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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping attend a family photo ceremony prior to the BRICS Summit plenary session in Kazan, Russia, in October 2024.
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 26, 2025

China's Xi to welcome Putin and Modi in grand display of Global South solidarity

This year's summit will be the largest since 2001, China has said, calling the bloc an "important force in building a new type of international relations."
Iran's national flag flies over the Iranian embassy in Canberra on Tuesday, the day Australia's government said it is expelling Iran's ambassador, accusing the country of being behind antisemitic attacks in Melbourne and Sydney.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 26, 2025

Australia expels Iranian ambassador over antisemitic attacks

Australian intelligence services reached the "deeply disturbing conclusion" that Iran directed at least two arsons, in Melbourne and Sydney.
An advertisement for McDonald's new protein slice is displayed on an ordering kiosk at a McDonald's restaurant in Bengaluru, India
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Aug 26, 2025

In protein-deficient India, McDonald's, Bollywood and cricket fuel wellness craze

McDonald's has joined India's biggest dairy Amul, startups and a company backed by Bollywood superstar to unleash a marketing blitz with celebrity chefs pushing protein as crucial.
Suyun Ham, an engineering professor at UTA, reviews data from a recent inspection with two other researchers. Ham likens his technology to a “portable MRI,” which can detect cracks and other hidden dangers in a bridge.
ENVIRONMENT
Aug 26, 2025

Are bridges near you safe? This MRI-like scan may prevent disaster

An engineering professor from the University of Texas at Arlington is experimenting with a novel approach to inspecting bridges for heat damage.
People shield themselves from the sun with umbrellas in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Aug 27, 2025

Tokyo logs record 10 days of 35 C or hotter, weather agency says

Japan sweltered through its hottest ever June and July this year.
Soldiers of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of China attend training ahead of a military parade to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II in Beijing on Aug. 20.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 27, 2025

China's rulers push party role before WWII anniversary

Under Chinese President Xi Jinping, special attention has been paid to pushing the "correct" interpretation of the complex history of the victory over Japan.
Naomi Osaka advanced to the second round of the U.S. Open on Tuesday.
TENNIS
Aug 28, 2025

Naomi Osaka hoping to recapture old magic at U.S. Open

Osaka, a former world No. 1, has not gone beyond the last 32 of a Grand Slam since capturing the last of her four major titles at the 2021 Australian Open.
Virtual singer Kaf got her start in 2018 by posting songs and covers to YouTube. Now, after having performed live shows at major venues including Tokyo’s Nippon Budokan, she is turning to voice acting and starring in the new anime series “Kamitsubaki City Under Construction.”
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Aug 28, 2025

Virtual singer Kaf's music becomes magic in 'Kamitsubaki City Under Construction'

After evolving from an online presence into a live performer, Kaf has now stepped into voice acting as part of a multimedia project built around a supergroup of virtual artists.
The ByteDance logo at the company's office building in Shanghai in 2023. The company plans to offer to buy back current employees shares at a price 5.5% higher than it offered in a previous repurchase program about six months ago.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 28, 2025

TikTok owner ByteDance sets valuation at over $330 billion in planned buyback

The latest buyback at a higher valuation will come as ByteDance consolidates its position as the world's largest social media company by revenue.
The factory of Asahi Tekko, which produces parts for Toyota vehicles, in Hekinan, Japan, on Aug. 18
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 28, 2025

The backbone of the global auto supply chain is at risk from Trump’s tariffs

Industry experts expect a devastating effect on the dense networks of auto parts suppliers that make everything from pistons to wiring.
A correctional services van holding media tycoon Jimmy Lai arrives at the West Kowloon court for his national security trial in Hong Kong on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Aug 28, 2025

Hong Kong wraps up pro-democracy tycoon Jimmy Lai's security trial

The 156-day trial has become the most high-profile example of China's crackdown on rights and freedoms in the Asian financial hub.
Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a reception at the Kremlin in Moscow on May 9.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 29, 2025

Russia eyes China trade revival as Putin prepares for Xi summit, sources say

"Ahead of the visit, officials on both sides are looking into ways to increase trade because the current numbers do not look good," one source said.
Jesse Kirkwood is part of a vibrant field of translators who have nurtured what might be called a “post-Murakami era of Japanese literature and translation,” one book at a time.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Aug 29, 2025

Jesse Kirkwood: ‘Languages are entire cultural universes with all sorts of baggage’

The Japanese-English literary translator reflects on catching the recent wave of “post-Murakami” fiction and how he balances reading for work versus pleasure.
A McDonald’s Japan Pokemon card promotion triggered scalper frenzy, upset children and forced the company to rethink its Happy Set campaigns.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 28, 2025

McDonald’s 'Pokemon' frenzy shows the collecting boom’s dark side

After a "Pokemon" trading card promotion went disastrously wrong, it’s been rebuked by the Consumer Affairs Agency and is rethinking future campaigns.
A sleepy Tokyo-listed operator of nail salons is aiming to reinvent itself as one of the world’s largest corporate holders of Bitcoin.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 30, 2025

