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October 27, 2025
 

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The Lhasa River, a major tributary of the Yarlung Zangbo River, flows near the southern part of the Tibetan capital, Lhasa. China’s new megadam project could become a geopolitical and ecological time bomb. Getty Images
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 29, 2025

The global perils of China’s new ‘superdam’ project

One might have expected the revelation of China's huge dam project to set off alarm bells worldwide. Instead, the reaction has been muted.
China’s demographic spiral is now resembling that of ancient Rome, where changing social norms and drastic population-control measures led to falling birth rates and irreversible decline.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 9, 2025

What ancient Rome can teach China about demographic collapse

China’s situation, however, is particularly perilous. Unless it is reversed, a demographic decline of this magnitude could recall the collapse of the Roman Empire.
A McDonald’s Japan Pokemon card promotion triggered scalper frenzy, upset children and forced the company to rethink its Happy Set campaigns.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 28, 2025

McDonald’s 'Pokemon' frenzy shows the collecting boom’s dark side

After a "Pokemon" trading card promotion went disastrously wrong, it’s been rebuked by the Consumer Affairs Agency and is rethinking future campaigns.
Voters look at posters of candidates for an Upper House election outside a polling station in Tokyo on July 20. The young abandoned the ruling Liberal Democratic Party for other conservative and newer parties in the recent poll. REUTERS
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 31, 2025

What is a ‘Japanese conservative’ in this day and age?

My view is that younger voters saw the LDP as a group of elderly, self-absorbed elitists who were out of touch with the issues that mattered to them.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is pushing back against U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to deploy National Guard troops in Chicago, calling them unconstitutional and illegal, and emphasizing that policing should remain under local control.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 28, 2025

Can Illinois’ governor keep the National Guard out of Chicago?

"Don’t come to Chicago,” JB Pritzker warned. "You are neither wanted here nor needed here.” Should Trump take action, he said, "we’ll see you in court.”
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping attend the BRICS Summit plenary session in Kazan, Russia, on Oct. 23.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 2, 2025

Realism and realpolitik rule Indian foreign policy

A decade from now, there is likely to be heated debate in the United States over “who lost India,” an accounting that may rival the “who lost China?”
Protesters wave a pirate flag from the Japanese anime "One Piece," an internet trend used to criticize government policies, during a demonstration in front of the Bali police station in Denpasar, Indonesia, on Saturday.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 2, 2025

Indonesia’s protests may fade. The fury won’t.

Politicians and business tycoons from the previous era still have clout, through dynastic parties, family owned businesses and patronage networks.
Structural issues — including population decline, job shortages and an insufficient social-safety net — are hampering China's consumption and demand.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Sep 3, 2025

The fissures beneath China’s positive GDP numbers

Despite positive Chinese growth, the world’s second largest economy is plagued by a prolonged real-estate crisis and persistently high unemployment rates.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi meet on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Tianjin, China, on Monday. The meeting exposed a central tension in New Delhi’s foreign policy: a desire not to be tied down.
COMMENTARY
Sep 3, 2025

India’s diplomatic dance: Cosmetic rapprochement and an enduring rivalry

India’s moves at the SCO were neither a tilt toward Beijing nor a retreat from the West.
China’s parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, attended by dictatorial leaders like Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, highlights Beijing’s attempts to rewrite history and promote an alternative authoritarian order.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 3, 2025

The disturbing message behind China’s ‘grand parade’

This international gathering in the Chinese capital's Tiananmen Square illuminated what might be termed the “Beijing Consensus” in its starkest form.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba meets with his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, in Tokyo on Friday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 3, 2025

Can India and Japan deliver on their energy agenda?

