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July 14, 2025
 

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Opinion

CARTOONS
EDITORIALS
COMMENTARY
U.S. soldiers man a checkpoint on a road outside Tikrit, Iraq, in November 2003. Airstrikes alone won’t truly eliminate Iran’s nuclear program — only a costly ground invasion like the one that took down Saddam Hussein could do that.
COMMENTARY / World
What will it take to end Iran's nuke program? An army.
By James Stavridis
Trump’s claim that the U.S. “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear program was widely disputed, with current estimates saying it was severely damaged and set back by 12 to 24 months.
Britain’s abolition of the "nondom" tax regime has triggered an exodus of wealthy residents to tax-friendlier countries like Italy, sparking warnings of lost revenue, diminished appeal and a missed chance to reform the system more effectively.
COMMENTARY / World
The ultrarich move in herds. Just ask London.
By Matthew Brooker
The beneficiaries are countries such as Italy, which is attracting wealthy foreign residents with an annual flat fee of €200,000.
U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on April 7. Trump’s unexpected strike on Iran shows how Israel’s influence overcame his reluctance for foreign wars.
COMMENTARY / World
Trump’s Iran attack shows what it takes to win his military support
By Kuni Miyake
How did Israel convince Trump? Put simply, why did Trump, unlike previous presidents who considered it but held back, launch a direct strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities?

EDITORIALS

U.S. President Donald Trump’s escalating tariffs, erratic trade threats and linkage of economic and defense issues are undermining trust in America and pushing allies like Japan to rethink their dependence on Washington.
Trump declares war on the international economic order
Trump has a simple understanding of international relations. In his mind, might makes right.
EDITORIALS
As trade deadline approaches, Japan must draw lines
EDITORIALS
Airstrikes won’t end Iran’s nuclear ambitions — diplomacy might
EDITORIALS
Chasing peace with Iran as the Middle East smolders
EDITORIALS
A belligerent China hones its tools of intimidation

COMMENTARY

The recent massive pride parade in Hungary shows that even under authoritarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, popular resistance for liberal democracy persists — but the region’s deeper political stalemate endures.
World
Is democracy stalemated?
By Maciej Kisilowski
Yet neither triumphalism nor fatalism captures the real dynamic. A more measured analysis shows that history’s arc is not bending at all — it is stuck.
World
Trump’s rejection of America’s founding principles
By Steve Pincus
World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Can China become a defender of free trade?
By Hotaka Machida
Japan
Tokyo is missing 'Blade Runner' where it needs it most
By Gearoid Reidy
World
Crypto crime is the future. Bank heists are history.
By Lionel Laurent
World
Taking GDP out of the China equation
By Daniel Moss
World
Online dissent in China doesn’t mean Xi is on his way out
By Yujing Shentu
Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
Japan needs to take the quantum-technology leap
By Wakana Asano
World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Air superiority vs. air denial: Redefining U.S. airpower strategy
By Sadamasa Oue
Read more Opinion stories
Nissan clinches $4.5 billion bond deal after orders soar
Nissan Motor has raised $4.5 billion through a junk bond sale in U.S. dollars and euros, part of which carries a record-high coupon rate.
U.S. urges clarity on Japan’s role in potential war over Taiwan, report says
A Ground Self-Defense Force member conducts a military drill with an anti-ship missiles unit, at the GSDF's base on Miyako Island in Okinawa Prefecture in April 2022.
Tokyo hit by torrential rainfall at rush hour
People line up at Shibuya Station in Tokyo as they try to avoid the heavy rain on Thursday.
Osaka police crack down on crime ring over underage prostitution
Osaka Prefectural Police headquarters
Foreign drivers in Japan to face tougher license conversion rules from October
According to the National Police Agency, there were 75,905 people who converted their foreign driver’s license to a Japanese one in 2024, up from 48,885 in 2019.
U.S. urges clarity on Japan’s role in potential war over Taiwan, report says
A Ground Self-Defense Force member conducts a military drill with an anti-ship missiles unit, at the GSDF's base on Miyako Island in Okinawa Prefecture in April 2022.
Tourists in Japan have telemedicine options before calling 119
Foreign tourists at Tsukiji Outer Market in Tokyo. More than 1 million international visitors have a medical issue in Japan every year.
Is Japanese skin really ‘too smooth’ for Hideo Kojima’s games?
Hideo Kojima, the leading auteur in Japanese video games, has skirted controversy in the wake of the release of Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
An emoji used to say it all. Now it might say too much.
Apple’s Craig Federighi shows off a set of emoji at a conference on June 13, 2016. While the small pictures have proved helpful in conveying nuance in our texts, younger people are using them less often.
‘Our ultimate goal is to save every single Japanese video game’
After nearly shuttering earlier this year, the Tokyo-based Game Preservation Society continues its work to save the early history of Japanese gaming.

Podcast

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

Longform

After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan
By Megha Wadhwa

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Ishii Iron Works remakes self for workers, new energy
Ishii Iron Works remakes self for workers, new energy

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