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U.S. President Joe Biden leaves after delivering remarks during an event at the College of Southern Nevada North Las Vegas Campus, in Las Vegas, on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 19, 2024

Biden faces mounting speculation amid pressure to drop his bid

Conjecture over if, when, or how U.S. President Joe Biden might step aside has dominated the political conversation.
A solar farm in Shilin, China. Last year, China installed more solar panels than the United States has in its entire history.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jul 19, 2024

Why the era of China’s soaring carbon emissions might be ending

The biggest factor in the shift is changes to how China produces its electricity.
Recent events in U.S. politics, including an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, a favorable court ruling and his nomination at the Republican National Convention, have strengthened the perception he may be “untouchable,” yet nothing is set in stone.
EDITORIALS
Jul 19, 2024

Trump’s wild week and a changing U.S. presidential race

Recent events have reinforced the idea of the “Teflon Don,” an extraordinarily lucky man for whom the laws of politics do not apply.
“Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman” incorporates six Murakami short stories from three books into a single intertwined narrative that centers on a trio of lonely Tokyoites.
CULTURE / Film / CULTURE SMASH
Jul 20, 2024

'Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman' is an immersive journey into Murakami's world

Pierre Foldes' beautiful adaptation of six Haruki Murakami stories features one of the author's most memorable characters, who injects the film with self-aware humor.
U.S. President Joe Biden takes part in a conversation with former U.S. President Barack Obama and late-night talk-show host Jimmy Kimmel during a star-studded campaign fundraiser at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on June 15.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 20, 2024

Biden fundraisers on hold as July donations plummet, sources say

The move comes even as the Democratic Party planned to accelerate his nomination and he vowed to continue in the 2024 race.
Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy greets then-U.S. President Donald Trump during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York in September 2019.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 20, 2024

Trump says he spoke with Zelenskyy and pledges to 'end the war'

Zelenskyy said earlier this week that he and Trump would "work together" if the Republican won the White House.
U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich, accused of espionage, stands inside a glass defendants' cage during the verdict announcement at the Sverdlovsk Regional Court in Yekaterinburg, Russia, on Friday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jul 20, 2024

Russian court jails U.S. reporter Evan Gershkovich for 16 years in spy case

Gershkovich went on trial in the city of Yekaterinburg last month after being accused of trying to gather sensitive information about a tank factory.
An aerial view on Monday of the Butler Farm Show grounds in Butler, Pennsylvania, where a gunman attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally on July 13.
WORLD / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Jul 20, 2024

From honor student to the gunman who tried to kill Donald Trump

Thomas Crooks was a brainy and quiet young man who built computers and won honors at school, impressing his teachers. Then he became a would-be assassin.
Ukrainian military Leopard 2A4 tanks during a training exercise in Spain.
WORLD
Jul 20, 2024

How a Berlin Cold War outpost offers a window on challenges today

With the West again aligned against Moscow as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine grinds on, it now seems strangely current.
French maritime police patrol the waters of the River Seine in Paris on Thursday.
OLYMPICS
Jul 21, 2024

Paris Olympics preparations hit the home stretch

Police with sniffer dogs checked the 6-kilometer route along the Seine ahead of the opening ceremony on the river.
Fuji Rock Festival's smaller stages such as the Field of Heaven offer a number of younger acts that demonstrate the thrilling new directions Japanese music is taking in the 2020s.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 21, 2024

Domestic acts at Fuji Rock's smaller stages are not to be missed

From Summer Eye to Nene, this year’s gathering offers one of the strongest collections of Japanese music present at a large-scale festival in recent times.
Data has shown that Western pension funds may inadvertently be helping Russian President Vladimir Putin as Moscow looks to ramp up liquefied natural gas exports to replenish Kremlin coffers and fund its war in Ukraine.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 21, 2024

How U.S. pension funds help Putin’s gas gambit

The case spotlights the opacity of the global finance and how hard it remains to sever Moscow from a key revenue source even two years after the Ukraine invasion.
Homes are surrounded by flood waters after Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Sargent, Texas, on July 8.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 22, 2024

The great climate change wealth transfer is here

Fossil fuel profits are sky-high, as are the costs of climate change. By subsidizing oil and gas while putting tariffs on green tech, governments are making things worst.
A child gets a break from the heat thanks to a cooling mist machine at Sensoji temple in Tokyo.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 24, 2024

Whether it's the pool or the park, teach your kids how to be safe this summer vacation

Your children are likely to sneak out of the house for some fun while school is out. Make sure they know the importance of "squid sushi."
Japan is one of the great mushroom countries of the world, so it pays to know how to make the most of these morsels in your kitchen.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jul 28, 2024

‘Mushroom Gastronomy’ makes sense of Japan’s fungal diversity

“Mushroom Gastronomy” by mycological gourmand Krista Towns demystifies the world of fungi in Japan and abroad.
A substitute teacher (Nagisa Shibuya, center front) at a junior high school finds herself caught up in strange goings-on with violent outcomes in “Who’s That Girl?”
CULTURE / Film
Jul 26, 2024

‘Who’s That Girl?’: Junior high school antics just got scarier

J-horror master Takashi Shimizu’s latest offers familiar genre elements with a practiced hand and fresh twists.
New Zealand's forward Indiah-Paige Riley battles with Canadian forward Cloe Lacasse during their Olympic group stage match on Thursday.
OLYMPICS
Jul 26, 2024

'We're not cheats,' Canada insists after Olympic soccer spying scandal

The Canadian Olympic Committee on Thursday removed head coach Bev Priestman, who took no part in the opening game, from her post.
Former U.S. President and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 26, 2024

Trump wants a weaker dollar, but Wall Street doubts he’ll get one

Donald Trump has completely overhauled the Republican Party in his populist image and named a fellow strong-dollar skeptic as his running mate.
A reddish rock nicknamed Cheyava Falls is seen in Mars' Jezero Crater on July 18 in an image captured by NASA's Perseverance rover.
WORLD / Science & Health
Jul 27, 2024

NASA did not say it found life on Mars. But it’s very excited about this rock.

The rock has been closely analyzed by scientists on Earth who say that nonmicrobial processes could also explain its features.
Railway workers and French police officers inspect the scene of an attack on the country's high-speed railway network on Friday.
WORLD
Jul 28, 2024

More trains, but few answers, after railway sabotage in France

While rail workers are claiming success, a key question still remains: Who did this and why?
Though some in the country rejected their wartime associations, the Japanese government made the Hinomaru flag and "Kimigayo" anthem official 25 years ago.
JAPAN / History / Japan Times Gone By
Aug 1, 2024

Japan Times 1999: Flag, anthem now official

After some controversy, the Hinomaru flag was made official alongside the country's national anthem, "Kimigayo."
Actors Kento Kaku (left) and Ryoma Takeuchi star in Amazon Prime Video's new show "Like A Dragon: Yakuza," which is based on a hugely popular Sega video game series about Tokyo crime gangs.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Jul 29, 2024

Japan TV can catch 'Shogun' wave, says 'Like A Dragon' star

Kento Kaku says it is important for Japan to seize the opportunity to create more shows that are recognized internationally.
Demonstrators hold a rally in Tbilisi, Georgia, in May against a bill labeling organizations that receive foreign funding as spies. The passing of the so-called Russia law has been a setback for Georgia's democracy.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
Jul 29, 2024

Democracy is on tenuous ground this ‘election year’

From former Soviet countries to India and even the U.S., democracies are backsliding and authoritarianism is gaining ground, with far-reaching global implications.
Joining the revolution brought by the era-defining release of ChatGPT requires a supply of cash that only tech behemoths like Microsoft can provide.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 29, 2024

AI startups swap independence for Big Tech's deep pockets

In the past few months promising companies have seen founders and key executives quietly exit the stage to join the world's dominant tech companies.
Luvsanbaldan Batsukh gets ready to leave his ger, or Mongolian tent, in Khishig-Undur in Bulgan province, Mongolia, on July 5.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Jul 30, 2024

Mongolia's urban-rural divide deepens as young women leave the steppe

Many raised in a traditional nomadic lifestyle have rejected a life of physical labor and fighting the elements, seeking education and employment in Ulaanbaatar.
Upper House lawmaker Megumi Hirose enters her house in Tokyo after it was raided on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 30, 2024

Tokyo prosecutors raid LDP lawmaker's home on suspicion of salary fraud

Megumi Hirose, 58, is suspected of providing one of her secretaries with a state-paid salary even though they reportedly did no real work.
From left to right, Jordan Chiles, Hezly Rivera, Simone Biles, Jade Carey and Sunisa Lee celebrate after winning gold for the U.S. in the women's gymnastics team final at the Paris Olympics on Tuesday.
OLYMPICS / Gymnastics
Jul 31, 2024

Simone Biles leads U.S. women to team gold at Paris Olympics

Japan finished last in the final round.
Japan's industrial production in June fell 3.6% from the previous month, reflecting plant suspensions at vehicle-makers including Toyota due to faulty vehicle certifications.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 31, 2024

Japan’s industrial output falls, clouding recovery outlook

The production of cars and auto parts drove the reading lower as an ongoing probe involving carmakers such as Toyota continues to disrupt output.
Prosecutors leave Upper House lawmaker Megumi Hirose's home in Tokyo on Tuesday after searching it as part of an investigation into alleged fraud.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 31, 2024

Resignation of LDP lawmaker over pay scandal adds to party's woes

Megumi Hirose has left the party over allegations she pocketed public money to pay the salary of a secretary who didn’t actually work.
Diners in the Salamanca neighborhood of Madrid in 2023
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 31, 2024

Spain ranked as the best country for remote work: report

Japan, which announced a digital nomad program on April 1, was 16th on the list.

Longform

After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan