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Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in Bangkok on July 9
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 16, 2025

Thai ex-PM Thaksin appears on stand in royal defamation case

Thaksin faces up to 15 years in prison if he is convicted in the closed-door trial in Bangkok, where he stands accused of breaching strict lese majeste laws.
Hirofumi Yoshimura, leader of Nippon Ishin no Kai, outlines his party’s policies during a news conference at the Diet building in Tokyo on June 30.
COMMENTARY / Japan / From Party Leaders
Jul 16, 2025

Nippon Ishin stakes its appeal on real results as Upper House vote nears

Neither the ruling coalition or other opposition parties have advanced political reform.
Mayu Ushida, a former NHK newscaster running for election in the Tokyo electoral district on the Democratic Party for the People ticket, signs an autograph for a voter after a public rally at Shinjuku Station in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 17, 2025

From stalking to death threats, female candidates still face harassment

As Japan aims to increase the number of women in politics, addressing the issue of unwanted attention from men remains a challenge.
Shigeru Ishiba, prime minister and president of the Liberal Democratic Party, gives a campaign speech in Yokohama on July 6.
COMMENTARY / Japan / From Party Leaders
Jul 17, 2025

In uncertain times, Japan needs responsible leadership

As a responsible political party, the LDP is determined to consistently pursue policies that are accountable to future generations.
Komeito leader Tetsuo Saito takes part in a debate with the heads of other political parties at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on July 2.
COMMENTARY / Japan / From Party Leaders
Jul 17, 2025

Komeito hears those hit hardest by rising prices

“To stand forever with common citizens.” Our party has faithfully abided by that founding principle for over six decades
A former company employee who posts highlight videos on YouTube prepares to livestream Shinji Ishimaru's stump speech in Tokyo in June. Jiji
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 17, 2025

Highlight videos online playing big role in Upper House election

Social media is increasingly impacting election results in Japan amid the growing popularity of YouTube and other video-sharing sites.
People with intellectual disabilities take part in a study session on the Upper House election in Higashiosaka, Osaka Prefecture, on July 8.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 18, 2025

People with intellectual disabilities create election dictionary

The dictionary contains about 170 election-related terms, such as "the right to vote," "candidate" and "democracy."
Just 17% of Americans approve of U.S. President Donald Trump's handling of the Jeffery Epstein case, a weaker rating than the president received on any other issue in the poll.
WORLD
Jul 18, 2025

Trump faces backlash as 69% believe Epstein details concealed, poll finds

Close to two-thirds of Republicans surveyed think the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is hiding details on Jeffrey Epstein's business.
People vote during Japan's Upper House election at a polling station in Tokyo on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 20, 2025

Polls open for key Upper House election that could shake Japanese politics

A variety of scenarios await the country should the ruling coalition lose its majority in the Upper House — from an enlarged coalition to an opposition-led government.
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro attends an interview in Brasilia on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 19, 2025

Defiant Bolsonaro says he is the one to stop Lula, China and Trump tariffs

Brazil's right-wing former president cast himself as the man to renegotiate U.S. tariffs, curb Chinese influence and beat back leftists in Brazil.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who serves concurrently as leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, waves to voters from atop an election campaign van during a rally Friday in Yokohama for Sunday's Upper House election.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 19, 2025

Ishiba's future in balance as polls hint at rout in Upper House election

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba likes the nitty gritty of policy, cigarettes and making models, but his dream job as Japanese leader could go up in smoke this weekend.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who serves concurrently as  president of the Liberal Democratic Party, delivers a campaign speech in Yokohama on July 6.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 19, 2025

Japan's minority government faces election snub as economic storm brews

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's LDP and its partner Komeito are forecast to lose their majority in a repeat of last year's Lower House election.
Since January, U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly pushed to secure more power for himself, calling for judges to be axed, firing independent watchdogs and sidestepping the legislative process.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 19, 2025

'Frightening': Trump's historic power grab worries experts

The Republican leader has spent six months testing the limits of his authority like no other modern U.S. president.
Russian hockey star Alex Ovechkin walks along a street in Moscow decorated in his honor on Saturday.
MORE SPORTS / Ice Hockey
Jul 20, 2025

Ovechkin calls for Russian return to global sports

The Washington Capitals superstar received a jubilant reception during his first trip home since setting the NHL's all-time scoring record.
A guilty ruling by a Chinese court for a Japanese employee at Astellas Pharma on a spying charge will be finalized if he does not file an appeal by the deadline in late July.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 20, 2025

Astellas employee won't appeal spying conviction in China

A Beijing district court that imposed the prison sentence is believed to have found the man guilty of espionage for providing information to an intelligence agency.
Pedestrians walk in front of an election notice board displaying posters of candidates in Tokyo on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 20, 2025

