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Slovaks will vote on Sept. 30 in a tight election that polls show could deliver an unlikely comeback for Robert Fico.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 25, 2023

Russia may be about to get a new friendly leader in Europe

Slovaks will vote on Sept. 30 in a tight election, and former Prime Minister Robert Fico has tapped into concerns over the fallout from the Ukraine war.
China Coast Guard boats are seen close to a floating barrier near the Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 25, 2023

Philippines to remove barrier placed by Beijing in South China Sea

Manila on Sunday shared images of a floating barrier blocking fishing vessel access in the Scarborough Shoal with China Coast Guard ships nearby.
French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace in Paris on June 12. Macron said on Sunday that France would withdraw its ambassador from Niger, followed by the French military contingent in the coming months.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 26, 2023

West losing sight of Sahel after France announces exit from Niger

France's decision to exit from Niger leaves a large hole in efforts to counter Islamist insurgents and could bolster Russian influence across West Africa.
U.S. President Joe Biden poses for a photograph with Pacific Islands Forum leaders on the South Portico of the White House in Washington on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 26, 2023

Biden seeks to reassure Pacific islands in push to counter China

U.S. President Joe Biden sought to reaffirm Washington’s commitment to the Pacific islands as he again hosted leaders from the region at the White House.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 27, 2023

Ex-LDP member's indictment puts spotlight on green energy goals

A Lower House member and the former president of a major offshore wind-power company were each charged with bribery by Tokyo prosecutors.
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare at U.N. headquarters in New York on Sept. 22
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 28, 2023

Solomons leader says he spurned U.S. summit 'lecture'

The pro-China prime minister severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 2019, unlocking large sums of Beijing aid and investment.
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen attends the launching ceremony of Hai Kun, the island's first domestically built submarine, in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 28, 2023

How Taiwan's new subs could complicate a Chinese invasion

The way in which Taipei deploys what is set to be a fleet of eight new attack submarines will be crucial in its efforts to deter or counter Beijing.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 28, 2023

Japanese universities move up in global rankings

The overall improvement is due to a change in methodology by Times Higher Education.
The cast of Chelfitsch’s play “The Window of Spaceship ‘In-Between’” includes individuals with different levels of Japanese-language proficiency. They participated in workshops hosted by the theater company to promote more inclusivity in Japanese theater.
CULTURE / Stage
Sep 29, 2023

Chelfitsch challenges Japanese theater's language barriers

The theater company questions the status quo of the Japanese stage by casting non-native speakers in new project, 'The Window of Spaceship "In-Between."'
The yen's slide to the cusp of ¥150 per dollar has put investors on high alert for the risk of intervention.
BUSINESS / Markets
Sep 29, 2023

Yen intervention a hard sell even as 'red line' beckons

To make even a ripple in the $5 trillion currency market, the BOJ would need to draw down massive amounts of dollar reserves.
JAPAN
Sep 29, 2023

Charges dropped again over death of detained Sri Lankan woman

The decision by the Nagoya District Prosecutor's Office effectively ends its probe into the case of Ratnayake Liyanage Wishma Sandamali.
Look for tempeh in health food stores or online from Japanese producers.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 1, 2023

Recipe: Damascene tempeh kebab

Firmer than tofu, tempeh often works better as a direct substitution for both meat and nuts.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attends a news conference after his Cabinet reshuffle in Tokyo on Sept. 13.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 2, 2023

Late fall emerges as possible timing for snap election in Japan

A decision on a snap poll could be determined by debate over an economic stimulus package and a supplementary budget bill to pay for it.
Visitors stand in front of a giant screen displaying a map of locations around Taiwan where the Chinese People's Liberation Army conducted military exercises in August 2022, at an exhibition in Beijing in October last year.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Oct 3, 2023

As invasion fears rise, China hones Taiwan blockade strategy

China’s increasingly frequent exercises around Taiwan indicate that Beijing is refining a strategy to isolate the island.
A 93-year-old at his office in Tokyo solves ancient math problems in Egyptian numbers to keep his mind sharp.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 3, 2023

Japan prepares national project to deal with dementia

About 9.53 million people, or 1 in 4 elderly people, are predicted to have dementia in 2040.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 4, 2023

Yen rebounds from ¥150 to dollar as Japan mum on intervention

The yen quickly strengthened to ¥147.30 against the dollar, with its swift recovery sparking chatter that a quiet intervention had occurred.
Akira Otsuka (left) and Miki Tamaki formed the performing arts troupe DamaDamTal in 2016. They have performed in every edition of the Nakanojo Biennale in Gunma Prefecture since 2017 and credit the festival as a source of inspiration for new productions.
CULTURE / Stage
Oct 4, 2023

