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COMMENTARY / World
Apr 29, 2016

Does the U.S. really need an ally like Saudi Arabia?

Washington needs to put distance between America and its counterproductive partners, such as Riyadh.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 25, 2016

Poverty-performance link warrants closer look

Recent studies call into question the belief that absolute poverty rates are the sole consideration in determining student performance.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 19, 2016

U.N. rapporteur on freedom of expression slams Japan's 'press club' system, government pressure

A United Nations expert on freedom of expression concludes that Japan's media independence is being jeopardized by government pressure.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 14, 2016

In Iowa corn fields, Chinese national's seed theft exposes vulnerability

Tim Burrack, a northern Iowa farmer in his 44th growing season, has taken to keeping a wary eye out for unfamiliar vehicles around his 300 acres of genetically modified corn seeds.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 9, 2016

Contamination: Kadena Air Base's dirty secret

For the first time, documents released under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act reveal extensive pollution on an active American base in Japan.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 7, 2016

A tricky Edward Snowden moment for China

The Panama Papers have cast an unwelcome spotlight on the financial affairs of China's elite.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 4, 2016

The terms of the Iran nuclear deal keep changing

U.S. President Barack Obama accepted an agreement in July that allowed Iran to keep in place the industrial-sized nuclear program it had built in defiance of the United Nations. This gives Iran a loaded gun with which to blackmail the rest of the world.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Apr 1, 2016

Zika molecular map unveiled as scientific consensus blames virus for microcephaly, GBS

Researchers around the world are now convinced the Zika virus can cause the birth defect microcephaly as well as Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare neurological disorder that can result in paralysis, the World Health Organization said on Thursday.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 31, 2016

A slow-growing China brokers little dissent

It is no longer only pollution from China that Hong Kong citizens have to worry about.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 14, 2016

Japan Inc.'s lack of leadership roles for women fuels gender imbalance on boards

Sakie Fukushima remembers the novelty of being the only woman on Korn/Ferry International's board of directors, which she joined in 1995. Ditto when she joined the Sony Corp., Kao Corp. and Benesse Corp. boards years later.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 8, 2016

How South Korea is failing half of its population

Park Geun-hye's failure to act on this $13 billion problem hurts growth in Asia's fourth biggest economy.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 2, 2016

Thai junta's intimidation of academics reveals insecurity, rights group says

Thailand's junta is intensifying intimidation of academics who criticize the generals' efforts to stay in power, a Thai rights group said on Wednesday. The intimidation takes the form of officers who visit the academics at their homes.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 11, 2016

China warns on South China Sea as U.S., India consider patrols

China on Thursday responded to a Reuters report that the U.S. and India are discussing joint naval patrols in the disputed South China Sea, warning that interference from countries outside the region threatens peace and stability.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 11, 2016

Note to Baltic states: Israel is a tiny country, too

The Baltic states should draw defense lessons from Israel, which also faces an attack from a larger enemy, with little territory upon which to fight a lengthy defense.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 11, 2016

Heal thyself: U.N.'s WHO at crossroads; experts call for fresh focus, structure

When executive board members of the World Health Organization sat down for their annual meeting in Geneva in January, many powerful figures spoke forcefully of the need to reform the leading global authority on health and disease.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 9, 2016

Documents indicate chemical leaks at U.S. base have polluted Okinawa water supply

U.S. documents released under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that lax safety standards at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa may be to blame for the recent contamination of local drinking water sources.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 8, 2016

Japan takes aim at ballooning drug prices as costs strain health budget

When two of the world's biggest pharmaceutical companies announced a tie-up in Japan, its $78 billion drug industry took note.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 2016

Missile launcher on move, launchpad activity up in North Korea: NHK

North Korea's mobile missile launcher, carrying a ballistic missile, has been seen moving near the east coast and activity has also been seen at a long-range rocket launchpad on the west coast, NHK said on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 3, 2016

China reduces 11 Xinjiang jail sentences, calls de-radicalization a success

Authorities in China's unruly far-western region of Xinjiang have reduced the sentences of 11 people jailed for threatening state security after declaring the success of a re-radicalization programme, state Xinhua News Agency reported.
WORLD
Jan 29, 2016

U.S., British spies hacked Israeli Air Force, say reports citing Snowden

The United States and Britain have monitored secret sorties and communications by Israel's air force in a hacking operation dating back to 1998, according to documents attributed to leaks by former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 25, 2016

BOJ-fueled Tokyo property boom pricing average earners out of housing market

Rich buyers taking advantage of record low borrowing costs have pushed prices in Tokyo beyond the reach of many ordinary buyers, taking the wind out of property sales.
BUSINESS
Jan 24, 2016

Kuroda sees limited impact of market turmoil on Japan's outlook

Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda plays down the prospect of market turmoil causing Japanese companies to pare back capital spending and wage increases, and expressed confidence in the underlying pace of inflation.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 7, 2016

Saudi Arabia's perilous divides

Saudi Arabia's execution of Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr has exposed the dangerous political, religious and socioeconomic fault lines that run through the kingdom and the Gulf.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 3, 2016

As water crisis deepens, India seeks mystical Saraswati river

Gagandeep Singh stands at the edge of a trench cutting through a sugarcane field in rural India. He looks down at a dozen or so men toiling in the mud in plastic flip-flops and bellows: "Dig!"
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 2, 2016

Africa suffering under a yoke of corruption

The book 'The Looting Machine' by Tom Burgis explains why a continent blessed with one-third of the world's hydrocarbon and mineral wealth remains mired in poverty and dysfunction.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Dec 30, 2015

Russia to revise space program amid economic troubles, including cuts to moon exploration

Russia is to revise its space program, the national space agency said on Tuesday after a newspaper published a report that billions of dollars of cuts may be on the way, including to ambitious moon exploration plans.
EDITORIALS
Dec 29, 2015

LDP takes aim at modern history

Does the LDP plan to use the panel to push a revisionist view of Japan's modern history and lay the groundwork for a revision of the Constitution?
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 29, 2015

An education antidote to Islamic radicalization

The way to counter Islamic extremism is to increase educational and employment opportunities for young Muslims.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years