government approved Jikei Hospital's plan in early April....
EDITORIALS
May 19, 2007
ASDF's role in Iraq
The Lower House has passed a bill to extend by two years the July 2003 ad hoc law to deploy the Self-Defense Forces for noncombat activities in Iraq. The specific aim of the bill is to extend the operations of the Air Self-Defense Force in Iraq since the law expires at the end of July.
EDITORIALS
May 18, 2007
Healing time for East Timor
The landslide victory of Prime Minister Jose Ramos-Horta in East Timor's presidential election points to the people's hope that the Nobel laureate will bring unity and reconciliation to Asia's youngest nation. Mr. Ramos-Horta shared the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize with Bishop Carlos Belo for their nonviolent...
EDITORIALS
May 18, 2007
Nurturing forests and workers
The fiscal 2006 annual report on the nation's forestry shows that self-sufficiency in the wood supply has stopped falling due to conditions abroad that make wood imports to Japan difficult. The government can use this opportunity to revitalize Japan's forestry.
EDITORIALS
May 17, 2007
Toyota on a roll
Toyota Motor Corp. has become the first Japanese company to top the 2 trillion yen mark in operating profits. The leading automaker's operating profit for the 2006 business year to March 2007 surged 19.2 percent from the previous year to 2.24 trillion yen, a new record for the seventh straight year....
COMMENTARY / World
May 17, 2007
A private affair, or not?
By Peter Singer
PRAGUE — Can a public figure have a private life? Recent events in three countries have highlighted the importance of this question.
Most Japanese teens struggling with school find end of summer ‘painful’
Some 93.1% of Japanese teenagers who struggle with school life said they felt like they “wanted to disappear from the world" at the end of summer vacation ahead of the start of a new term, according to a recent survey released by Yokohama-based nonprofit Daisan Kazoku.
Philippine bid to acquire used Japanese warships gains steam
Tokyo is looking to transfer Abukuma-class vessels to the Philippines as part of broader efforts to boost the defense capabilities of like-minded neighbors amid growing Chinese military assertiveness in the region.
Mitsubishi’s wind-power retreat a blow to Japan's alternative-energy goals
Wind turbines in the town of Happo in Akita prefecture. Wind power is a key part of Japan's alternative energy drive.
Can anime carry the memories of World War II?
Many schools in Japan show "Grave of the Fireflies" as educational material to tell the emotionally grueling story of a boy who has no means to prevent his sister from starving to death.
Akazawa's trip to Washington for tariff talks abruptly canceled
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief tariff negotiator, had been set to fly to Washington on Thursday.
Mitsubishi’s wind-power retreat a blow to Japan's alternative-energy goals
Wind turbines in the town of Happo in Akita prefecture. Wind power is a key part of Japan's alternative energy drive.
Virtual singer Kaf's music becomes magic in 'Kamitsubaki City Under Construction'
Virtual singer Kaf got her start in 2018 by posting songs and covers to YouTube. Now, after having performed live shows at major venues including Tokyo’s Nippon Budokan, she is turning to voice acting and starring in the new anime series “Kamitsubaki City Under Construction.”
Can anime carry the memories of World War II?
Many schools in Japan show "Grave of the Fireflies" as educational material to tell the emotionally grueling story of a boy who has no means to prevent his sister from starving to death.
In pictures: Koenji Awa Odori 2025
Japan Times
Koshien’s dark summer forces reckoning for high school baseball
Koryo High School players greet their cheering section after beating Hokkaido’s Asahikawa Shiho in the first round of Summer Koshien on Aug. 7. The school withdrew three days later as a bullying scandal enveloped the team.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

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

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Maruhachi never sleeps in quest for better futons
Maruhachi never sleeps in quest for better futons

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