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Yonaguni Mayor Kenichi Itokazu speaks to a Ground Self-Defense Force soldier at the town hall on Yonaguni, Japan's westernmost inhabited island in Okinawa Prefecture last  November.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 26, 2024

Deterring Taiwan conflict is top priority for Japan's ‘front-line’ mayor

The mayor believes the U.S. and Japan must do away with "strategic ambiguity" over Taiwan if they intend to keep China in check.
Beauden Barrett, seen during the 2023 Rugby World Cup, will play at flyhalf for the All Blacks against Australia on Saturday.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Sep 26, 2024

All Blacks recall Beauden Barrett at flyhalf for showdown with Australia

"He's a great conductor," coach Scott Robertson said of Barrett, a World Cup winner in 2015 who will play his 131st test.
Smoke billows over southern Lebanon following an Israeli strike amid the ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces on Wednesday.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 26, 2024

In Lebanon, Israel set a trap for Iran and itself

Unable to rescue hostages or eliminate Hamas after nearly a year of war, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu expanded the fight to target Hezbollah and Iran.
Families of people killed by the eruption of Mount Ontake 10 years ago offer prayers in Otaki, Nagano Prefecture, on Friday.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 27, 2024

Victims of Mount Ontake eruption remembered 10 years on

Silent prayers were offered at 11:52 a.m., the time when the country's worst volcanic disaster in the postwar era occurred on Sept. 27, 2014.
Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 27, 2024

Toyota ends sponsorship with 'political' Olympics

The withdrawal means Olympics logos currently carried by Toyota products will be phased out, and its vehicles will no longer be provided to assist with the event.
Dame Maggie Smith, a star of the stage, film and television, died Sept. 27 in London. She was 89. The actor is pictured here in 2015.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Sep 27, 2024

'National treasure' U.K. actor Maggie Smith dies aged 89

Over the course of her long career, Dame Maggie Smith won a Tony, two Oscars, three Golden Globes and five Bafta Awards.
Intel, once the world’s largest chipmaker, has become the target of takeover speculation since a rapid deterioration of its business this year.
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 28, 2024

Arm is rebuffed by Intel after inquiring about buying product unit

Intel, once the world’s largest chipmaker, has become the target of takeover speculation since a rapid deterioration of its business this year.
Shigeru Ishiba (center) celebrates in Tokyo on Friday after he was elected president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. He defeated economic security minister Sanae Takaichi (second from left) in a runoff vote.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 30, 2024

Shigeru Ishiba’s tenure as prime minister could be short-lived

Questions about his leadership and management ability weaken his prospects.
A scene from "Whale Restaurant," a documentary film about whale food culture in Japan
JAPAN / Society
Sep 30, 2024

Documentary on whale food culture in Japan showing in U.S.

Director Keiko Yagi said she found it difficult to find theaters that would agree to show the film.
New Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (front center) and other Cabinet ministers pose for a commemorative photo after an appointment and certification ceremony at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 1, 2024

New Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba unveils Cabinet as LDP divide emerges

His Cabinet, made up of lawmakers largely untainted by an LDP political funds scandal, has appeared to open up a rift in the ruling party.
Shigeru Ishiba’s Cabinet appointments reveal deep fissures within the party resulting from his victory in the leadership race.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 1, 2024

The new prime minister puts together a ‘disunity Cabinet’

While Ishiba tries to promote his policy priorities, the Cabinet's composition may create challenges for his leadership.
People work on some insulating fabric covering a small part of the Rhone Glacier to prevent it from melting, near Gletsch, in the Swiss Alps, on Monday.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Oct 2, 2024

Despite snowy winter, Swiss glaciers 'on track to disappear'

The glacier melt is having far-reaching impacts, with Switzerland and Italy having to adjust their mountain border and less water becoming available in the summer.
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani, 66, has experience as the onetime head of Japan’s former Defense Agency before it became a full-fledged ministry and is seen as a pair of steady hands.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 2, 2024

Ishiba looks to 'defense tribe' to fill key Cabinet positions

The new prime minister has named four former defense ministers to key posts — most notably, the defense and foreign affairs portfolios.
Tigers pitcher Will Vest (right) and catcher Jake Rogers celebrate after the final out of their win over the Astros in Game 2 of the AL Wild Card Series in Houston on Wednesday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Oct 3, 2024

Upstart Tigers continue stunning run by sweeping Astros

Detroit swept the best-of-three AL Wild Card Series to reach a second-round matchup against the Cleveland Guardians.
Despite Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's serious and studious personality, he is by nature a nonconformist and is less socially inclined compared to other politicians.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 3, 2024

The Shigeru Ishiba I personally know

Ishiba takes pride in his mottos and interests, remains steadfast in his beliefs and stays true to his path.
To preserve the integrity of the game in the legalized gambling era, Major League Baseball must double down and maintain its now posthumous ban on Pete Rose.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 4, 2024

