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Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Jan 5, 2021

As pandemic persists, Asia's hot spots simmer on

While the region continues to focus on battling COVID-19, long-running tensions around North Korea, the South China Sea, Taiwan and others have not gone away.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 5, 2021

What is your moral plan for 2021?

Few people when making their New Year's resolutions— just 12%, according to one U.S. study — resolve to become a better person in general, meaning better in a moral sense.
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Jan 5, 2021

Imminent second state of emergency for Tokyo area could lack teeth

Nearly all efforts by Japan's central government to curb the spread of the virus in the nation depend on the voluntary compliance of its people.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 5, 2021

It doesn’t take a dictatorship to defeat COVID-19

We mustn't be seduced by the authoritarian temptation. Defeating COVID-19 will take a collective effort, one that demands leadership and individual responsibility.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 5, 2021

NYSE scraps plan to delist Chinese telecom firms in ‘bizarre’ U-turn

A lack of clarity on why the exchange changed course left investors speculating over whether the move is something with broader geopolitical implications.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
Jan 5, 2021

The battle to modernize Japan

In a country of fax machines and fragmented central administration, Suga's vision of a digital agency looks hard to achieve.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Beyond COVID-19
Jan 5, 2021

A post-COVID labor revival?

As millions of people actively seek work in 2021, many will find that employers increasingly have the upper hand, particularly in the United States.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Beyond COVID-19
Jan 5, 2021

A new ‘Year Zero’

While COVID-19 delivered the final blow, it has been clear for at least two decades that the postwar model is no longer sustainable, environmentally or socially.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 5, 2021

U.S. lawmakers urged to use tunnels over risk from election protests

U.S. President Donald Trump has urged public protests to help pressure lawmakers to reject the Electoral College vote sealing Joe Biden's victory.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Jan 5, 2021

Extreme sports gain legitimacy through Olympic inclusion

The Tokyo Games will feature skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing in an effort to bring more young fans into the Olympic community.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 5, 2021

Why the winners in Georgia runoffs might not be known for days

The future of Democrat President-elect Joe Biden's agenda hinges on two Senate races.
U.S. President Donald Trump is greeted by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney as he arrives at the Group of Seven leaders' summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, on June 16.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 26, 2025

Trump, the death of multilateralism and the ‘rise of the rest’

In the post-liberal order, the U.S. won't act in allies' interests unless they align with its own.
The United Nations Security Council holds a vote during a meeting on the third anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine at the bodies headquarters in New York on Feb. 24.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Jun 26, 2025

Democracy shouldn’t be used as an ideological weapon

The democracy-vs-autocracy framing has widened the divide between democratic countries — “us” — and Russia and its allies — “them.”
The doctoral aid program has recently come under fire from some members of parliament, who point out that nearly 40% of those receiving the support are international students despite the fact the fund aims to foster future human resources in Japan.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 26, 2025

Japan mulls cuts to financial aid for Ph.D. students from abroad

The program, aimed at fostering human resources in Japan, has come under fire amid claims nearly 40% of those receiving the support are international students.
Rescue workers attempt to reach Juliana Marins, a Brazilian national who fell into a ravine on Mount Rinjani, Lombok Island, Indonesia, after going missing on June 21.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 26, 2025

Indonesian rescuers recover body of Brazilian woman who fell from volcano

Several tourists, including foreigners, have died in accidents while hiking Mount Rinjani over the past few years.
Junko Mihara, minister for children-related policies, said at the start of the meeting that "the government will work as one to advance efforts" to tackle sex crimes against children.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 26, 2025

Japan holds first preparatory panel meeting on sex crime background checks

Junko Mihara, minister for children-related policies, said that "the government will work as one to advance efforts" to tackle sex crimes against children.
Regarding news genres that respondents want to avoid, with multiple answers allowed, war and other conflicts were mentioned by 18.9%. "News that is meant to be touching or news that foments anger" was cited by 18%.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 26, 2025

Almost a fifth of people in Japan may avoid news, industry survey suggests

When asked why they avoid news, with multiple answers allowed, 60.8% of those surveyed said it makes them feel depressed and sick.
Huascaran, the highest peak in Peru
JAPAN
Jun 27, 2025

Japanese climber dies on Peru's highest peak

Chiaki Inada, a 40-year-old doctor, became unable to move due to poor health apparently caused by hypothermia.
Human encounters with bears have reached record levels in Japan, with 219 people attacked and six deaths in the 12 months to April 2024.
JAPAN
Jun 26, 2025

Bear roaming runway halts flights at Japanese airport

The black bear appeared at northern Japan's Yamagata Airport early morning, immediately prompting the closure of its runway.
An illustration of a scene from the fourth act of "Aoto Zōshi Hana no Nishiki-e" by Toyokuni Utagawa III (1862).
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 26, 2025

Take your first steps into the world of kabuki with these basic terms

The language of Japanese theater is full of double — even triple — meanings. Knowing the terminology is the first step in understanding it.
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jun 29, 2025

With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining

Want to be an advocate of Japan’s marine health? Look out for sustainably farmed fish the next time you dine at a restaurant.
Thai eatery Orangutan takes over Lou cafe in the evening, replacing casual coffee and cakes with the fiery dishes of Isan cuisine.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jun 29, 2025

Come nightfall in Nakano, Thai eatery Orangutan opens its arms

Named after an ape, the restaurant, which takes over a cafe space in the evening, brings authentic, fiery Isan flavors to Tokyo.
Governments seeking agreements to whittle down country-by-country tariffs U.S. President Donald Trump announced on April 2, and then suspended until July 9, have no idea where additional levies will land.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 27, 2025

Trump’s threat of more tariffs makes U.S. trade partners wary of signing deals

The U.S. might apply levies under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act on a range of foreign-made products in certain industries.
The U.S. dollar was back at multiyear lows against a basket of other major currencies on Thursday, erasing a brief respite provided by safe-haven flows related to Middle East tensions earlier in the week.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 27, 2025

No love for the dollar as markets fret about Fed independence

Respect for independent institutions such as central banks has long been viewed as a key attraction of major economies, helping anchor economic stability.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks in a televised message, after the ceasefire between Iran and Israel, in Tehran on Thursday.
WORLD
Jun 27, 2025

Iran would strike back if attacked, supreme leader says

In his prerecorded remarks, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei promised that Iran would not surrender despite U.S. President Donald Trump's calls.
The Justice Ministry in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward. Takahiro Shiraishi, who was sentenced to death in 2020 for killing nine people in the space of two months, was executed on Friday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 27, 2025

Japan executes ‘Twitter killer’ in first hanging since 2022

Takahiro Shiraishi was on death row for killing nine people he met on social media in 2017.

Longform

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?