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U.S. President Donald Trump meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas, in Panmunjom, South Korea, in June 2019.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 1, 2025

Trump says his administration is in 'communication' with North Korea's Kim

“There is communication,” the U.S. president told reporters at the White House when asked if he would once again engage with the North Korean strongman.
As the 80th anniversary of the end of the Pacific War approaches, the U.S.-Japan alliance faces a new turning point, with both Japan Society and the International House of Japan ready to play crucial roles in strengthening cultural and diplomatic ties amid global geopolitical shifts.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 6, 2025

How the U.S. and Japan can keep partnering for the future

Today, we are at another turning point. The world confronts another major season of geopolitical changes — not seen since the 1950s or the 1920s.
Kwai Chung container ports in Hong Kong earlier this month
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 7, 2025

East Asia tries a mix of measures to counter U.S. tariffs as markets suffer

U.S. President Donald Trump last week announced a raft of tariffs, with almost every country affected.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba attends a joint press conference with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington on Feb. 7.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 7, 2025

Japan responds to Trump's tariffs with a polite phone call and request

The call was the first interaction between the two leaders since the U.S. president rolled out new tariffs targeting almost every country on the planet.
Donald Trump’s complaints about Japan’s auto market are based on misconceptions, as Japan has not imposed car tariffs since 1978 and American cars fail to meet local preferences.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 8, 2025

The Japan tariff myth that just won’t die

The belief that unfair trade practices are at fault isn’t only false, but also one of those enduring myths that refuses to die.
The Virginia-class fast attack submarine USS Minnesota off the coast of Western Australia in March
WORLD / Politics
Apr 10, 2025

AUKUS nuclear submarine sale under scrutiny as U.S. tariffs shake Australia

Disappointment that defense ties didn't win Australia exemptions from the U.S. tariffs has put the program under unprecedented public scrutiny.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba at the White House in February
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 11, 2025

Trump calls U.S.-Japan alliance ‘one-sided’ as nations prepare for tariff talks

The U.S. president's remarks rekindled fears that he might use the talks to ask Tokyo to pay more for hosting troops, buy more weapons or further boost defense spending.
Ryosei Akazawa (third from right), Japan's tariffs negotiator, in a meeting with U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent (second from right) and other senior government officials on Wednesday in Washington
BUSINESS
Apr 18, 2025

Trump reiterates opposition to Nippon Steel’s purchase of U.S. Steel

Whether there is interplay between the tariff negotiations and the Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel deal has never been made clear.
U.S. military personnel join Japanese officials and residents for a one-off joint nighttime patrol on the streets of the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, late Friday in the first such joint operation since 1973, following sexual assault cases involving U.S. servicemen.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 19, 2025

Japan and U.S. patrol Okinawa streets after sexual assaults

In the first such joint operation since 1973, participants walked along a downtown street dotted with restaurants, bars and clubs near a U.S. airbase.
The U.S., U.K. and Europe are aligning with China and Russia in their efforts to undermine the encryption tools that millions of internet users depend on.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 23, 2025

Don't let governments break encryption

To convince the public that breaking encryption is necessary, governments often rely on technical jargon and emotionally charged anecdotes.
Stephen Dacus, incoming chief executive officer of Seven & I Holdings, speaks during an interview at the company's headquarters in Tokyo on Friday. Dacus plans to boost investments in its U.S. stores using cash from a planned listing of its American retail operations.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 25, 2025

Seven & I’s new CEO plans aggressive investments in U.S. stores

In addition to investing in its North America operations, Stephen Dacus is also looking to review the company’s supply chain globally.
As Japan gears up for the trade talks, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is also seeking to cushion the blow that the U.S. tariffs may have on the domestic economy.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 26, 2025

Japan to resist Trump efforts to form trade bloc against China

Any demands from Washington on Tokyo to downgrade its economic relationship with China would potentially deal Japan a major economic blow.
China's Bayan Obo rare earth mine in Inner Mongolia. As U.S.-China tensions strain critical mineral supply chains, Tokyo’s multipronged approach based on sovereignty, resilience and sustainability is gaining quiet relevance.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 5, 2025

Japan's resource security path may hold answers to trade turmoil

Critical mineral supply chains are made vulnerable by China's dominance and U.S. protectionism. Japan's strategy may provide clues as to how to secure these vital resources.
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan’s top tariff negotiator, speaks to the press on Friday. Japan and the United States are still discussing what to negotiate.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 9, 2025

Japan stuck at starting line in tariff talks with U.S. as U.K. inks deals

The U.S. has warned that comparing Japan with the U.K. was apples and oranges, and that getting over the line with many countries will be a slow and arduous process.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent takes questions at the White House on April 29. Bessent, a former hedge fund manager, is leading trade talks with China in Geneva.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 11, 2025