Voters in Tokyo reflect shifting political views across Japan

Many constituents, frustrated with the current state of affairs, have turned away from the LDP and are seeking possibilities in newer and smaller parties.
In 2020, 38% of all households were single-person. That figure is projected to rise to 44.3% by 2050.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Jul 21, 2025

The rise of AI companionship in a lonely Japan

AI chatbots are becoming stand-ins for pets and partners — offering comfort, connection and raising new concerns.
A police officer walks past posters of Liberal Democratic Party candidates, as well as one showing Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, outside the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Sunday. As Japan’s foreign population continues to rise, one of the talking points during Sunday’s election was how the country should deal with the increase of international residents.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 21, 2025

Foreign residents closely follow Japan's election and party pledges

As electoral results could impact their lives, The Japan Times asked several foreign residents to weigh in.
Modern global politics, marked by personal rivalries, nickname-driven rhetoric and apocalyptic religious fervor, resembles a “re-medievalization” that challenges the ideals of the Enlightenment.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 21, 2025

The Middle Ages are making a political comeback

Increasingly medieval language from the world’s leaders does not bode well for the rest of us.
Protesters hold a “Stand Up for Science” march in Sacramento, California, on March 7. Faced with deep budget cuts and political threats, scientists in the U.S. and Japan are realizing they must step out of the lab to defend science’s place in society.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 21, 2025

Scientists can’t stay in their ivory tower

Now is the time for scientists to return to society — not just as experts, but as engaged members of the public.
A nurse takes a blood sample from a child for an HIV test at a clinic in Diepsloot, north of Johannesburg, South Africa, on March 12.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 21, 2025

Tighter borders bar poor nations from summits — on poor nations

Sudanese climate activist Roaa should have been leading meetings with other youth advocates at a United Nations climate conference in Germany in June.
“As the first party in parliament, we have to fulfill our responsibility with the public so as to prevent politics from stagnating or drifting away,” Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said at a news conference at the Liberal Democratic Party headquarters in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 21, 2025

Ishiba clings to leadership after election setback

In the wake of another electoral setback, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s political capital has plunged.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba attends a news conference at Liberal Democratic Party headquarters in Tokyo on Monday, a day after his coalition lost its Upper House majority.
COMMENTARY
Jul 22, 2025

Ishiba loses his ‘mandate from heaven’

After Sunday’s humiliation at the polls, whatever mandate from heaven Ishiba once commanded is lost.
Komeito head Tetsuo Saito speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 22, 2025

Upper House election confirms inexorable decline of voting blocs

Unaffiliated voters were the kingmakers in Sunday’s election.
Sohei Kamiya, founder of the Sanseito, which campaigned on a “Japanese first” message and tough immigration rhetoric, speaks at a rally in Gunma Prefecture on July 6.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 23, 2025

Ignore the election hype, foreign residents are here to stay

While the number of foreign residents reached a record high last year, it’s still barely over 3% of the total population, low by international standards.
A protester runs onto the road near the finish of Stage 11 of the Tour de France on July 16.
MORE SPORTS / Cycling
Jul 24, 2025

Activists protest Gaza war during Tour de France and call for Israeli team ban

Dozens of pro-Palestinian activists waved flags and unfurled banners on Wednesday as the Tour de France peloton rode through Dieulefit.
The diffusion index on living conditions in Japan is at its lowest level in nearly 16 years.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 24, 2025

Japan might be in a technical recession already

GDP appears to have declined for a second consecutive quarter, while wages remain stagnant and consumer sentiment weak.
Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte delivers a statement following her impeachment by the lower house of the Congress, in her office at Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila, Philippines, in February.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 26, 2025

Philippine court says Sara Duterte impeachment unlawful

The ruling was a stunning victory for the embattled vice president and rival of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
Kuomintang lawmaker Hsu Chiao-hsin celebrates after the results of the recall election in Taipei on Saturday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jul 27, 2025

Taiwan opposition defeats recall and keeps legislative control

Voters overwhelmingly rejected an attempt to recall 24 Kuomintang lawmakers.
A supporter (center right) of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba holds up a placard reading "Don't quit Ishiba" as he takes part in a rally across the street from the Prime Minister's Office in central Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 27, 2025

Stay or go? Key events give Ishiba time to ponder his future.

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has pledged to stay in office — in defiance of growing calls for him to step down after the LDP's poor showing in the Upper House election.

Longform

An illustration features the Japanese signs for "ganbare" (good luck) and the Deaflympics, which will be held between Nov. 15 and 26.
A century of Deaf sport finds its moment in Tokyo