More Opinion Articles - The Japan Times

October 04, 2025

Today's print edition

Subscribe for more access

COMMENTARY / World

Mar 31, 2002

Who can blame U.S. for going it alone?

By Russell Working

ATHENS -- It was a curious political moment in the cradle of democracy. A recent visit by Iranian President Mohammad Khatami sparked a flood of favorable media coverage about Iran -- and an avalanche of condemnation of America.

COMMENTARY

Mar 30, 2002

Japan's faulty north bearing

By Gregory Clark

Former senior Liberal Democratic Party politician Muneo Suzuki is in disgrace for alleged improper dealings. But Foreign Ministry efforts to blacken his name further by selectively revealing details of his attempts to change the ministry's hardline Northern Territories policy go too far.

COMMENTARY

Mar 30, 2002

Power to the EU's people

By David Howell

LONDON -- Yet another disappointing European summit, this time in Barcelona, has left more and more people asking whether this is the right way to proceed with the European project. Is the existing European model the right one? The goal is supposed to be for a liberalized Europe to catch up with the...

COMMENTARY

Mar 30, 2002

Official foreign aid leaves needy wanting

By Doug Bandow

LAHORE, Pakistan -- One of Lahore's small Christian communities sits on army land, and thus constitutes an illegal occupation in the government's view. Most homes have one room, the latrines are makeshift, and families are lucky to survive on $20 a month.

EDITORIALS

Mar 30, 2002

Reading the tea leaves in Myanmar

The venerable science of Kremlinology is flourishing in Myanmar. The country's ruling elite is a clubby and secretive group, and the exercise of power and influence is shrouded in mystery; reliable information is hard to come by. No wonder then that the last few weeks have been busy ones for Myanmar...

COMMENTARY / World

Mar 30, 2002

Environmental disaster feeds terrorism

By Juha I. Uitto

WASHINGTON -- The rise of militant Islam in Central Asia has been driven by poverty and lack of human rights. While undemocratic regimes and the dearth of economic opportunities create resentment among the people, environmental destruction adds to the misery.

EDITORIALS

Mar 29, 2002

A murder in Italy

The Italian city of Bologna can claim several distinctions. It is the home of one of Europe's oldest and most respected universities; it has some of the country's finest food; and it is the center of the "red belt," a geographic swath that has been governed by the left -- and has been the location of...

COMMENTARY / World

Mar 29, 2002

Fresh irritants may still derail Sino-Japan ties

By Hisane Masaki

Like Tokyo's cherry-blossoms-dotted landscape at this time of year, relations between Japan and China appear to have sprung back to life -- and in bloom again after a winter of chill and frost.

COMMENTARY / World

Mar 29, 2002

Davos themes dazzle with Webcasting

By John Barry Kotch

SEOUL -- If you missed Davos in New York last month, you have a rain check coming via the miracle of Webcasting. The more important panels will be broadcast at the World Economic Forum's Web site ( www.weforum.org ), starting Monday. Don't pass up this intellectual cyberfest for the netizen!

COMMENTARY

Mar 28, 2002

New focus on security pushes nuclear deterrence to the fore

By Brahma Chellaney

NEW DELHI -- In the post-Sept. 11 environment, nuclear-weapons issues had acquired a lower profile in international relations as the controversy generated by America's missile-defense plans, the ongoing deadlock at the Geneva-based Conference on Disarmament and the coma-like state of the Comprehensive...

COMMENTARY

Mar 28, 2002

Strategy for attacking Iraq

By Hugh Cortazzi

LONDON -- Ample evidence suggests that Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein is determined to develop weapons of mass destruction and terror. There are reports of various underground laboratories working on biological and chemical weapons and possibly on nuclear devices. Iraq probably also managed to hide from...

EDITORIALS

Mar 28, 2002

A fairer tax system needed

Two years ago the Tokyo Metropolitan Government imposed a controversial tax on large banks doing business in the capital, with business size, not income, as the standard. Twenty-one banks (now 18 due to reorganization) filed a lawsuit seeking repeal of the tax. On Tuesday the Tokyo District Court ruled...

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

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.

Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?

By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Foreign wrestlers have a long history in sumo

Foreign wrestlers have a long history in sumo

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER

international-reports