Search - agree

 
 
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Jan 19, 2016

After signing of nuclear deal, Iran moves from being pariah state to regional power

Iran's release from sanctions testifies to its new relationship with the United States as it moves from pariah state to regional power, a status that could come at the cost of Saudi Arabia, Washington's chief Arab ally.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 18, 2016

Another year of living precariously in 21st-century Japan

2015 was a pretty gloomy year worldwide. And the same could be said for life on the archipelago.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 18, 2016

Russia looking for regime change in Turkey

Vladimir Putin seems to have dug in for a long-term policy of sapping Turkey's economy and undermining President Recep Tayyip Erdogan politically.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / ADOPT ME!
Jan 17, 2016

Please cuddle: a cat named Rikka

This 8-year-old looker is stressed and yearning for a warm home of his own, especially one with people, but preferably not with too many cats.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 15, 2016

Architect Kengo Kuma dismisses alleged similarities with Hadid stadium design

Kengo Kuma, whose flatter, less expensive design will be used for the Olympic Games' main venue, said his plan and Hadid's differed in concept and cost.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 11, 2016

Abe's constitutional revision hopes ride on July election, right-leaning opposition cooperation

Japan's postwar pacifism will face a critical challenge this year that could drastically change the course of this country forever: the July Upper House election.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jan 11, 2016

As foreign crises pile up, experts think Obama will take few risks during final year in office

As Barack Obama prepares to deliver his final State of the Union address Tuesday night, the U.S. president and his aides have insisted he will not be content simply to run out the clock on foreign policy and is acting decisively to tackle crises piling up around the globe.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 9, 2016

Different-names ruling leaves door open to possibility of same-sex marriages

While the Supreme Court ruling said there is nothing unconstitutional about compelling married couples to register under one name, they didn't expressly limit marriage to a man and a woman.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle
Jan 8, 2016

'The Forest' can't see the woods for the props

Mount Fuji now has worldwide fame thanks to its World Heritage status, but less-known is the fact that some of the surrounding area — specifically the Aokigahara Jukai forest — is a suicide hot spot. This is common knowledge among Japanese, especially those who live in the Kanto area, but who would...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 8, 2016

Why North Korea's latest blast isn't a game-changer

Ultimately, North Korea's latest nuclear test is a status-quo event.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 7, 2016

Already under sanctions, adding more poses dilemma, especially for China, over Pyongyang nuke test

U.S. presidential candidates and members of Congress demanded more sanctions on North Korea on Wednesday after its latest nuclear test, but major powers will likely be reluctant to take the tough steps necessary to force Pyongyang to abandon its weapons program, former U.S. officials and analysts said....
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 6, 2016

Stephen Bosworth, former U.S. envoy to North Korea, dies at 76

Stephen Bosworth, a veteran U.S. diplomat who for many years headed Washington's engagement with North Korea, has died. He was 76.
Japan Times
JAPAN / 2016 NEW YEAR SPECIAL
Jan 1, 2016

Helping refugees requires more than financial help

Children wrapped in emergency blankets stand on a beach after crossing the Aegean Sea from Turkey. Long lines of refugees wait to enter a camp in Macedonia. Trains packed with hundreds of refugees arrive at the Munich railway station. Such images of desperate Syrians fleeing their war-torn country were...
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 31, 2015

U.S. downplayed evidence of abuses in Chinese detention camps

After China abolished a notorious penal system based on forced labor in December 2013, the United States rewarded Beijing by removing the world's most populous country from a global blacklist of countries that are failing to combat modern-day slavery.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 30, 2015

'Their Distance' explores the pain of being young and in love

'Honesty," Billy Joel famously lamented in song, "is hardly ever heard." The characters of Rikiya Imaizumi's ensemble drama "Their Distance" ("Shiranai, Futari") seem to have been listening: They are honest to a fault with each other about their feelings, even ones that hurt their listener.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 30, 2015

Economy tipped for gradual recovery in 2016 following year of sluggish growth

Japan's economy fell short of expectations for a solid recovery in 2015, but it is seen as likely to gain traction in fiscal 2016.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Dec 29, 2015

'Comfort women' deal likely to fuel Tokyo-Seoul military cooperation, aid Obama pivot

Japan and South Korea's landmark accord to end the divisive "comfort women" dispute will lead to increased economic and military cooperation between the U.S. allies, complementing the Obama administration's efforts to counter China's rise and North Korea's nuclear saber-rattling.
Japan Times
JAPAN / OBITUARY
Dec 29, 2015

Eiji Kimizuka, former GSDF Chief of Staff, dies at 63

Friends of the Ground Self-Defense Force throughout Japan and the world were saddened to learn about the passing of Eiji Kimizuka, a retired four-star general who served as the Chief of Staff of the GSDF from 2011 to 2013 but perhaps was best known for leading the bilateral response to the March 2011...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 29, 2015

A decent year for most people

For most people, in most places, 2015 has been a pretty good year.
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 24, 2015

Six crazy things Trump says that are spot on

Some of Donald Trump's utterances are offensive. His nativist demagoguery is outright fascist. But Trump also says stuff that other politicians and the media are afraid to say and need to be said.
WORLD / Science & Health
Dec 23, 2015

After Paris accord, most U.S. Republicans back action on climate

A majority of U.S. Republicans who had heard of the international climate deal in Paris said they support working with other countries to curb global warming and were willing to take steps to do so, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll on Tuesday.

Longform

A sinkhole in Yashio, which emerged in January, was triggered by a ruptured, aging sewer pipe. Authorities worry that similar sections of infrastructure across the country are also at risk of corrosion.
That sinking feeling: Japan’s aging sewers are an infrastructure time bomb