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At modern French restaurant Crony, sommelier Kazutaka Ozawa impresses guests with his thoughtful wine pairings.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Kanpai Culture
Jun 15, 2025

Kazutaka Ozawa: ‘The best wine is the one that brings you joy'

The oenophile, who recently earned the title of Asia’s Best Sommelier, shares his thoughts on domestic sips and Tokyo’s vino trends.
A growing number of consumers, particularly people in their 50s and older, are seeking advice on troubles involving social media.
JAPAN
Jun 13, 2025

Social media user worries swell to record level in Japan

Consumers in Japan sought advice on social media-related problems in a record 86,396 cases in 2024, an annual government report showed Friday.
The executive order U.S. President Donald Trump signed imposing a “gold standard” in science appears to champion research integrity but is seen by experts as a political move to control which evidence is accepted.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 6, 2025

This isn’t how you ‘restore gold standard’ science

There’s widespread concern the executive order could allow government officials to flag almost anything as not up to their definition of "gold standard.”
A library on the campus of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, late last month
WORLD / Society
Jun 13, 2025

Foreign students scrub social media as U.S. expands visa vetting

Digital rights lawyers argue that the level of scrutiny that appears to be under consideration could set a dangerous precedent for digital surveillance in immigration processes.
A man holding a baby wades through a flooded road following heavy rainfall in Zhengzhou, China, in July 2021.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jun 13, 2025

Natural disasters may be shaping babies’ brains

The findings signal how new generations of children may be marked by climate crises that occur before they were born.
Rocket trails line the sky above Netanya, Israel, on Friday. Air raid sirens sounded in Jerusalem and loud blasts were heard the same day, as the Israeli military said it had detected missiles launched from Iran.
WORLD
Jun 14, 2025

Iran retaliates for Israeli attack with missile strikes

Attacks by Israel and Iran have shown no signs of abating, stoking fears of a broader regional conflagration in the Middle East.
U.S. Marines detain Marcos Leao, a 27 year-old veteran, outside the Wilshire Federal Building after Marines were deployed to Los Angeles, as protests against federal immigration sweeps continued in the city on Friday.
WORLD
Jun 14, 2025

U.S. Marines make first detention in LA as more protests expected

The first detention of a civilian is part of a rare domestic use of U.S. forces sent to the city after days of protests over immigration raids.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying a payload of Starlink satellites lifts off from the U.S. Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 14, 2025

White House reviews SpaceX contracts as Trump-Musk feud simmers

The administration ordered the agencies to scrutinize Musk’s contracts to ready possible retaliation against the businessman and his companies, sources said.
A woman walks with a sign depicting Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as people gather for a protest against Israel's wave of strikes on Iran in central Tehran on Friday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jun 14, 2025

Israel's attacks on Iran hint at a bigger goal: regime change

The moves appear aimed at diminishing Iran's credibility both at home and among its allies in the region — factors that could destabilize the Iranian leadership, experts said.
Missiles fired from Iran are pictured in the night sky over Jerusalem on Saturday.
WORLD
Jun 15, 2025

Israel and Iran strike at each other as Trump says conflict can be easily ended

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Israel's attacks, which began on Friday, were aimed at sabotaging nuclear talks with the U.S.
Protesters hold a U.S. flag and placards as they take part in a nationwide "No Kings" rally against President Donald Trump's policies, in Louisville, Kentucky, on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 15, 2025

Tens of thousands throng U.S. streets against 'king' Trump

Protest organizers expected rallies in all 50 U.S. states, calling them the largest since Trump returned to office in January.
Japan captain Mai Yanagida bats against Hong Kong during the women's Sano City International Trophy cricket tournament on June 4 in Sano, Tochigi Prefecture.
MORE SPORTS / Cricket
Jun 15, 2025

From samurai threat to Asian Games as Japan cricket fights obscurity

Japan's cricket association says the sport is slowly gaining popularity and hopes next year's home Asian Games and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics can take it to a new level.
Eating locally grown food could be part of a decokatsu lifestyle that's both good for the planet and your wallet.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability / OUR PLANET
Jun 15, 2025

Decokatsu could save you money and help the planet. But you probably haven't heard of it.

The ambitious government program aims to get people to live in ways that are healthier for the planet without being restrictive about it.
A registration system linking local governments with the so-called connected population — nonresidents who regularly interact with regional areas — is designed to encourage people living in urban areas to play active roles in rural communities amid their shrinking populations.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 15, 2025

Japan considers new system to connect urban and rural populations

The system aims to help those in overpopulated cities to play more active roles in rural communities with shrinking populations.
A man works at the site of a rare earth metals mine at Nancheng county, in China's Jiangxi province, in October 2010.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 15, 2025

U.S.-China trade truce leaves military-use rare earth issue unresolved

The renewed U.S.-China trade truce left a key area of export restrictions tied to national security untouched, an unresolved conflict that threatens a more comprehensive deal.
Smoke billows from a site in the city of Haifa, Israel, on Monday, following a fresh barrage of Iranian missiles.
WORLD
Jun 16, 2025

