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JAPAN
May 29, 2009

Concern greets nomination of new U.S. envoy

The nomination Thursday of a virtually unknown lawyer as the next U.S. ambassador to Japan was greeted with more concern than optimism by experts and the government.
EDITORIALS
May 14, 2009

New approach to a dispute?

In meeting with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in Tokyo on Tuesday, Prime Minister Taro Aso apparently wanted to achieve some progress in the Northern Territories issue. But Mr. Putin apparently gave priority to strengthening bilateral economic ties. Thus the two leaders mostly talked past each...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
May 5, 2009

Mean streets feared under Tokyo's new safety law

Last month a group of activists called Dystopia Tokyo called a protest against what they described as a "Draconian" new city ordinance by conservative Gov. Shintaro Ishihara.
JAPAN
Apr 19, 2009

North 'missile factory' used Japan parts

NEW DELHI (Kyodo) Japanese precision tools and steel were found in missile-making equipment taken from a North Korean freighter detained at an Indian port in June 1999 while en route to Pakistan, a former senior Indian official said Saturday.
BUSINESS
Mar 17, 2009

Ailing Hitachi names new president

Hitachi Ltd. said Monday it will replace its president and separate two businesses after the company forecast a record loss.
Reader Mail
Mar 15, 2009

'Anime' needs new business model

The March 4 article "Future of 'anime' industry in doubt" highlighted many of my own growing frustrations. I moved to Japan from the United States as an English teacher a little more than two years ago. I was a casual anime fan who had just completed a degree in literature and film studies, including...
JAPAN
Mar 14, 2009

DPJ seeks new rules on donations

Amid the political fundraising scandal involving the arrest of party President Ichiro Ozawa's chief secretary, Democratic Party of Japan executives are calling for a rule barring companies that bid on public works projects from donating to political parties.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Mar 6, 2009

New theater keeps it short and sweet

History is being made on the second floor of a new apartment block in Yokohama's waterfront Minato Mirai district where, since February 2008, the Brillia Short Shorts Theater has been Japan's first and only cinema dedicated to films under 25 minutes long. The one-screen venue is now showing this year's...
BUSINESS
Feb 27, 2009

TGE turns down Tocom merger

The Tokyo Grain Exchange, which forecasts a net loss this year, is rejecting proposals to merge with other bourses and will boost product offerings to revive profit, according to Chairman Yoshiaki Watanabe.
Reader Mail
Feb 26, 2009

Problem with new ID system

Regarding the Feb. 18 article "Justice Ministry looking to take over foreigner ID cards": It seems that neither The Japan Times nor other English-language newspapers can agree on whether changes to the new zairyu (residence) cards would have to be reported to the Immigration Bureau or to the Justice...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 25, 2009

Firms warming to work-sharing

Yasuo Igarashi spends a lot of time these days on the jungle gym with his daughter, after his employer joined the growing ranks of companies adopting work-sharing to ride out the global slump.
CULTURE / Film
Feb 20, 2009

'Halfway'

"Halfway" ("Harufuwei") has one of those katakana titles that is supposed to sound vaguely exotic and mysterious to its intended audience — Japanese of about the same age as its teenage protagonists — but may strike native speakers as prosaic, even boring.
JAPAN
Feb 18, 2009

'Progress' clause a tangible threat

The agreement Japan and the United States signed Tuesday on relocating U.S. Marines from Okinawa to Guam notes that the move is dependent on "tangible progress" toward completing a replacement facility for Air Station Futenma in Ginowan and on Japanese money to fund the development of facilities and...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 13, 2009

'Heaven's Door'/'Lost Girl'

Youth, illness and love are the basic ingredients of many a movie, especially in Japan, where romantic dramas about dying teenagers are about as common as convenience stores.
JAPAN
Jan 29, 2009

MSDF's hands tied on antipiracy tour

With Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada's orders to prepare the Maritime Self-Defense Force for dispatch Wednesday, the government has officially given the green light to an antipiracy mission around the Horn of Africa.
BUSINESS
Jan 23, 2009

Citing high costs, Allianz to halt new insurance sales here

Allianz SE, Europe's biggest insurer by market value, will stop selling new insurance contracts in Japan less than a year after entering the market, saying the cost to cover guarantees is too high.

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