Japanese nails salon attempts reinvention as major bitcoin holder

The shift is the latest in a wave of radical financial reinventions pulling the likes of biotech firms and regional banks into crypto’s orbit.
A Y-20 tanker aircraft and Chengdu J-20 jet fighters fly in a formation during a flyover rehearsal ahead of a military parade to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, in Beijing on Aug. 24.
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Aug 30, 2025

Beyond the 'bling,' China aims for deterrence in military show

Questions remain about how effectively China's armed forces — untested since a bloody border conflict with Vietnam in 1979 — could knit its gear together in a future conflict.
U.S. Senator Roger Wicker (third from right),  chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, poses for pictures alongside U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer (third from left) and others upon arriving at the Songshan Airport in Taipei on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 30, 2025

Senior U.S. senator expects joint weapons production with Taiwan

A Taiwan official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that co-production of weapons was "very important."
Indonesian Army members load burned police vehicles onto a trailer with a forklift at the East Jakarta Police Resort Office in Jakarta on Saturday, after a demonstration the night before.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 31, 2025

Indonesia’s president scraps China trip after deadly protests

The last-minute cancellation comes soon after the demonstrations turned violent on Friday, leaving at least three people dead and dozens of public facilities destroyed.
Novak Djokovic in action against Jan-Lennard Struff in the fourth round of the men’s singles at the U.S. Open at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York
TENNIS
Sep 1, 2025

Djokovic makes Grand Slam history with commanding U.S. Open win

The victory moved Djokovic into his 64th Grand Slam quarterfinal, extending his all-time record, while keeping alive his pursuit of a record 25th major title.
"It's not just about sales. It's about system change," said Marty Pomphrey, general manager of Patagonia Japan, on Aug. 6.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 1, 2025

‘Cool’ Patagonia wants to take used items into the mainstream

The American outdoor brand is looking to make the offering of secondhand goods alongside new products the next step of its evolution.
Elon Musk has voiced support for anti-immigration protest in Japan, where a "Japanese First" party saw gains in recent elections.
JAPAN
Sep 2, 2025

Musk voices support for anti-immigration rally in Japan

Commenting on Monday on a video of the rally posted on X by an account called The British Patriot, the Tesla and SpaceX chief said, "Good."
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping attend the BRICS Summit plenary session in Kazan, Russia, on Oct. 23.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 2, 2025

Realism and realpolitik rule Indian foreign policy

A decade from now, there is likely to be heated debate in the United States over “who lost India,” an accounting that may rival the “who lost China?”
Protesters wave a pirate flag from the Japanese anime "One Piece," an internet trend used to criticize government policies, during a demonstration in front of the Bali police station in Denpasar, Indonesia, on Saturday.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 2, 2025

Indonesia’s protests may fade. The fury won’t.

Politicians and business tycoons from the previous era still have clout, through dynastic parties, family owned businesses and patronage networks.
Structural issues — including population decline, job shortages and an insufficient social-safety net — are hampering China's consumption and demand.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Sep 3, 2025

The fissures beneath China’s positive GDP numbers

Despite positive Chinese growth, the world’s second largest economy is plagued by a prolonged real-estate crisis and persistently high unemployment rates.
A TV screen shows Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto arriving in China for a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 3, 2025

Prabowo jets to meet Xi in China after deadly Indonesia protests

The pivot to global diplomacy shows the Indonesian leader is confidant the situation in his country has been defused.
Police have urged the public to be suspicious if an acquaintance on social media ends up asking for cash.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 3, 2025

Over the moon: Fake astronaut scams lovestruck Japanese octogenarian

The woman in Hokkaido met the fraudster in July on social media, a local police officer said, describing the case as a "romance scam."
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi meet on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Tianjin, China, on Monday. The meeting exposed a central tension in New Delhi’s foreign policy: a desire not to be tied down.
COMMENTARY
Sep 3, 2025

India’s diplomatic dance: Cosmetic rapprochement and an enduring rivalry

India’s moves at the SCO were neither a tilt toward Beijing nor a retreat from the West.
Chloe Malle has been named the next editor-in-chief of Vogue, succeeding Anna Wintour, according to media reports.
LIFE / Style & Design
Sep 3, 2025

Vogue appoints Chloe Malle to replace fashion doyenne Anna Wintour

After months of speculation, Vogue named Malle as its new editor, taking over from Wintour, who led the magazine for more than 40 years.
Naomi Osaka celebrates after defeating Czech Republic's Karolina Muchova in the U.S. Open quarterfinals on Wednesday in New York.
TENNIS
Sep 4, 2025

Osaka surges into U.S. Open semifinals in straight sets

The Japanese 23rd seed, enjoying her deepest run in a Grand Slam since a 2021 victory at the Australian Open, advanced to the last four in just under two hours.
McLaren's Oscar Piastri races to victory at the Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday in Zandvoort.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Sep 4, 2025

Bahrain and Abu Dhabi funds take full ownership of McLaren

Bahrain sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat will remain the majority shareholder with CYVN, majority-owned by the government of Abu Dhabi, having a non-controlling stake.

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