As geopolitics in the Indo-Pacific shifts, energy has become central to how India and Japan define their partnership.
Many Bangladeshis hoped that the overthrow of long-time leader Sheikh Hasina last year would revitalize the country’s democracy after an authoritarian lurch under the “iron lady.” Instead it has led to proliferating human-rights abuses, intensifying repression and widespread Islamist violence.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 3, 2025

Bangladesh is a South Asian time bomb

Many had hoped that Hasina’s ouster would open the way for Bangladesh to transition to democracy following an authoritarian lurch under the “iron lady.”
While markets clearly reflect the belief that the United States is ahead in the AI arms race, early leadership does not mean victory — especially when it comes to innovation.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 4, 2025

Who’s winning the U.S.-China artificial intelligence race?

The winner will most likely be the country that provides greater support for basic research, in which case China is better positioned for the long haul.
AI can amplify the long-known ability to implant false memories, with new MIT and University of California, Irvine, research showing that chatbots, misleading summaries and altered images or videos can distort what people recall.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 4, 2025

AI doesn’t just lie — it can make you believe it

Memory manipulation, notes Pat Pataranutaporn, a researcher with the MIT Media Lab, is a very different process from fooling people with deep-fakes.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama attend the LDP’s plenary meeting in Tokyo on Aug. 8. Once dominant, the ruling party is now struggling to maintain control amid calls for Ishiba to step down.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 4, 2025

Dragging on the LDP’s political drama does little for Japan

From dominance to doubt, the ruling party struggles to maintain control.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping attends a military parade in Beijing on Wednesday to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 4, 2025

China’s military parade shows who’s calling the shots

Beijing is sending a signal on defense modernization and international clout.
East Asia’s fertility plunge is driven not just by financial costs but by perfectionist cultural expectations that burden parents with intense educational and social demands.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 5, 2025

‘Confugenics’ and East Asia's demographic crisis

The numbers are staggering when you dig into them. Parents in Japan covered half of higher education costs in 2024 — more than double the OECD average.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un view a military parade in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square on Wednesday, marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 4, 2025

Divide the dictators, President Trump — don’t unite them

Xi's objectives here are clear: first, to elevate China's national prestige; second, to strengthen alliances among authoritarian leaders; and third, to rewrite history.
U.S. President Donald Trump displays a photo of himself with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Oval Office on Aug. 22.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 5, 2025

Putin sees only U.S. weakness in Ukraine

Few Ukrainians swallow the enthusiastic talk in the West about security zones and U.S. guarantees.
China, led by firms like BYD and CATL, dominates green tech, which is forcing the EU to choose between defensive policies or collaboration on clean trade and investment to advance climate goals.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 7, 2025

Can Europe and China forge a climate connection?

Europe should forge a shared competitiveness agenda with China, which would allow it to use its strengths.
NASA says its satellite imagery shows the Earth is becoming drier — at least the parts where most people live.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 7, 2025

The Earth is drying out and we need to act urgently

Measurements from NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment satellites suggest the continents have been losing fresh water at an alarming rate since 2002.
Elon Musk takes part in a news conference with U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on May 30. Musk continues to dominate Tesla’s narrative, linking the company’s future to his vision of AI, robotics and autonomous technology.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 7, 2025

Tesla is offering Musk a trillion-dollar ransom

Elon Musk continues to dominate Tesla’s narrative, linking the company’s future to his vision of AI, robotics and autonomous technology.
Hindu brides participate in a mass wedding ceremony in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India, in December 2009. Despite being outlawed more than 60 years ago, dowry remains deeply entrenched in India’s patriarchal society, fueling violence that kills around 20 women every day.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 7, 2025

Dowry-related violence continues to claim the lives of India's daughters

An average of 20 women die every day from dowry-related violence in the country, according to official statistics.
Sexual abuse survivor Anouska de Georgiou speaks at a news conference on Wednesday on Capitol Hill in Washington, where she called where she called for the release of remaining files related to the Jeffrey Epstein investigations under the Epstein Files Transparency Bill.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 5, 2025

Jeffrey Epstein’s victims aren’t a hoax

Why was Jeffrey Epstein so protected? Who is still being protected? And who protected them all?
ASEAN leaders take a group photo at the bloc's summit in Kuala Lumpur on May 26. The association, set to expand to 11 members, aims to protect its autonomy and unity through deeper integration, sustainable growth and broader partnerships.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 5, 2025