Iran lauds 'new method' as missiles hit Israel's Tel Aviv and Haifa

Iranian missiles struck the two large cities on Monday, fueling concerns that ongoing battles between the two archenemies could lead to a broader regional conflict.
A social media influencer photographs her meal for her followers.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jun 16, 2025

Influencers take bigger bite of ad pie as economic turmoil tightens budgets

Brands increased investment in influencer partnerships by 49% in 2024 and content creators topped social media marketing budgets, taking up a quarter of total annual spending.
Demonstrators shoot water pistols during a protest against mass tourism in Barcelona on Sunday.
WORLD / Society
Jun 16, 2025

Protesters against overtourism take to the streets of southern Europe

Groups across Spain, Italy and Portugal argue that uncontrolled tourism sends housing prices soaring and forces people out of their neighborhoods.
Local authorities in Tokyo are resorting to unconventional measures to raise voter turnout, including partnering with public bathhouses amid Japan’s ongoing sauna boom and collaborating with high school students to create promotional materials.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 16, 2025

Tokyo teams up with bathhouses to boost voter turnout for assembly election

The previous election in 2021 showed a much lower turnout rate among younger demographics.
People lay flowers and candles at a makeshift memorial site in front of a school in Graz, southeastern Austria, on Thursday, a day after 11 people died in a school shooting.
WORLD / Crime & Legal / ANALYSIS
Jun 16, 2025

Killings at European schools fan concern U.S. problem is spreading

The spate of school shootings is increasing momentum for tougher gun and security laws as well as more policing of social media.
Japan faces a growing crisis of social isolation, with over 1.4 million people — many middle-aged — living reclusive lifestyles, and experts say only long-term, trust-based community support can reverse the trend.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 16, 2025

Japan needs to rethink how it helps hikikomori

While hikikomori, the Japanese term for acute social withdrawal, often brings to mind young recluses in dark bedrooms, the reality is broader.
The Neuralink device, called Blindsight, stimulated areas of a monkey’s brain associated with vision, said engineer Joseph O’Doherty.
WORLD / Science & Health
Jun 16, 2025

Neuralink device helps monkey see something that’s not there

The device, called Blindsight, stimulated areas of a monkey’s brain associated with vision.
Shingo Kato, assistant manager at Homechigiru Driving School in Ise, Mie Prefecture, rides in a training vehicle with a smartphone equipped with the school’s translation app.
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jun 30, 2025

Translation apps help break language barriers at Chubu driving schools

Some driving schools have refused enrollment of foreign nationals with limited Japanese skills, sources have said.
A DJ performs for attendees drinking coffee at an alcohol-free clubbing event in Singapore.
CULTURE / Music
Jun 16, 2025

Sober clubbing brews fresh beat for Singapore's Gen Z

Not into an environment filled with alcohol? Try hitting up a coffee rave in Singapore.
Smoke billows from an explosion at the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) building in Tehran on Monday after it was struck in an Israeli attack.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 17, 2025

Israel and Iran trade blows as air war rages into fifth day

The Israeli military said Tuesday it had killed Iran's top military commander — a close confidant of the country's supreme leader — amid rising fears of a wider conflict.
With people growing increasingly wary of unknown callers and not answering their doors, more and more agencies and pollsters tasked with collecting data are using online surveys, though that comes with its own set of challenges.
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Jun 17, 2025

Faced with dwindling response rates, pollsters turn to online surveys for data

Problems with the new wave of online surveys include fresh biases in the data, confusion over questions that a computer cannot address and gaining trust.
The United Nations' World Food Programme is expected to cut up to 30% of its staff.
WORLD
Jun 17, 2025

U.N. slashes global aid plan over 'deepest funding cuts ever'

The United States — the world's top donor — has heavily slashed foreign aid since U.S. President Donald Trump returned to office in January.
Mitsubishi could announce a deal to buy the assets of Aethon Energy Management in the next couple of months, sources have said.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 17, 2025

Mitsubishi said to be in advanced talks on $8 billion Aethon deal

The Japanese conglomerate could announce a deal with the U.S. energy-focused investment firm in the next couple of months, according to sources.
Taiwan is strengthening its capacity to produce blood bags domestically in preparation for emergencies.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 17, 2025

Taiwan targets blood-bag production as China steps up pressure

President Lai Ching-te has made preparing the self-ruled archipelago for a possible conflict with China a central part of his policymaking.
Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the Democratic Party for the People (center right), and others on Tuesday at the Diet building after announcing their campaign promises for the upcoming House of Councilors election.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 17, 2025

Japan's opposition DPP pledges lower taxes and higher take-home pay

The Democratic Party for the People also emphasized support for young people and the working generation, proposing to double the budget for child-rearing and education.

Longform

After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan