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Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 16, 2014

U.N. finds fear-mongering in Ukraine by speakers of Russian

Ethnic Russians in eastern Ukraine have falsely claimed to be under assault to justify Russian intervention, the U.N. human rights office said Tuesday as it warned that such propaganda could affect Ukraine's presidential election next month.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 16, 2014

Saudis sack architect of Syria policy

Saudi Arabian intelligence chief Prince Bandar bin Sultan, the architect of Riyadh's attempts to bring down Syrian President Bashar Assad, has been removed from his post, state media reported on Tuesday. His departure, months after he was quoted warning of a "major shift" from the United States over...
WORLD / Politics
Apr 15, 2014

Kiev's grip loosening on restive eastern regions

Staff working for Serhiy Taruta, the steel baron appointed by Kiev as governor of the restive Donetsk region, say he is hard at work in the regional capital, but cannot disclose where, exactly, for security reasons.
WORLD
Apr 15, 2014

Xi pushes for greater military use of space

In what state media Tuesday called a response to the increasing military use of space by the United States and others, President Xi Jinping urged the air force to adopt an integrated air and space defense capability.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 14, 2014

In test of post-Fukushima policy, town rallies for restart of reactors

For residents of Satsumasendai, their old nuclear plant jobs take priority over a quake they never felt and an atomic disaster they never had to deal with.
JAPAN
Apr 14, 2014

112,000 chickens culled at Kumamoto Farms in bid to curb bird flu outbreak

Racing to contain an avian flu outbreak, about 400 workers culled 112,000 birds at two Kumamoto chicken farms from Sunday night through Monday.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 13, 2014

Nevada rancher claims victory in standoff with U.S. government

U.S. officials ended a standoff with hundreds of armed protesters in the Nevada desert Saturday, calling off the government's roundup of cattle it said were illegally grazing on federal land and giving about 300 animals back to the rancher who owned them.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 12, 2014

Gloves off as India's BJP woos Hindu vote

India's main opposition party, tipped to form the next government, appears to be returning to its Hindu nationalist roots at the start of a five-week general election, raking up divisive issues and using strong language in an area hit by religious riots.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Apr 12, 2014

Tokyo underground: taking property development to new depths

With demand for commercial and residential space increasing on the surface of Tokyo, developers are exploring new ways to utilize space underground.
Japan Times
WORLD / Society
Apr 12, 2014

Pope asks forgiveness for 'evil' of child abuse by priests

Pope Francis on Friday made his first public plea for forgiveness for the "evil" committed by priests who molested children, using some of his strongest words yet on the Roman Catholic Church's crisis over sexual abuse.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 11, 2014

Stiffer juvenile law enacted

The Diet enacts a controversial law to stiffen punishment for juvenile offenders, including longer prison terms of up to 20 years for serious offenses.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Apr 11, 2014

Prominent Chinese activist scorns court after prison term upheld

A prominent Chinese rights activist expressed defiance on Friday after a court upheld his four-year jail sentence, saying the pall of communism and dictatorship would eventually give way to freedom and justice.
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 11, 2014

China 'guardian angels' protect docs

Beijing is taking a novel approach to protecting doctors from growing violence from patients: volunteer "guardian angels."
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / HIT AND RUN
Apr 11, 2014

Ongoing ball issues disturbing for NPB, Mizuno

One has to wonder if former NPB commissioner Ryozo Kato cracked a smile when he opened his newspaper Friday morning and saw that there are more questions surrounding the official NPB ball, knowing that this time, he's far away from the fray.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 11, 2014

Hungary: European Union's only dictatorship?

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor, whose party just won an overwhelming parliamentary victory at the polls, is living proof that EU membership is not an effective antidote to authoritarianism.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 11, 2014

Controlling the mosquito menace

Given the degree of suffering caused by mosquito-borne diseases, government leaders must not subject genetic-engineering solutions for controlling them to the same kinds of political and populist headwinds that have impeded the approval of genetically engineered agricultural products.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 11, 2014

U.S. accuses Russia after Putin warning on gas supplies to Europe

President Vladimir Putin warned on Thursday that Russian gas supplies to Europe could be disrupted if Moscow cuts the flow to Ukraine over unpaid bills, drawing a U.S. accusation that it is using energy "as a tool of coercion."
BUSINESS
Apr 10, 2014

Tokyo TPP talks end in stalemate

Two days of trade talks on the Trans-Pacific Partnership fail to narrow U.S. and Japanese differences on the pact, casting a shadow over the upcoming summit.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 10, 2014

Docomo rejiggers pricing schemes to counter free phone apps

NTT Docomo unveils a new subscription plan including unlimited domestic calling and data sharing for smartphone users to reposition itself in the crowded mobile market.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 10, 2014

Flamboyant descent into the heart of darkness

He's been on the road promoting his film for about a year now, but that doesn't mean Joshua Oppenheimer is any less passionate about his Oscar-nominated documentary, "The Act of Killing." Ask the Texas-born, Denmark-residing director a question about his work and it may be a good 10 minutes before he...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 9, 2014

Energy plan fails to set targets for renewables

The government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's final version of a draft energy report reinforces the role of nuclear power in the country's future, but falls short of setting specific goals for renewable energy use.
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Apr 9, 2014

Foreign workers fear exploitation as Olympic projects gather steam

My first Labor Pains column of the new fiscal year will look at the government's recent proposal for bringing in foreign workers.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past