DamaDamTal turns abstract dreams into visual art

The Japanese performing arts troupe led by Miki Tamaki and Akira Otsuka gets creative in the mountains of rural Gunma Prefecture at Nakanojo Biennale.
Sosuke Ikematsu plays two pianists — or is it just one? — pursuing dreams of becoming a jazz musician in late-1980s Tokyo in “Between the White and Black Keys.”
CULTURE / Film
Oct 5, 2023

'Between the White and Black Keys': Offbeat biopic will have you seeing double

Masanori Tominaga’s free-spirited film about jazz pianist Hiroshi Minami captures the vibe of 1980s Tokyo nightlife but remains mostly on the surface.
A reporter raises their hand during a Johnny & Associates news conference on Monday. Journalists were limited to a “one question per company” at the event.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 4, 2023

Johnny’s news conference had journalist ‘blacklist,' reports say

Johnny & Associates has said it never made a request that specific journalists be passed over for questions.
Over four days in September, Japan Soca Weekend brought together the Tokyo area's Caribbean community for dance parties, outdoor blowouts and a crowning Carnival festival on a racetrack in Chiba.
COMMUNITY / Issues
Oct 10, 2023

‘Peak happiness’ at the first Japan Caribbean Carnival

For Japan’s Caribbean community, Carnival provides a deep sense of community and offers a cure for homesickness.
A China Coast Guard ship blocks the direction of a Philippine Coast Guard ship conducting a resupply mission for Filipino troops stationed at a grounded warship in the South China Sea on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Oct 7, 2023

Chinese and Philippine coast guard ships come within meter of colliding

The close call came Wednesday near Second Thomas Shoal, about 200 kilometers off the Philippine coast, as Manila was carrying out a resupply mission.
People standing on a rooftop watch as a ball of fire and smoke rises above a building in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, on Saturday during an Israeli airstrike.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 8, 2023

Israel battles Hamas as PM warns of 'long and difficult war'

Israel said tens of thousands of soldiers were deployed to fight militants and rescue hostages, and then evacuate the entire region within 24 hours.
Palestinian youth near a car that was burned after it had been seized in Israeli territory and brought back to Jabalia, one of the northernmost settlements in the Gaza Strip, on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Oct 8, 2023

An attack from Gaza and an Israeli declaration of war. Now what?

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is being pressured to launch a full-scale invasion that Israeli leaders have been scrupulously avoiding since 2005.
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting near Moscow on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Oct 8, 2023

On Russian nuclear threat, Putin lets others rattle the saber

While hard-liners voice provocative proposals about nukes, Putin presents himself as a moderating force — while never taking the option off the table.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 10, 2023

Hokkaido lawmaker leaves Nippon Ishin over visit to Russia

Calls from within the party to punish Suzuki had been growing, especially after he told Russian media he was sure Moscow would win its war with Ukraine.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 11, 2023

Japan to revitalize forestry industry to counter hay fever

“We will aim to resolve hay fever, which is a social issue, and revitalize local communities through the promotion of forestry,” Kishida said.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 12, 2023

Sota Fujii becomes first player to win all eight major shogi titles

The 21-year-old took the Oza crown, having won Game 4 to finish the best-of-five match against 31-year-old Takuya Nagase.
The government will ask the Tokyo District Court to revoke the religious corporation status of the Unification Church.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 12, 2023

Government seeks court order revoking Unification Church’s status

If the request is approved, the group would forfeit its religious corporation status along with the associated tax benefits.
Ground Self-Defense Force members take part in a military review in Asaka, Saitama Prefecture, in October 2018.
JAPAN
Oct 15, 2023

'Not proud at all': Japan struggles to recruit for Self-Defense Forces

Experts have said that the country's armed forces could be weakened because of a lack of personnel.
An official speaks during a government-sponsored tour of the 2025 Osaka Expo site on Yumeshima island, Osaka, on Sept. 14.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 12, 2023

As 2025 Osaka Expo nears, foreign pavilion woes continue to mount

Over 50 countries had been expected to design and build their own pavilions. So far, only two have been greenlighted by Osaka city to begin construction.

Longform

Dangami House is a 180-year-old former samurai residence of the Kato clan, who ruled over Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, until the Meiji Restoration.
A house, a legacy and the quiet work of restoration in rural Japan