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Japan Times
WORLD / EU SPECIAL 2013
May 9, 2013

Japan, EU look to trade pact as way to lift up economies

Japan and the European Union have taken an important step toward deepening their relationship by starting formal negotiations on a free trade agreement in April, seeking to boost their faltering economies by creating one of the world's largest free-trade accords that will account for about 30 percent...
Japan Times
WORLD
May 6, 2013

The shifting strategy of battlefield preservation

In 1988, Sen. Dale Bumpers of Arkansas pleaded with his colleagues to pass legislation that would prevent a new shopping mall on land integral to the Second Battle of Manassas. He imagined a future in which ever more commercial development encroached on land in Virginia preserved by the National Park...
COMMENTARY / World
May 6, 2013

New opportunities for ADB

Once again a leader from Japan has the opportunity to bring the Asian Development Bank into the modern world and to elevate the organization above backroom deals.
COMMENTARY / World
May 6, 2013

Beware China's civilian-military relationship

Do China's rulers have full civilian control of their country's military? The U.S. and Japan should ask that question as Beijing hardens its stance on its maritime claims.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 2, 2013

Huffington Post looks to weave new Web in Japan

The Japanese version of the Huffington Post will offer a website that spurs more interaction between the media and the public and empower Generation Y, the children of the baby boomers, said Shigeki Matsuura, editor-in-chief of Huffington Post Japan, which is scheduled to launch next Tuesday.
Reader Mail
May 2, 2013

Abe afflicted by tunnel vision

Japan's Shinzo Abe, unlike his American counterpart, is enslaving himself to a revisionist course in Japan, defying all rhyme and reason. Believing that rewriting the past can make it go away could again split Asia in two — Japan and the rest.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / JAPAN-CHINA SYMPOSIUM
Apr 30, 2013

Eurozone fiscal union will only exacerbate political crisis: critic

Any moves toward a fiscal union among the eurozone countries as a solution to the region's ongoing debt crisis will only create an even worse political crisis, a veteran British journalist said at a recent seminar in Tokyo.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Apr 29, 2013

Indian activists push for clean cities

As more Indians travel the world and their country's growing economy and population gain more global attention, they are increasingly embarrassed about one of India's dirtiest features: its cities.
BUSINESS
Apr 29, 2013

GOP shifts budget focus from cuts to tax reform

With another fight over the national debt brewing this summer, congressional Republicans are de-emphasizing their demand for politically painful cuts to retirement programs and focusing on a more popular prize: a thorough rewrite of the U.S. tax code.
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Apr 28, 2013

Disaster long lurked amid Japan's isolation

"The evolution of political thought in this relatively isolated island nation during the period in question is unique to the point of being somewhat freakish."
WORLD
Apr 28, 2013

Air delays get swift action as House OKs funding bill

Sequestration became a reality to the broad public in airports across the the United States this past week, and on Friday both Congress and the White House caved in to pressure from tens of thousands of airline passengers angered by flight delays.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 27, 2013

Globe-trotting Abe has energy on the brain

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is embarking on a diplomatic quest from Sunday that will take him halfway around the globe to Russia and the Middle East accompanied by dozens of top corporate executives, with one key goal in mind: energy.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 26, 2013

Gondry's bus proves a great vehicle for teen drama

Franu00e7ois Truffaut once said that the most important quality for a filmmaker is to retain his inner child. In that sense, Michel Gondry fits the bill almost to a fault.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 26, 2013

Somalia comes back enough to receive arms

Somalia was a failed state for more than 20 years. But now it has come back enough for the U.N. Security Council to partially lift the embargo on arms sales.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 25, 2013

Reassessing Thatcher's legacy

Now that her funeral is over, let's begin a dispassionate assessment of why politicians of all parties remain enthralled by the legacy of Margaret Thatcher.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 25, 2013

Baucus retirement sets stage for sweeping legislative changes

Montana Sen. Max Baucus, one of the most influential congressional figures of his era, announced his intention Tuesday to retire, a move that could produce sweeping changes in the political and legislative landscape over the next two years.
EDITORIALS
Apr 25, 2013

Italy turns to Mr. Napolitano, again

Italy could do worse than re-elect 87-year-old Giorgio Napolitano to a second term as president. At least it's one thing dysfunctional politicians agree on.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 24, 2013

Boston's terror and the children of the fault lines

Civilizational battles were once waged by warriors who donned garments of different lands. Today it is boys with baseball caps who carry death in their backpacks.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 24, 2013

A strong Japan can help the United States in Asia

China's continuing dispatch of ships and aircraft to the Senkaku (Diaoyu) Islands previews the future Japan faces if Beijing keeps rising and Tokyo keeps falling.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Apr 23, 2013

Is legislation weighty enough to rebalance election system?

While the Cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe enjoys high support rates, hovering around 70 percent, its very legitimacy is being questioned.
EDITORIALS
Apr 23, 2013

Education reform over-reaches

It's possible that an Abe administration panel proposal to simplify the board of education system could vest local government leaders with too much influence.
WORLD
Apr 22, 2013

How the Boston bombing investigation unfolded

Within hours of the Boston Marathon bombing, investigators were already overwhelmed. Bloody clothing, bags, shoes and other evidence from victims and witnesses was piling up. Videos and still images, thousands of them, were pouring in by email and Twitter.
COMMENTARY / Japan / THE VIEW FROM EUROPE
Apr 22, 2013

Polished PR, perception strategy fourth arrow in 'Abenomics' quiver

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is back and so, it appears, is Japan. The yen is down, the Nikkei up, and approval ratings and expectations for the new government are sky high.
Reader Mail
Apr 21, 2013

A situation similar to Britain's

The April 12 editorial "A decisive but divisive leader" makes me contemplate a lot of things. For better or worse, former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher played an active role in ending the Cold War and was one of the tough advocates of neoliberalism. A lot of people, though, believe this led...
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Apr 20, 2013

Climate change feared to create global food crisis

When Tunisian street vendor Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire Dec. 17, 2010, it was in protest at heavy-handed treatment and harassment in his province. But a host of new studies suggest that a major factor in the subsequent uprisings that became known as the Arab Spring was food insecurity.
EDITORIALS
Apr 20, 2013

Online campaigning nears

Enactment of a bill to allow candidates' campaigns to use the Internet is expected to increase people's interest in politics and voters' turnout at the polls.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 19, 2013

China-Pakistan nuclear axis defies nonproliferation aims

The China-Pakistan relationship may be the only one where a nuclear-armed state has passed on fissile material and a bomb design to a nonnuclear weapons state.

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