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Then-U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington in April 2019.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 3, 2024

Alongside the Trump-Russia inquiry, a lesser-known look at Egyptian influence

The Justice Department investigated whether a Trump adviser was part of an Egyptian plan, never proven, to funnel $10 million to the 2016 Trump campaign.
Existential risks like bioterrorism or climate change, created by humans, are not being treated by governments with anything like the seriousness or urgency they deserve.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 21, 2024

Will we survive the next 100 years?

Existential risks like bioterrorism or climate change, created by humans, are not being treated by governments with anything like the seriousness or urgency they deserve.
Attendees play the For All Time mobile game on smartphones at the NetEase Games booth at the Tokyo Game Show in the city of Chiba in September last year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 30, 2024

Tencent and NetEase rethink Japan approach as game strategy stalls

The companies are reconsidering or scaling back many of their investments in Japanese studios, after years of spending yielded few hit games.
Supporters cheer as U.S. Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign event at the Throwback Brewery, in North Hampton, New Hampshire, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 7, 2024

How the fight to define Harris will shape her debate with Trump

The debate in Philadelphia on Tuesday will be, by far, the longest unscripted setting for the U.S. vice president of her candidacy — a high-risk encounter.
Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks at a campaign stop at Northwestern High School in Detroit on Sept. 2.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 9, 2024

Harris’ combative debate style will get its biggest test against Trump

Much of Kamala Harris' debate performance will depend on whether she can successfully adapt to an opponent best known for his unpredictability.
Signage in the spin room ahead of the second presidential debate at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Monday
WORLD / Politics
Sep 10, 2024

What to watch for during the Harris-Trump presidential debate

Most opinion polls show Kamala Harris to be slightly ahead nationally and in the majority of battleground states, but Donald Trump is close behind.
Tomoyuki Sugano (left) with his Giants teammates during a game last month in Hiroshima.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 5, 2024

Giants ace Tomoyuki Sugano announces plans to join MLB

The long-time Giants starter has won the Sawamura Award as NPB's best pitcher twice, in 2017 and 2018.
Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, speaks during a rally in Greenville, North Carolina, on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 14, 2024

Harris baits Trump on his health records after releasing her own

Harris also took a swipe at Trump the same day for spreading false claims about the disaster response to Hurricane Helene for political gain.
People prepare to vote at a polling station as Georgians turned out, a day after the battleground state opened early voting, in Atlanta, Georgia, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 17, 2024

Georgia judge overturns changes to election rules by pro-Trump Republicans

The state is one of seven set to be closely contested and expected to determine the winner of the Nov. 5 presidential race.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and India Prime Minister Narendra Modi meet on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Oct 24, 2024

Xi-Modi breakthrough followed months of pressure from India's CEOs

Indian businesses have increased pressure this year on Narendra Modi’s government to relax the restrictions on China.
Taiwanese chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. has halted shipments to a client after discovering semiconductors delivered to them found their way into Huawei products.
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 24, 2024

TSMC cuts off client after discovering chips sent to Huawei

It’s unclear whether the TSMC client was acting on Huawei’s behalf, or where it’s based.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping attend a meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, on Wednesday.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 24, 2024

China and India bury the hatchet — for now, at least

Despite the agreement to disengage, the lack of trust is palpable. We are still just one misstep from an army patrol from another dangerous flare-up.
Embers glow at night as the Basin Fire burns in the Sierra National Forest in Fresno County, California, on June 26.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Oct 25, 2024

Wildfires are gaining speed in a worrying trend for western U.S.

The growth rate of the fastest wildfires increased 249% in the region between 2001 and 2020.
Yankees slugger Hideki Matsui hits a solo home run off Pedro Martinez of the Phillies in Game 2 of the World Series on Oct. 29, 2009.
BASEBALL / MLB
Oct 25, 2024

From Shinjo to 'Godzilla': The Japanese players who have made their mark on the Fall Classic

Tsuyoshi Shinjo got the ball rolling for Japanese stars in MLB’s Fall Classic in 2002, and stars Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto are set to join the growing club.
Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Warren, Michigan, on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Nov 2, 2024

Democrats have a plan if Trump prematurely declares election victory

Trump said he hoped to be able to declare victory on Election Day, but experts have cautioned that it could be days before the final result is known.
The Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani speaks to fans in English during a World Series victory celebration at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on Friday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Nov 2, 2024

Dodgers celebrate World Series win with long-awaited parade

Shohei Ohtani brought his brown-and-white dog, Decoy — a fan favorite — in an Ohtani jersey, for the celebrations, with the slugger offering a rare address in English.
Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole pitches against the Dodgers in Game 1 of the World Series on Oct. 25.
BASEBALL / MLB
Nov 3, 2024

Yankees' Gerrit Cole opts out of contract

Cole, 34, opted out less than a week after losing the World Series-clinching Game 5 to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Polling has failed spectacularly in recent U.S. presidential elections and the country can only hope it navigates this year's volatile race with its credibility intact.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 31, 2024

Broken political polling failing American democracy

To restore confidence in polling, pollsters must recognize the limitations of traditional random sampling and improve methods for diagnosing nonresponse bias.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Aug. 20 and former U.S. President Donald Trump in Bedminster, New Jersey, on Aug. 15
WORLD / Politics
Nov 4, 2024

Harris makes last-minute appeals while Trump embraces violent rhetoric

Opinion polls show Donald Trump and Kamala Harris locked in a tight presidential race.
U.S. Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump
WORLD / Politics
Nov 5, 2024

Panic buttons and SWAT teams: U.S. braces for election unrest

With Kamala Harris and Donald Trump deadlocked at the climax of the 2024 race, authorities are keen to reassure jittery Americans that their votes are secure.
Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump attends a campaign rally in Warren, Michigan, on Nov. 1.
WORLD
Nov 6, 2024

White House win gives Trump a legal reprieve

As U.S. president, the 78-year-old Trump can make the federal criminal cases facing him vanish and see the state cases put on hold.
A village school bus drives along an empty street in the village of Tenei, Fukushima Prefecture, in March 2023. In rural areas, more single-member households will emerge from an aging population and the eventual death of spouses in two-person households, according to the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 12, 2024

1 in 5 people in Japan age 65 and older will be living alone in 2050

The trend resulting from rapid depopulation will affect both metropolitan and rural areas, the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research says.
Gaetz speaks at a campaign rally for Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump in Henderson, Nevada, on Oct. 31.
WORLD / Politics
Nov 14, 2024

Matt Gaetz is Trump’s pick for attorney general

The pick reflects Donald Trump’s determination to choose as the nation’s top law enforcement official a fierce defender who will not resist his directives.
The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power station in Niigata Prefecture, the world's biggest nuclear plant, on Aug. 5. Like many others in Japan, the plant is seeking clearance to restart, as the country grapples with how to shape its nuclear future.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 19, 2024

Japan’s nuclear future: Caught between climate goals and reality

Japan is well short of hitting its nuclear power goals by 2030, with the challenging nature of reactor restarts likely impacting its emissions reduction targets.
Armed police stand guard as a prison van arrives at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts building, ahead of the sentencing of 45 convicted pro-democracy activists charged under the national security law, in Hong Kong on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Nov 19, 2024

Hong Kong jails 45 democracy activists in landmark trial

The ruling, which critics have said tarnishes Hong Kong's role as a global financial hub, comes as the city is hosting an international financial summit.
Indian billionaire Gautam Adani speaks during an event in Haifa port, Israel, in January 2023.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 22, 2024

How an Indian billionaire's alleged bribery scheme took off and unraveled

Gautam Adani allegedly decided to bribe local officials to persuade them to buy 8 gigawatts of solar electricity.
Police officers remove a protest banner outside the West Kowloon Court following a sentencing hearing for 45 pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong on Tuesday.
EDITORIALS
Nov 22, 2024

Paranoia and Beijing trump democracy in Hong Kong

Concerned nations must step up as China discards the promises it made when it regained control of Hong Kong. Anything less is a betrayal.
In a year of anime hits, Kiyotaka Oshiyama’s “Look Back” stood out from the bunch.
CULTURE / Film / 2024 in Review
Dec 13, 2024

Big franchises and bold voices dominated anime in 2024

In a year of major box-office hits such as “Conan” and “Haikyu!!,” smaller animators used nontraditional tools to stand out from the rest.
Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Evil Does Not Exist,” released in Japanese theaters in April, sharply dramatizes the clash between rural and urban values. The film won five awards at the 2023 Venice Film Festival, including the second-place Silver Lion prize.
CULTURE / Film / 2024 in Review
Dec 20, 2024

A year of Oscar wins and a quiet push for diversity

International collaborations and indie risk-takers steered the film industry in a fresh direction in 2024.
Some of the same mistakes made during COVID-19 can be seen in the U.S. government's response to H5N1, which started in poultry before a new variant began infecting the nation’s dairy cows.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 23, 2024

Another pandemic is inevitable, and the U.S. isn't ready

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s picks to lead the nation’s top public health agencies also don’t inspire confidence.

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear