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Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 10, 2016

Obama 'committed to Pacific trade deal,' even as opposition spreads

U.S. President Barack Obama is fully committed to pushing for Congress to ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) deal despite anti-trade sentiment gaining steam on the presidential election campaign trail, National Security Adviser Susan Rice said Wednesday.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Mar 9, 2016

Minamisoma mayor sees future for Fukushima 'nonnuclear' city in energy independence

Turning to the use of solar and wind power in tandem with energy-saving measures, Mayor Katsunobu Sakurai is aiming for his city to be energy self-reliant by 2030.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 8, 2016

Stop thinking 'reformers vs. conservatives' in Iran

The rest of the world may be confused, but for Tehran's business community and cafe-loving urbanites, it's pretty clear who won Iran's recent parliamentary election: They did.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 7, 2016

U.S. must continue to promote democracy in Southeast Asia

Because of its focus on containing China, the U.S. appears reluctant about pressing the Thai military to step aside for the sake of democracy.
Japan Times
JAPAN / GENERATIONAL CHANGE
Mar 6, 2016

Tohoku returnee taps biz expertise to revive tsunami-stunned Ishinomaki neighborhood

Like many other coastal areas devastated by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, when entrepreneur Takashi Tachibana, 46, first stepped into the remote Ogatsu district to help Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, it was chaos.
BUSINESS
Mar 4, 2016

From Schengen to 'Brexit,' risks to the euro are stacking up

It is not only European Central Bank stimulus that has the potential to hurt the euro.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Mar 4, 2016

Obama-led EPA rule to curb mercury air pollution stands: Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court sided with the Obama administration on Thursday in rebuffing a bid by 20 states to halt an Environmental Protection Agency rule to curb emissions of mercury and other toxic pollutants from power plants.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 3, 2016

Russia may be preparing a privatization fire sale

Faced with a rapidly deteriorating fiscal position, Russia's government has announced that it will privatize major state-owned firms, but institutional reforms are needed first.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Mar 2, 2016

Upon re-entry back home after expat life, brace yourself for turbulence

Survey of Japanese returnees suggests two divergent emotional journeys for those heading back home after a stretch abroad.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 29, 2016

The high price of Japan's economic gaffes

Finance minister Taro Aso's ability to survive repeated gaffes shows how little has changed under Abenomics.
CULTURE / Music / STRANGE BOUTIQUE
Feb 28, 2016

Icy Kanazawa, sunny Naha: A tale of two live scenes

I have been traveling around the country since September meeting people involved in different independent music scenes in such places as Hokkaido, and Iwate and Saitama prefectures. After taking a break over winter, I resumed my travels this month and headed to the contrasting environments of icy Ishikawa...
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 28, 2016

Europeans should spend more for their defense

The question has to be asked: Why is the U.S. defending Europe? The need for America to play an overwhelming role disappeared when the Cold War ended.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Feb 28, 2016

Japan Inc. slowly shedding LGBT taboos but bias laws still lag

Yusuke Kitamura hid his sexuality from colleagues for most of his career. It was only after joining one of Japan's oldest brokerages last year that he could tell them he was gay.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 27, 2016

Uncertainty over negative interest and My Number may spur Japanese to stash more cash at home

Japanese people already store an enormous amount of cash in their homes, and this trend is only likely to increase in the wake of recent developments.
JAPAN
Feb 26, 2016

Japan restarts fourth atomic reactor since 2012 moratorium

The Takahama No. 4 reactor in Fukui becomes the fourth to be restarted since 2012 and the first to burn plutonium-containing MOX fuel.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Feb 26, 2016

Young guns take aim at declining sake sales

Sake in Japan is undergoing an image makeover. It's desperately trying to become one of the cool kids again. Currently the second-lowest consumed alcoholic beverage in the country — whiskey and brandy being the lowest — sake only has a 6.8 percent market share according to a National Tax Agency Report...
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 26, 2016

Gas from thawing permafrost could add further to global warming, study says

Arctic permafrost that is thawing due to global warming is releasing greenhouse gases, further compounding the problem of climate change, according to a study released on Thursday.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 25, 2016

Parsing the Sunnylands Declaration 'principles'

The Sunnylands Declaration is full of false hopes and disengenousness.
BUSINESS
Feb 25, 2016

G-20 action needed on growth, IMF report says

The world's biggest economies urgently need new ways to support demand and contain risks as the outlook for global growth deteriorates, International Monetary Fund staff members say.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / TELLING LIVES
Feb 24, 2016

NGO's Japanese founder foments organic revolution in Vietnam

Seed to Table helps locals rediscover lost agricultural wisdom and pull themselves out of poverty with duck and cow 'banks.'
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 24, 2016

China seen locking in gains as fighter jets reported on isle in South China Sea

In the latest in a series of moves that is likely to stoke already heated tensions in the South China Sea, Beijing has sent fighter jets to an island where it has deployed surface-to-air missile batteries, U.S. media said Tuesday.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 23, 2016

Key lessons from the latest North Korean crisis

The North Korea crisis reveals deep-rooted problems in the region.

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear