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Members of the Nuclear Regulation Authority discusses regulatory screening of the Tsuruga nuclear power plant's No. 2 reactor, in Tokyo's Minato Ward on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2024

Japanese nuclear regulators to hear from operator over reactor

The standards do not allow important nuclear facilities such as reactor buildings to be built on active faults.
Takeshita street in Tokyo's Harajuku shopping district on Wednesday, when temperatures reached 35.6 degrees Celsius.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 1, 2024

New 'most severe' category added to Japan’s heatstroke guidelines

The move is meant to stress the need for urgent medical attention in severe cases as the number of heatstroke cases soars amid record-high temperatures.
Britain's Andy Murray says goodbye after he and teammate Dan Evans lost their men's doubles quarterfinal on Thursday.
OLYMPICS / Tennis
Aug 2, 2024

'Proud' Murray bows out of tennis with Paris Olympics defeat

The former world No. 1 and three-time Grand Slam title winner slipped into retirement at age 37 when he and Dan Evans lost in the men's doubles quarterfinals.
Pita Limjaroenrat, leader of the Thailand's Move Forward Party, in Bangkok on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 2, 2024

Thailand opposition leader warns of instability ahead of court rulings

Top judges will rule next week on whether to disband Move Forward, and whether Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin should be removed from office.
If you’re looking for a great dog, run — don’t walk — to adopt Jasper before it’s too late.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / ADOPT ME!
Aug 5, 2024

Golden boy Jasper won't take long to find his new home

Affectionate, smart and super friendly, Jasper is not expected to stay at ARK long before some scoops him up.
U.S. President Joe Biden hugs Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter, as he and other prisoners freed from Russia arrive at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland late Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 3, 2024

Prisoner deals stoke fears of perverse ‘incentive’ to grab Americans

Hostile governments like Russia and Iran are often involved, and practical alternatives are hard to come by, experts say.
Kenichiro Fumita celebrates after his win over China's Cao Liguo in their men's Greco-roman 60 kg wrestling final match at the Champ-de-Mars Arena in Paris on Tuesday.
OLYMPICS
Aug 7, 2024

Japan's Kenichiro Fumita wins Greco-Roman gold in 60 kg

Fumita claimed the first wrestling gold of the Paris Olympics by beating Cao Liguo of China, who settled for silver.
Avocados hang off a tree at an orchard in Tancitaro, Michoacan state, Mexico
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Aug 7, 2024

Avocado goldrush links U.S. companies with Mexico's deforestation disaster

The U.S. demand for avocados divides communities in Mexico, where it is both a driver of economic growth and a catalyst for environmental crises.
A nature experience program at the Global Mizuiku Summit in Vietnam.
ESG CONSORTIUM
Aug 12, 2024

Suntory nurtures water, forests and future generations

Just like Suntory Holdings says in its corporate philosophy, “To inspire the brilliance of life, by creating rich experiences for people, in harmony with nature,” the company contributes to the enrichment of people’s lives beyond merely selling food and beverages globally. Although responsive to...
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida canceled a four-day visit to Central Asia from Friday to prioritize responding to a higher quake risk.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 11, 2024

Concerns over Central Asia diplomacy after Kishida cancels trip

Some regret that Japan missed an important opportunity to increase its presence in Central Asia.
Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota at a campaign rally in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 12, 2024

Tim Walz’s long relationship with China defies easy stereotypes

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has been an outspoken critic of China's human rights record.
France President Emmanuel Macron and International Olympic Committee         President Thomas Bach before the closing ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics on Sunday.
OLYMPICS
Aug 13, 2024

Paris Olympics average 30.6 million U.S. viewers, a 82% bump from Tokyo

The BBC said the Games were streamed 218 million times on its platforms, more than doubling Tokyo's figures.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 14, 2024

Kishida to step down in September in bid to show ‘LDP has changed’

The surprise move came amid growing criticism from rank-and-file party members and bad poll numbers.
An Apple Store in New York on July 29
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 15, 2024

Developing new tabletop home device, Apple pushes ahead with robotics shift

The company now has a team of several hundred people working on the device, which would offer a twist on products like Amazon’s Echo Show 10 and Meta Platforms’s Portal.
New gene-edited crops could address climate change and agricultural challenges; however, high regulatory barriers and safety concerns limit innovation.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 18, 2024

It’s time to embrace a new era of gene-edited food

New crops may improve our health or help us mitigate and adapt to climate change.
Bangladesh's instability adds to the existing regional tensions in South Asia, which is already grappling with violence in Myanmar, terrorism in the Pakistan-Afghanistan area and political turmoil in the Maldives and Nepal.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 14, 2024

