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Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 24, 2019

Paul Manafort disputes Robert Mueller's claims he lied to prosecutors

Lawyers for Paul Manafort, the convicted former campaign chairman for President Donald Trump, denied in court papers that he broke his plea agreement by lying to prosecutors when he was supposed to be cooperating.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 24, 2019

Wife of 'El Chapo' played key role in escape plots, ex-lieutenant testifies

The wife of accused Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman played an important role in plotting his 2015 escape from a Mexican prison and tried to help him escape again after he was recaptured the following year, one Guzman's former top lieutenants testified on Wednesday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 23, 2019

Abe calls for rebuilding of trust in international trade at World Economic Forum meeting in Davos

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe took the stage at the World Economic Forum's 2019 Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday, where he stressed Japan's commitment to enhancing a free, open and rules-based international order.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 23, 2019

Reform education to produce true leaders

Greater involvement by families and local communities can stimulate the curiosity of young potential leaders and cultivate their spirit of adventure.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 23, 2019

Toyota and Panasonic to launch joint venture to make electric vehicle batteries by end of 2020

Toyota Motor Corp. and electronics giant Panasonic Corp. said Tuesday they will jointly establish a new company to make batteries for automobiles, including electric vehicles, by the end of 2020.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 23, 2019

88rising's quest to find a Japanese hip-hop sensation

Japanese music hasn't made many inroads into Western markets this decade. Save for some brief viral flashes and niche success, the country's artists have mostly been overlooked. However, Sean Miyashiro, founder of media company 88rising, thinks Japan still holds one big advantage.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 23, 2019

Story of Iwao Hakamada, boxer who spent 48 years on death row, to become manga series

The story of Iwao Hakamada, a former professional boxer and death-row inmate, 82, who continues to battle to clear his name over a 1966 quadruple murder, will be adapted into a manga series, supporters of the convict announced Wednesday.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Jan 23, 2019

Waxing philosophical in English class with 'Thinking Experiments'

If you've ever taught English at a Japanese school, you'll likely be familiar with a certain kind of silence — pervasive and tinged with teenage ennui. Authors Alexander Dutson and James Hill want to recommend breaking the ice with philosophy.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Jan 23, 2019

Trying out a lesson on traditional notions of gender

I teach a class of 38 at Hamamatsu Higashi Senior High School in Shizuoka Prefecture, and earlier this month I tried out a gender-themed lesson from Alexander Dutson and James Hill's "Thinking Experiments."
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 23, 2019

Renault convenes board to turn page on Carlos Ghosn era

Renault has called a board meeting to replace Chairman and Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn, in a move that may begin to ease tensions with alliance partner Nissan in the wake of Ghosn's arrest in Japan for alleged financial misconduct.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 23, 2019

Germany's Merkel and France's Macron seek to unite European defense industry as U.S. support wanes

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron are pushing for a more united defense industry, citing renewed ties between the two nations as a way to bolster the safety of the European Union in the face of flagging American support.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Jan 23, 2019

What #MeToo? Dealmaking in escort bars thrives in corporate East Asia, including Japan

In Tokyo's Ginza, Seoul's Gangnam and Beijing's Chaoyang financial district, a familiar scene plays out almost every night of the work week. As dusk falls, businessmen flock to karaoke and hostess clubs to close deals and build relationships in the liquor-lubricated intimacy of young women.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 23, 2019

As Taliban talks gather pace, Afghan women fear turning back of the clock

Eighteen years ago, at the height of the Taliban's power in Afghanistan, Roshan Mashal secretly taught her daughters to read and write alongside a dozen local girls who smuggled school books to her house in potato sacks.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 23, 2019

U.S. top envoy Pompeo expects 'good marker' with North Korea before next Trump-Kim summit

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Tuesday there remains "an awful lot of work to do" to achieve the denuclearization of North Korea but he anticipates further progress by the end of next month, when the U.S. and North Korean leaders are expected to meet for a second summit.
Japan Times
WORLD / FOCUS
Jan 23, 2019

Huge Afghanistan attack with massive death toll shows Taliban strength at outset of talks

The Taliban, carrying out one of the deadliest attacks of Afghanistan's 17-year insurgency just hours before new peace talks began, has rammed home its message that it intends to reach any settlement from a position of strength on the battlefield.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Jan 23, 2019

Trump won't soften hard line on need for China reforms to make trade deal, advisers say

As much as U.S. President Donald Trump wants to boost markets through a trade pact with China, he will not soften his position that Beijing must make real structural reforms, including how it handles intellectual property, to reach a deal, advisers say.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 23, 2019

New U.S. intelligence strategy warns that Russia and China are seizing on global turmoil

Russia and China are taking advantage of changes in the "strategic environment" that has prevailed for almost a century to gain influence and undermine American objectives, according to a new strategy document issued by U.S. intelligence agencies.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 23, 2019

U.S. Supreme Court again mum on Trump's 'Dreamers' appeals

The U.S. Supreme Court closed the door at least for now on President Donald Trump's effort to end protections for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants dubbed "Dreamers," with the justices again silent on Tuesday on three related appeals.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 23, 2019

Trump seeks to move ahead with State of the Union speech despite Nancy Pelosi's shutdown misgivings

President Donald Trump on Tuesday attempted to move ahead with planning for a State of the Union speech to the U.S. Congress on Jan. 29 despite pressure from Democrats to delay it due to the government shutdown, as his immigration proposal suffered a blow from the U.S. Supreme Court.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 23, 2019

Rudy Giuliani compounds Trump's Russia woes with conflicting interviews

A lawyer's job is to make a client look innocent, if not to prove it — something President Donald Trump's lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, has been struggling with in recent days.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 22, 2019

Opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn pushes for Parliament vote on new Brexit referendum

British opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn moved a step closer to paving the way for another referendum on European Union membership by trying to use Parliament to grab control of Brexit from Prime Minister Theresa May.
EDITORIALS
Jan 22, 2019

Addressing serious recidivism among the elderly

Repeat offenses by the nation's elderly population are an increasingly serious problem that demands attention and action.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 22, 2019

The world's think tank dilemma

Foreign influence-peddling and populist attacks on truth pose a threat to think tanks and to democracy itself.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 22, 2019

Competitive culture brings out the worst in scientists

A Chinese researcher wanted to be a pioneer so badly that he ignored ethical boundaries; others think a Nobel is a license to rant
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 22, 2019

An optimist's guide to climate change

It's still possible to deliver a sustainable future for both people and the planet.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 22, 2019

Where is the European Union's Brexit policy?

The U.K. has set a new standard for political paralysis — but the EU has little to boast about.

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