Search - politics

 
 
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jun 24, 2019

Beginning of the end? Turkey's opposition deals blow to Erdogan with Istanbul mayoral win

Turkey's opposition has dealt President Recep Tayyip Erdogan a stinging blow by winning control of Istanbul in a rerun of its mayoral election, breaking his aura of invincibility and delivering a message from voters unhappy over his policies.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 17, 2019

Is U.S. attention on the Mideast yet again?

Tokyo should strive to not let U.S. policymakers' strategic attention be diverted from East Asia to the Middle East yet again.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 13, 2019

The Senkaku issue as seen from the Falklands War

Are Japan's politicians are up to the test if the Senkaku Islands were seized?
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 11, 2019

'An unnatural intimacy'

Just as in the prewar and postwar periods, the vital question with regard to the future of U.S.-Japan relations is that of how to confront and manage relations with China.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 6, 2019

Today's U.S.-China clash began at Tiananmen Square

Ever since the massacre, Beijing has pushed authoritarianism at home and abroad.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 5, 2019

Religion, intolerance and political blowback

Identity politics is reshaping electoral contests as cultural nationalists push back against the perceived excesses of social progressives.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 4, 2019

No wonder Trump loves Brexit

The U.S. wants to move the U.K. away from the EU's set of trade rules and regulations and toward its own.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jun 4, 2019

Trump, pomp and circumstance: U.K. royals fete U.S. president after tweets targeted at London mayor

Britain rolled out the royal red carpet for Donald Trump on Monday, with Queen Elizabeth leading the pomp and pageantry in honor of the U.S. president whose interventions into London's political crises threatened to overshadow the visit.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jun 3, 2019

Thousands of Hungarians protest government plan to overhaul top academic body

Hungarians took to the streets of central Budapest on Sunday to protest plans to overhaul the country's leading scientific research body, which they see as part of a wider government attempt to curb academic freedom.
Japan Times
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
May 29, 2019

Trump's basho visit boosts sumo's reputation overseas

U.S. President Donald Trump's attendance at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament, and presentation of a large trophy to its winner, made headlines around the globe.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 28, 2019

Britain's great Brexit divide is getting deeper

Both big political parties lost the European elections and are faced with existential decisions about where they stand on Europe.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
May 24, 2019

Deadly Jakarta riots revive specter of religion-fueled violence in Indonesia

Indonesia's capital, Jakarta, was eerily calm on Thursday morning after two nights of deadly clashes between protesters and police that left seven dead and hundreds injured.
Reader Mail
May 17, 2019

Remove barriers for non-Japanese

According to the article "Foreign-born candidates discuss challenges and prejudice on the Tokyo campaign trail" in the April 26 edition, it still seems to be difficult for foreign people in Japan to have their voices heard. Some foreign-born candidates are faced with discrimination while others have...
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 17, 2019

Australian 'larrikin' ex-Prime Minister Bob Hawke dies at 89

Bob Hawke, a transformative and charismatic left-wing lawmaker with a "larrikin' streak who served as Australian prime minister from 1983 to 1991, died on Thursday aged 89, his family said.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 13, 2019

In midterm vote, Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte set to gain allies and shut out critics

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte says he hasn't lost an election in his three-decade political career. He's hoping his candidates for the midterm vote on Monday will continue that winning streak as voters assess his three years in office.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 26, 2019

Goldman Sachs strategist says Japan is still holding back talented women, 20 years after upbeat report

Working women are playing a bigger role in Japan than Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s Kathy Matsui thought possible when she penned her first report on womenomics in 1999. Yet the country needs to pick up the pace of change or risk being overtaken by a demographic crisis.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 25, 2019

Scotland will prepare for a second independence vote regardless of U.K. nod: Nicola Sturgeon

Scotland will start preparing for an independence referendum before May 2021 without permission from London, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Wednesday.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 21, 2019

The roots of right-wing dominance in Israel

There are important structural reasons for Likud's durability in power, and a strong economy is just the start.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Apr 20, 2019

'Japan' by Jeff Kingston: Taking stock of a country in a time of transition and change

Jeff Kingston's 'Japan' is a concise, highly readable overview of Japan's political evolution from 1945 to the present, observed from an overarching historical perspective.
EDITORIALS
Apr 12, 2019

Netanyahu wins again, but victory may be bitter

All concerned governments must now brace for increased violence as Palestinians give vent to the despair that they feel in the wake of Netanyahu's re-election.
JAPAN / YEN FOR LIVING
Apr 12, 2019

Is a lack of money behind Japan's drought of local political candidates?

In an Asahi Shimbun editorial published March 30, a week before nationwide elections were held for prefectural and municipal assemblies on April 7, the newspaper fretted about the state of local politics.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 11, 2019

Blundering minister's downfall reignites criticism of Japan's seniority-based Cabinet decisions

Yoshitaka Sakurada has repeatedly made headlines by making gaffes that have significantly damaged the reputation of Abe's administration.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 10, 2019

U.S.-China 'Cold War' narrative is misleading

Misreading Chinese public opinion and U.S. intentions is one of the most classic mistakes that Japan tends to make.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 8, 2019

Trudeau licks wounds and tries to change channel on SNC-Lavalin scandal

Justin Trudeau is trying to move on after the most bruising two months of his time in office — but the damage may already be done.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 1, 2019

Thai king's rebuke of Thaksin points to junta-backed regime taking office

Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn issued a rare rebuke of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra about a week after an inconclusive national election, making it more likely that a pro-military party would form a government.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 26, 2019

In Thai poll mess, allies of tycoon Thaksin Shinawatra race coup-prone generals to secure majority

Thailand's first election since the 2014 coup was always going to be messy. But it's turning out to be even more chaotic than many observers expected, setting the stage for renewed tumult after five years of military rule.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 25, 2019

A more skeptical U.S. Supreme Court to hear redistricting challenge

Last year, proponents of limiting partisan politics in the creation of electoral districts needed to win over Justice Anthony Kennedy. They couldn't.
EDITORIALS
Mar 25, 2019

Trump shakes up the Middle East once again

The U.S. president's announcement last week endorsing Israel's claim to the Golan Heights is another contribution to the erosion of international law.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years