U.S. and China conclude first day of talks in bid to ease trade war

U.S. President Donald Trump said negotiators had "a very good meeting” on their first day of an effort to deescalate the rivals' trade war.
Philippine Army Brig. Gen. Michael Logico, who was involved in managing the latest iteration of the Balikatan U.S.-Philippine drills, told The Japan Times that he expects military ties with Japan to surge even further once Tokyo ratifies a key visiting-forces agreement with Manila.
JAPAN
May 12, 2025

Japan set for bigger role in Philippines after SDF’s debut in key drills

A top Philippine general has said he expects the Self-Defense Forces’ involvement in both bilateral and multilateral activities to grow substantially.
Then-Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping visits a school in South Gate, California, in February 2012. Experts say Xi won big in his standoff with U.S. President Donald Trump.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
May 13, 2025

Xi defiance pays off as Trump meets most China trade demands

Going forward, experts say, this will make the Chinese side confident that they have leverage over the U.S. in any negotiations.
A RAV4 model in 2018. The latest generation of the compact crossover available later this year comes equipped with a standard or plug-in hybrid powertrain, dropping the gas-powered option that makes up the bulk of current sales in the U.S.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 21, 2025

Toyota takes all-hybrid plunge with its bestselling U.S. vehicle

Toyota has long been skeptical of the industry push to go all-in on fully electric vehicles, opting instead for a multipronged approach.
Nippon Steel Vice Chairman Takahiro Mori speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Monday.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 21, 2025

Nippon Steel says it is confident Trump's buyout concerns have been addressed

Wednesday is the deadline for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to review Nippon Steel's acquisition plan again.
A Ukrainian serviceman fires a howitzer toward Russian troops, at a position on a front line near the town of Kupiansk, in the Kharkiv region, Ukraine, on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
May 29, 2025

Trump again criticizes Putin as Ukraine war heats up

But Trump also said he was not yet prepared to impose new sanctions on Russia because he did not want the penalties to scuttle a potential peace deal.
U.S. President Donald Trump at the U.S. Steel Corporation Irvin Works facility in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, on Friday
BUSINESS / Companies
May 31, 2025

Trump to hike steel tariffs to 50% to aid Nippon-U.S. Steel

The U.S. president said the move would help protect American steelworkers during a visit to a United States Steel plant on Friday.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks at the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit in Singapore on Saturday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 31, 2025

Hegseth warns of Chinese threat to Taiwan, urging allies to upgrade defenses

In a speech to regional defense officials, U.S. defense chief Pete Hegseth also sought to ease concerns among those skeptical of America’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific.
The city of Naha in Okinawa Prefecture. The Naha District Court is scheduled to hand down a ruling on June 24 for a sexual assault case involving a U.S. Marine.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 9, 2025

Ten-year sentence sought for U.S. marine in Okinawa for sexual assault

The court is scheduled to hand down a ruling on June 24.
U.S. President Donald Trump (left) speaks with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba at the Group of Seven summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 17, 2025

No breakthrough on tariffs at Ishiba-Trump meeting in Canada

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and U.S. President Donald Trump met for 30 minutes on Monday during the annual Group of Seven gathering in Alberta.
Smoke billows from an explosion at the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) building in Tehran on Monday after it was struck in an Israeli attack.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 17, 2025

Israel and Iran trade blows as air war rages into fifth day

The Israeli military said Tuesday it had killed Iran's top military commander — a close confidant of the country's supreme leader — amid rising fears of a wider conflict.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to reporters after holding talks with U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday on the sidelines of the Group of Seven leaders' summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 18, 2025

Trump calls Japan 'tough' trade negotiator and complains EU not being fair

U.S. President Donald Trump also said there was still a chance of a trade deal between Washington and Japan.
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth review an honor guard during a welcome ceremony at the Ministry of Defense in Tokyo on March 30.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 21, 2025

Japan scraps ‘two-plus-two’ meeting with U.S. over defense spending demand, report says

The talks’ cancellation reportedly came after the U.S. asked Japan to hike its defense budget to 3.5% of gross domestic product.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the press as workers install a large flag pole on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jun 21, 2025

Deal, not bombs, seen as only way to end Iranian nuclear threat

For U.S. President Donald Trump, a deal would avoid dragging the U.S. into another regional war or driving up inflation-generating oil prices.
A B-2 stealth bomber flies over the Washington Monument at the National Mall, during Independence Day celebrations in Washington on July 4, 2020.
WORLD / FOCUS
Jun 22, 2025

U.S. B-2 bombers and 'bunker-busters' used in Iran strike

The U.S. Air Force's B-2 stealth bombers were involved in strikes on Iran's nuclear sites on Saturday.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 2, 2025

Trump doubles down on Japan again by threatening 35% tariff

Japan is currently subject to 25% auto tariffs and a 50% tariff on steel and aluminum, as well as a 10% reciprocal tariff that could return to 24% if no deal is struck by July 9.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji