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A rancher stands near a door of the wall built under Donald Trump's presidency. A poll completed this week showed that 65% of registered voters believe the U.S. is on the wrong track on immigration policy, with voters favoring Trump's approach.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 25, 2024

U.S. Democratic candidates step up immigration messaging in last weeks

Almost 15% of pro-Democratic messages have addressed immigration or border security, up sharply from the 3% share in the final weeks of the 2022 midterm campaign.
Located in the Otemachi neighborhood, the 'skull mound' of Taira no Masakado is said to be the source of ills and misfortunes of any who would disturb the site.
LIFE / Travel
Oct 26, 2024

Take a Halloween stroll through Tokyo’s dark history

Tokyo has no shortage of creepy places to check out this Halloween, and the good news is that many are conveniently accessible.
A city as rich in history as Kyoto has accumulated plenty of hair-raising tales perfect for your Halloween perusal.
LIFE / Travel
Oct 26, 2024

Japan’s ancient capital houses a millennium of ghosts

August is the traditional period in Japan when the worlds of the living and the dead overlap, but who’s to say spirits don’t make an exception for Halloween?
Amit Chhetri opened Yeti Roastery Coffee in Tokyo's Todoroki neighborhood in 2020 as a way to promote Nepalese coffee in Japan.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 27, 2024

Yeti Roastery Coffee is elevating Nepalese java in Japan

“Nepal has rich soil and a huge potential for growing coffee in its mountains, which are also unbelievably gorgeous,” says Yeti Coffee Roastery's Amit Chhetri.
Yukio Hattori was an integral part of "Iron Chef" broadcasts, though his impact on food culture in Japan went far beyond the TV screen.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 27, 2024

Remembering Yukio Hattori, the voice of ‘Iron Chef’

Yukio Hattori was best known to international audiences as the expert commentator on the original Japanese version of the popular TV program “Iron Chef,”
Former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida accepts a gift of 'dekopon' citruses, a specialty product and symbol of Kumamoto Prefecture, from Kumamon, itself a mascot and instantly recognizeable symbol of the region.
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Oct 28, 2024

Japan’s ‘meibutsu’-industrial complex is a wonder to behold

If you name a Japanese prefecture, many locals will instantly be able to tell you something that the region is famous for or a product synonymous with that area.
Healthy, affectionate and incredibly cute, Jessie also loves other cats and will even tolerate dogs.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / ADOPT ME!
Oct 28, 2024

Jessie wants to be your sunny new friend

Young orange tabby Jessie is a sweetheart who’s simply out of luck.
The number of female CEOs in Japan in 2024 rose 37,038 from the year before, or by 6%.
BUSINESS
Oct 25, 2024

Proportion of female CEOs in Japan breaks 15% for first time

Survey finds progress but notes that prejudice based on gender roles remains an issue.
NEC CEO Takayuki Morita
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 25, 2024

Japan’s military pivot is firing up NEC’s defense tech business

NEC is targeting more than 60% revenue growth in its aviation, space and defense unit by March 2026.
Along with official videos from parties and candidates, individually produced videos are on the rise on YouTube and other platforms.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 25, 2024

Short social media videos gain traction in Japan's election campaign

Both official campaign and user-generated videos are on the rise, with experts warning that the latter may present misleading or out-of-context information.
Tetsuya Chiba
JAPAN
Oct 25, 2024

Tetsuya Chiba becomes first manga artist to receive Order of Culture

The other six include cellist Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi and environmental risk management expert Junko Nakanishi.
Investors already rattled by economic and monetary policy uncertainty are carefully watching Sunday's election.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 25, 2024

Tokyo stocks could 'plunge' if ruling coalition loses majority in Sunday vote

Investors are already rattled by monetary-policy tightening and geopolitical concerns.
Japanese fans are signing up for expensive travel packages to watch the World Series, which will see the Los Angeles Dodgers — including Japanese players Yoshinobu Yamamoto (center) and Shohei Ohtani (right) — take on the New York Yankees.
BASEBALL / MLB
Oct 25, 2024

World Series sparks travel frenzy among fans in Japan

Travel agencies are having a hard time keeping up with demand from baseball fans fired up by “Ohtanimania.”
Nanako Fujita competes during a race in 2019. The recent news of Fujita quitting after her suspension for breaking horse racing's strict phone rules shows that bad habits related to smartphone use don't discriminate.
MORE SPORTS / Horse Racing
Oct 25, 2024

Horse racing in Japan has a smartphone problem

Nanako Fujita's recent retirement over breaches of smartphone rules put a spotlight on a big issue for horse racing in Japan.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, pose with other leaders for a group photo during the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, on Thursday. The summit illustrated a collective dissatisfaction with the current global power structure dominated by the U.S.
EDITORIALS
Oct 25, 2024