ASEAN balances autonomy and unity in a shifting geopolitical landscape

ASEAN, set to expand to 11 members, aims to protect its autonomy and unity through deeper integration, sustainable growth and broader partnerships.
Shigeru Ishiba’s brief, tumultuous prime ministership weakened Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, alienated conservatives and left the party scrambling to find a new leader capable of restoring credibility.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 9, 2025

Japan deserves far better leadership than this

While the country is mostly back where it was a year ago, the LDP is in a much weaker position.
U.S. President Donald Trump salutes the troops during the U.S. Army’s 250th Birthday parade in Washington on June 14, which coincided with his 79th birthday. Trump 2.0 is reshaping global alliances with new defense and diplomatic strategies.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Sep 9, 2025

‘Trump Doctrine’ a fundamental challenge to allied unity

Many in traditional foreign-policy circles struggle to see the method in Trump’s pursuit of “strategic surprises.”
Candidates for Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s presidential election stand together on stage before a debate in Tokyo in September 2024. Pictured are future Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Yoshimasa Hayashi, Sanae Takaichi, Shinjiro Koizumi and others. 
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 9, 2025

Ishiba’s resignation triggers a battle for the soul of the LDP

To become the next prime minister, the new LDP leader will also need to secure enough support from one or two of the other larger conservative opposition parties.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba holds a news conference on Sunday in Tokyo where he announced his resignation.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 10, 2025

The Liberal Democratic Party’s internal coup is complete

Ishiba came into the prime ministership last year with the odds already stacked against him. The LDP was a fractured party with waning public support.
Chinese DF-61 intercontinental ballistic nuclear missiles are displayed during a military parade in Beijing, marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II on Sept. 3. 
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 10, 2025

The global nuclear picture grows darker and darker

It’s hard, if not impossible, to escape the conclusion that the world is in a grim place when measured by nuclear metrics.
Bear kills another person in Japan in record year for fatal attacks
Police investigate the scene of a bear attack that killed one person and injured three others on Friday in the village of Higashinaruse in Akita Prefecture.
Tokyo launches English-language international school database
A screenshot of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's international schools portal site
Strong quake shakes Hokkaido as authorities urge vigilance
Kunashiri Island is seen across the Nemuro Strait, just before sunrise from Rausu, Hokkaido. A strong earthquake struck the area at a depth of about 40 kilometers early Saturday.
New tourism minister calls concentration of tourists in certain areas 'very serious'
Tourism minister Yasushi Kaneko holds a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Florian Wiltschko: ‘Shinto helps me understand and live within Japanese culture’
Florian Wiltschko’s interest in Shintoism began with a trip to Japan in his teens. He now serves as the supplicant priest at the 355-year-old Hisai Hachiman Shrine in Mie Prefecture.
Japan’s youth are apathetic toward the climate crisis. Could anime change that?
“Future Kid Takara,” a series of anime shorts to be aired on NHK Educational TV in November, attempts to educate children about climate change.
Loss to Wallabies doesn't dampen Japan’s optimism
Japan's Michael Leitch controls the ball during the match against Australia on Saturday.
Stars align for Kim-Trump meeting — but any talks will be on N.K. leader’s terms
A South Korean soldier stands next to a TV broadcasting a news report about a possible summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump, at the main railway station in Seoul on Wednesday.
New ‘immigration minister’ post signals Takaichi Cabinet’s priorities
Kimi Onoda, economic security minister and minister for harmonious coexistence with foreign nationals, arrives at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Number of suicide cases among students in Japan hits record high in 2024
The health ministry's Suicide White Paper for 2024 has found that numbers for both men and women peak at age 21, with “concerns over future career paths” being identified as the most likely cause.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The byzantine process for converting a foreign driver’s license into a Japanese one entails mountains of paperwork and significant stamina — unless you're a lucky license holder from a country or region where these requirements are waived.
Driving in Japan isn’t hard. Getting the license is.
By Thu-Huong Ha and Mike Fu

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