More Opinion Articles - The Japan Times

August 04, 2025

Today's print edition

Subscribe for more access

EDITORIALS

Apr 10, 2003

The SARS toll mounts

Concern over severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, continues to rise. Two weeks ago, we reported 350 cases of the disease worldwide that had resulted in 10 deaths. At the beginning of this week, the World Health Organization reported more than 2,600 cases, with 100 deaths, in 18 countries; it is...

COMMENTARY / World

Apr 10, 2003

Options in Korea after Iraq

By John Barry Kotch

SEOUL -- The war in Iraq is casting a long shadow over the impending crisis on the Korean Peninsula and, in particular, on North Korea's nuclear ambitions and intentions. Last month in Seoul, antiwar protesters succeeded in delaying a vote in the National Assembly on dispatching 700 noncombat engineers...

COMMENTARY / World

Apr 10, 2003

War fuels Saudi fears and anger

By David Hirst

RIYADH -- You won't find the newly published "Hatred's Kingdom" in any Saudi bookshop, but it is in such demand among high officials that the government has brought out a reprint of its own. Its author is Dore Gold, a hardline Israeli spokesman. According to him, the "hatred" in question is rooted in...

COMMENTARY / World

Apr 10, 2003

U.N. must control Iraqi relief operations

By Cesar Chelala

NEW YORK -- Even before the war against Iraq has reached its climax, the U.S.-British invasion of that country had already provoked a humanitarian crisis that is proving to be a nightmare for international relief agencies. Although much has been done by relief agencies in preparation for this emergency,...

EDITORIALS

Apr 9, 2003

Sino-Japanese cooperation is key

Over the past two years, relations between Japan and China have been a little awkward because of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visits to Yasukuni Shrine, which is seen by Chinese as a symbolic legacy of Japanese militarism. Now, however, Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi's three-day visit to China...

COMMENTARY

Apr 9, 2003

Outsiders neglectful as China hid SARS

By Harvey Stockwin

HONG KONG -- Chinese officialdom continues to both avoid reality and to invent it. The Chinese people still suffer because of the absence of freedom of information. Ironically, Hong Kong residents are still receiving phone calls from friends and relatives in Guangdong, asking them what is going on in...

EDITORIALS

Apr 8, 2003

Hope at last for the DRC

For four years, the Democratic Republic of Congo has suffered a bloody conflict that has been practically invisible to most of the world. Rival factions and greedy neighbors have fought over the country's spoils, leaving death and destruction in their wake. As a result, one of Africa's richest countries...

COMMENTARY

Apr 8, 2003

Past guides U.S. postwar policy

By David Howell

LONDON -- The United Nations will only play a marginal role in postwar Iraq. The "transitional" administration will remain firmly in American hands, with some British, Australian and other coalition-member support, until there is an Iraqi government ready to take over the new Iraq. A hopeful estimate...

COMMENTARY

Apr 7, 2003

Diplomatic offensive awaits

By Tom Plate

LOS ANGELES -- Iraq is finding out what it means to be an enemy of the United States. But what does it mean to be a friend?

COMMENTARY / WASHINGTON UPDATE

Apr 7, 2003

U.S. racks up victories, and a huge debt

By Bob Keefe

WASHINGTON -- After months of ducking the question of how much the war would cost, President George W. Bush sent Congress a request for just under $80 billion in new funds. It responded by moving quickly, with both the Senate and House Committees approving bills to give the president his money, but it...

COMMENTARY / World

Apr 7, 2003

Kim Jong Il vanished to weigh options

By Brent Choi

SEOUL -- It looks as if U.S. Tomahawk missiles aimed at Iraqi President Saddam Hussein have also spooked the "Great Leader" of North Korea's hunger-stricken regime. Kim Jong Il, chairman of the National Defense Commission of North Korea, remained hidden from public view for 44 days, after he visited...

EDITORIALS

Apr 7, 2003

A sensible option in Iraq War

With U.S. forces closing in on Baghdad, internecine street-to-street fighting remains a possibility. One can only hope this does not happen. The war reached a decisive stage on Friday when the 3rd Infantry Division seized control of Saddam Hussein International Airport on the outskirts of the capital....

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

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.

With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear

By Jason Coskrey

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

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

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

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER

international-reports