BRICS once again meet to complain and vent frustrations

While the summit gave the appearance of unity, there are significant differences in how member states perceive issues.
In Japan, terms like "progressive," "liberal," "conservative," and "nationalist" may sound familiar but do not align with their meanings in other democracies.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 25, 2024

How to understand labels in Japanese politics

The issues that define political labels are often unique to Japan. As a result, quite a few Western authors will pick them up and use them.
A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket is launched for a mission to study one of Jupiter's 95 moons from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Oct. 14.
COMMENTARY
Oct 25, 2024

In space, no one can hear Musk's rivals scream

The billionaire's gravity-defying lead is a painful one for competitors. Is it too late to catch up?
When Italy’s Cavour aircraft carrier visited Japan in August, it was the latest in a string of other ports of call by European nations such as Britain, Germany and France, all of whom are engaging in military and defense industry partnerships in East Asia.
ASIA PACIFIC / Longform
Oct 25, 2024

Will Europe's pivot to Asia have any teeth?

Deals are being made and carriers are making visits, but it is yet to be seen if nations on the other side of the world will come when a crisis hits.
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk jumps on stage as he arrives to speak at a town hall event hosted by America PAC in support of former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania, on Oct. 18.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 26, 2024

Elon Musk all-in for Trump as Moscow denies secret Putin talks

Musk's America PAC has also been warned by the U.S. Justice Department that its $1 million giveaways to registered voters may violate federal law.
A man looks at a Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missile Segment Enhancement model by Lockheed Martin at an international military fair in Kielce, Poland, in September 2017.
ASIA PACIFIC
Oct 26, 2024

Fearing China's hypersonic weapons, U.S. Navy seeks to arm ships with Patriot missiles

Integrating the weapons with ships' air defenses comes in the wake of successful missile defense efforts in Ukraine and the Middle East.
Live rounds are fired during a nighttime exercise on Taiwan's Penghu Islands on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Oct 26, 2024

U.S. approves potential $2 billion arms sale to Taiwan

The U.S. is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties, to the constant anger of Beijing.
United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi in London on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 26, 2024

As U.S. election looms, Biden aides struggle with Middle East wars

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was dispatched to the region to find a way toward stability, but there was no sign of progress.
A man votes in the Lower House election at a polling station set up at a school  in Tokyo on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 27, 2024

Voters head to the polls across Japan in crucial test for ruling coalition

Recent polls have indicated the coalition might lose its majority in the powerful Lower House of parliament for the first time in 15 years.
Studio Ghibli’s “Kiki’s Delivery Service” draws inspiration from Sweden’s medieval town of Visby as well as Stockholm for its vibrant setting of Koriko, a fictional city where the film’s titular character decides to use her powers as a witch to benefit the inhabitants of her new home.
CULTURE / Film
Oct 27, 2024

The Swedish heart of Hayao Miyazaki's ‘Kiki's Delivery Service’

Inspiration for the 1989 Studio Ghibli classic is still very evident in Visby, a picturesque town that captivated the animator on his first trip abroad in 1971.
A billboard in Tehran depicts missiles over Tel Aviv on Saturday, after Israel targeted multiple Iranian military facilities with airstrikes overnight.
WORLD
Oct 27, 2024

Israel’s limited attack on Iran may help spur regional deal

The restraint on Saturday allows Iran to dismiss it as ineffective, possibly setting the stage for a limited response or no response at all.
Coral growing off Indonesia's Komodo island, located in the marine rich Coral Triangle
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Oct 27, 2024

Report details fossil fuel threat to 'Amazon of the seas'

The Coral Triangle covers waters claimed by Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, the Philippines, Timor-Leste and the Solomon Islands.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, speaks with voters in Tokyo on Saturday ahead of Sunday's general election.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 27, 2024

Japan party heads travel 84,000 km to campaign for general election

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, clocked 14,387 kilometers, longer than any other party leaders over the 12 days.
A Tohoku Electric Power official explains the process of loading nuclear fuel into the No. 2 reactor of the Onagawa nuclear power plant in Onagawa, Miyagi Prefecture, on Sept. 6.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 27, 2024

Onagawa No. 2 nuclear reactor set for restart amid mixed local reception

Some living around the power plant have expressed understanding for the restart while others are concerned over the possibility of an accident.
Kenichi and Kyoko Ino at their home in Ageo, Saitama Prefecture, earlier this month. Their daughter, Shiori Ino, was killed in October 1999 after being stalked.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Oct 27, 2024

Parents of murdered stalking victim remain resolute 25 years later

Six months after his daughter's murder, he began speaking to audiences about the damage caused by stalking.
Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the leader of the Sudanese Armed Forces, is greeted by an honor guard upon arriving at Juba International Airport in South Sudan on  Sept. 16.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 27, 2024

The dark reality of global capitalism and perpetual war

In countries like Sudan and the DRC, however, we have something closer to the feudalism of medieval times.

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami