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Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 24, 2022

Is Wimbledon’s ban on Russians a double fault?

Banning players from Russia and Belarus does more to preserve the tennis tournament as a politics-free zone than support Ukraine's war effort.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 22, 2022

Rape: The war crime that goes mostly unpunished

What's happening in Ukraine is one of the worst large-scale campaigns of sexual violence in war since Islamic State's attacks on the Yezidi minority in Iraq in 2014.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 21, 2022

Macron cements French presidential frontrunner status with combative debate performance

Although Le Pen came across as more polished and composed than in a TV duel for the presidency in 2017, Macron went on the offensive over her ties to Russian leadership.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 21, 2022

Macron says Le Pen risks ‘civil war’ in France over Muslim veils

Le Pen said Macron's economic policies had been a disappointment and referred to herself as the 'spokeswoman of the French people.'
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 21, 2022

Yoshiki: Our focus should be on the environment and eradicating poverty, not destroying Ukrainian cities

The X Japan rock star, who recently donated u00a510 million toward humanitarian aid in Ukraine, touts the importance of speaking out publicly about supporting people in need of help.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 20, 2022

Four things to look out for in France's Macron-Le Pen debate

Macron's ability to connect with working-class voters and Le Pen's ties to Russia are likely to be focal points of the debate.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 19, 2022

In praise of sporting perfection in baseball — and then some

Roki Sasaki's April 10 showing earned him a place in the history books. But even more astounding is this: In his very next start, he threw another eight perfect innings
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 19, 2022

Australia begins long road to retraining coal workers for clean energy roles

Clean energy could create more than 38 million jobs worldwide and meeting that demand requires accelerating efforts to retrain the workforce.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 19, 2022

China's Xi sticks with COVID stance despite anger and economic headwinds

Xi's high-profile reiteration of the policy reflects a political imperative not to reverse course and look weak in a year in which he needs to appear strong, analysts said.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 18, 2022

Russian teacher rejected Kremlin propaganda, then paid the price

Days after Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, Andrei Shestakov opened a set of files that contained instructions on how to teach the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 18, 2022

South Korea's bewildering stance on the Ukraine conflict

Elevating economics and trade over politics like Seoul has done with the Ukraine invasion will haunt it — especially with China, which has long used economic leverage as a policy weapon.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Apr 18, 2022

China’s bid to wage cognitive warfare over democracy and human rights

The Xi administration is attaching particular importance to redefining democracy and human rights, and other countries are getting behind it.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 17, 2022

The elusive politics of Elon Musk

Musk, 50, who was born in South Africa and only became an American citizen in 2002, expresses views that don't fit neatly into America's binary, left-right political framework.
Japan Times
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Apr 16, 2022

Jerusalem clashes raise fears of wider conflict

At least 152 Palestinians were wounded when Israeli riot police entered the Al-Aqsa mosque compound on Friday to disperse Palestinians who threw firecrackers and stones at them.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 15, 2022

Hiding in plain sight, a Soviet-era air defense system arrives in Ukraine

Slovakia is transporting not only weapons from its own stocks into Ukraine. It is also sending military aid from many other countries.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 15, 2022

War brings new Iron Curtain down on Russia’s storied ballet stages

Ballet in Russia is something of a national pastime — a cultural jewel, but also the focus of intense emotion and close scrutiny by its discerning audiences.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 15, 2022

Why Elon Musk's Warren Buffett-like playbook won't work on Twitter

Musk's bid has been deemed too low by the market and too thin on financing details.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 15, 2022

Getting to know Japanese castles and picking out your favorites

The warmer weather has arrived and that provides a great opportunity to get out to some of Japan's many historical sites, starting with its castles.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 14, 2022

Ukraine war pushes Germans to change. They are wavering.

Few in Germany believed Putin would invade a sovereign European country, but the war has set off a cycle of soul-searching — and re-evaluating ties to Russia.
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Apr 14, 2022

Japan at crossroads as stage set for dramatic rethink of defense policy

While a push by Abe to dispel taboos over nuclear weapons is unlikely to come to fruition, he may have laid the foundation for a change to Japan's defense-oriented security strategy.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 13, 2022

'Air worse than Beijing' isn't much of an insult anymore

China's progress in reducing pollution in its capital city justifies a little environmental optimism, if only the world would catch up.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 13, 2022

Australia sends a $7.5 billion cyber signal to China

The target of Canberra's new cybersecurity budget is clear, namely China — and it's also a savvy way to boost the nation's defenses.
Japan Times
WORLD / FOCUS
Apr 13, 2022

Johnson likely to survive party scandal as Tory lawmakers shrug off fine

Johnson's disregard for normal politics has been popular, helping him shrug off a slew of scandals throughout his career.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 11, 2022

We need better COVID-19 booster shots, not more of the same

There are 100 new Covid vaccines in development. One of them could offer better protection against omicron.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 9, 2022

Ukraine demands tough global response to train station strike that killed dozens

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the strike in Kramatorsk in the eastern region of Donetsk a deliberate attack on civilians.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 8, 2022

Confronting AI’s potential to create new chemical weapons

Although the immediate danger seems minimal, efforts are needed to safeguard machine-learning models used in chemical and drug discovery.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 8, 2022

Singapore and Malaysia reunite, if only for cake

People can finally move freely across the Singapore-Malaysia border. Rather than a big surge in spending, they're enjoying the small stuff with their families.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 6, 2022

With Japan still shut to travelers, it is out of sight and out of mind

Once a tourist hot spot before the COVID-19 pandemic, Japan should join Asian neighbors in relaxing its border entry rules, lest it fade even further from global consciousness.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 6, 2022

Elon Musk’s Twitter investment could be bad news for free speech

Musk posted on Twitter, 'Given that Twitter serves as the de facto public town square, failing to adhere to free speech principles fundamentally undermines democracy. What should be done?”

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