South Asia’s deepening political turmoil

The ouster of Bangladeshi's government is the latest example of political volatility in South Asia — a region struggling to achieve stability, let alone democratization.
The 7-Eleven convenience store chain, a deeply ingrained part of modern Japanese life, faces a potential takeover by Canadian company Alimentation Couche-Tard.
COMMENTARY
Aug 21, 2024

A 7-Eleven buyout would stretch Japan’s appetite for M&A

The country’s convenience stores have become essential to daily life. That has many fearing the prospect of a foreign takeover.
The 2024 Kentaro Kaneko Award ceremony will be held Oct. 15 at the International House of Japan in Tokyo’s Minato Ward.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Aug 24, 2024

America-Japan Society announces recipients of 2024 Kentaro Kaneko Award

This year's Kentaro Kaneko Award celebrating achievements in furthering U.S.-Japan relations goes to a volunteer, an educator and a legendary musician.
A Canadian retailer's bid to buy the operator of 7-Eleven convenience stores follows the introduction last year of government guidelines on mergers and acquisitions instructing companies to seriously consider takeover offers.
BUSINESS / Companies / ANALYSIS
Aug 27, 2024

Seven & I takeover proposal tests Japan’s evolving investor-friendly stance

The proposed purchase of the convenience store operator follows government guidelines instructing companies to seriously consider takeover offers.
The Chinese government has dismissed U.S. accusations, saying the hacking attacks attributed to Volt Typhoon are the work of cyber criminals.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 28, 2024

Chinese hackers breach U.S. internet firms via startup

The revelation will add to concerns over the susceptibility of U.S. critical infrastructure to cyberattacks.
Cars are flooded in a local street during the pass of a winter storm in Lodi, New Jersey, on Jan. 10.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 28, 2024

Extreme rain is a growing climate threat to the northeastern U.S.

A warming world will bring more rain-induced flooding to the United States' Northeast, a region of millions who aren't prepared for it.
Akira Ishiwatari (right), a Nuclear Regulation Authority commissioner, inspects a trench dug on the grounds of the Tsuruga nuclear power plant's No. 2 reactor in Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture, in June.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 28, 2024

Tsuruga nuclear reactor found noncompliant with safety standards

The Nuclear Regulation Authority will decide whether to formally adopt the report after collecting public comments on it for about a month.
Founder and CEO of Telegram Pavel Durov delivers a keynote speech during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, in 2016.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 29, 2024

Telegram founder Durov charged and banned from leaving France

Pavel Durov was charged on several counts of failing to curb extremist and illegal content on Telegram, a popular messaging app.
Pope Francis arrives at the weekly general audience at the Vatican on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 29, 2024

Pope Francis takes climate message to Southeast Asia on 12-day trip

It will be the longest trip yet by Pope Francis, who now regularly uses a wheelchair due to knee and back pain.
Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks as he attends a town hall event in La Crosse, Wisconsin, on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 30, 2024

Trump's high-wire act on abortion angers conservatives

The Republican nominee, who often brags about his role in overturning the constitutional right to abortion in the U.S., now claims to promote "reproductive rights."
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger delivers a speech at the COMPUTEX forum in Taipei on June 4.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 2, 2024

Intel CEO to pitch board on plans to shed assets and cut costs

Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger and key executives are expected to present the plan later this month, as they try to revive the once-dominant chipmaker's fortunes.
An elevator at the Stade de France commuter train station in Saint-Denis, near Paris, France. Paris built highly accessible accommodation for competitors in the 2024 Paralympic Games, but overall, the city remains difficult to navigate for people with disabilities.
PARALYMPICS
Sep 2, 2024

Paris is utopia for Paralympians until they leave the athletes village

It will be decades before the city's streets, sidewalks and parks achieve even a semblance of the Paralympic Village’s accessibility.
Beyond losing the American market, China is losing some of its own manufacturing companies, which are shifting parts of their production to countries such as Vietnam and Mexico to avoid U.S. tariffs.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 4, 2024

The rise and coming fall of Chinese manufacturing

Despite China's significant investments in technology, the decline of its manufacturing sector seems inevitable.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan greet the press before welcoming leaders from African countries in Beijing on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 5, 2024

Debt woes and funding needs in focus as China hosts African leaders

Africa and its ample mineral and oil resources have become the focus of intense geopolitical competition in recent years.
Pasocom Music Club’s “Love Flutter” marks an important moment for Japan’s electronic community as project members Aoi Shibata (left) and Masato Nishiyama step into a role other artists once held for them — scene veterans who are inspiring the next generation.
CULTURE / Music
Sep 5, 2024

Pasocom Music Club returns to the pure pleasures of the dance floor

For the Kansai-born duo, new album “Love Flutter” isn’t just an evolution of its sound — it’s the next step in pushing the boundaries of electronic music.

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