Pete Rose fans are wrong: He's not worthy of the Hall of Fame

Backing down would undermine the league’s zero-tolerance stance and signal that "permanently ineligible" isn't always permanent.
Lassana Diarra in Paris in May last year. Diarra was at the center of a high-profile case that could shake up the transfer market in European soccer.
SOCCER
Oct 4, 2024

Top EU court rules against FIFA in key transfer market ruling

In a landmark decision, the EU's top court has ruled some international soccer rules regulating player transfers are contrary to the bloc's laws.
Prominent food critic Yukio Hattori has died after collapsing at his cooking school in Tokyo, it was learned Saturday.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 6, 2024

'Iron Chef' star Yukio Hattori dies at 78

Best known for his television appearances, Hattori garnered international acclaim, including the Chevalier award for promoting French cuisine in Japan.
An electronic ticker displays stock figures in Pudong's Lujiazui Financial District in Shanghai on Aug. 14.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 7, 2024

China stock skepticism gets louder as world-beating run extends

Some are concerned many Chinese stocks are already reaching overvalued levels.
Former Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen (left) and current President Lai Ching-te wave during the latter's inauguration ceremony outside the Presidential Office Building in Taipei on May 20.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 7, 2024

Former Taiwan President Tsai to make sensitive Prague visit, sources say

Tsai will visit Prague and deliver a speech at Forum 2000, which begins on Oct. 13, according to the three sources.
Then-U.S. President Donald Trump welcomes his visiting French counterpart,  Emmanuel Macron, in Washington in April 2018. European leaders, such as Macron, recognize the need to adapt to a new reality where globalization may no longer drive growth, especially if Trump wins the U.S. election.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 7, 2024

Trump-proofing Europe looks impossible

Global supply chain strengths turn into weaknesses in a fragmented world, with unreliable access to cheap energy, Chinese consumers and U.S. security.
In recent years, less than 1% of overall U.S. job growth came from manufacturing. Meanwhile, 9 out of 10 new jobs came from the service sector — nearly half of them in education and health services.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 7, 2024

A lot of ‘unskilled’ workers actually aren’t

Often people have incredible skills; they just aren’t skills currently in high demand.
Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato attends an interview with media outlets at the Finance Ministry on Monday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 7, 2024

Japan's new finance minister vows to finish the job as deflation czar

Katsunobu Kato's message indicates that financial conditions might remain accommodative for some time.
Jets coach Robert Saleh during his team's loss to the Vikings on Sunday in London.
MORE SPORTS / Football
Oct 9, 2024

Jets fire head coach Robert Saleh after 2-3 start

Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich will be the interim head coach for the remainder of the season, according to team owner Woody Johnson.
Spainish midfielder Andres Iniesta celebrates after scoring the winning goal of the 2010 World Cup final against the Netherlands while revealing a shirt with a tribute to the late Espanyol captain Daniel Jarque, on July 11, 2010.
SOCCER
Oct 9, 2024

Spanish great Iniesta leaves indelible legacy after retirement

Admired and adored in Spain, even by fans of Barca's fiercest rivals, for many Iniesta will go down as the country's finest player.
Former Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp speaks after receiving Germany's Order of Merit in Berlin on Oct. 1.
SOCCER
Oct 9, 2024

Juergen Klopp becomes Red Bull's global soccer chief in first job after Liverpool

Klopp, who ended his successful nine-year stint with Liverpool at the end of last season, will be starting his new role on Jan. 1.
The University of Tokyo is ranked 28th in the latest World University Rankings, advancing one place from the previous rankings.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 9, 2024

University of Tokyo moves up a spot to 28th in World University Rankings

Many of Japan’s top universities moved up in the latest rankings announced on Wednesday, with five of them in the top 200.
Jets coach Robert Saleh hugs quarterback Aaron Rodgers during their game against the Patriots in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Sept. 19.
MORE SPORTS
Oct 10, 2024

Aaron Rodgers denies any involvement in Jets' decision to fire Robert Saleh

Some reports said that Rodgers had been unhappy with a plan by Saleh to demote offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett.
Francisco Lindor (center) celebrates with his teammates in the dugout after hitting a grand slam against the Phillies during Game 4 of the NLDS on Wednesday in New York.
BASEBALL / MLB
Oct 10, 2024

Francisco Lindor hits grand slam to propel Mets past Phillies and into NLCS

He joined Edgardo Alfonzo as the only Mets players to hit a postseason grand slam, and the Mets booked their first NLCS appearance since 2015.
The wellness amenities at Six Senses Kyoto are just the latest example of hotels in Japan bolstering their relaxation offerings to attract guests.
LIFE / Travel
Oct 12, 2024

Can't choose a Kansai hotel? Perhaps a wellness screening will help you decide.

The holistic offerings at Six Senses Kyoto and Four Seasons Osaka are part of a growing wellness travel trend sweeping Japan.

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