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The Great Wall of China near Beijing. Two Japanese tourists were detained in China for taking photos showing exposed buttocks at the World Heritage site.
JAPAN
Mar 14, 2025

China deports Japanese tourists over Great Wall buttocks pic, reports state

The tourists reportedly told the Japanese embassy they did it as a prank.
“Ravens” stars Tadanobu Asano as Masahisa Fukase, a real-life figure who was known for his photos of the psychedelic party scene of 1960s Shinjuku, portraits of his wife and images of the ravens of his home prefecture of Hokkaido.
CULTURE / Film
Mar 14, 2025

‘Ravens’ is a portrait of art, love and inner demons

Director Mark Gill brings the turbulent life of celebrated photographer Masahisa Fukase into focus in his new film.
A Red Knot (left) and a Ruddy Turnstone gather with other shorebirds to feed on Atlantic horseshoe eggs along a beach in Little Creek, Delaware.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Mar 14, 2025

Many U.S. bird species seen as reaching population 'tipping point'

A report found that avian populations are decreasing in almost every habitat, including grasslands and arid regions.
Japanese dentist Yusuke Kamimura poses for a photograph in front of a private collection dedicated to MLB player Shohei Ohtani, inside his dental clinic in Koshigaya, north of Tokyo, on Feb. 28, 2025.
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 14, 2025

Japanese superfans turn dental clinic into Ohtani mini-museum

Lining the walls of the waiting room are glass-encased displays of gloves, helmets, autographed balls and jerseys, countless bobblehead dolls and much more.
Artist Adrian Steckeweh 3-D prints otherworldly clothes and accessories for himself, in a way augmenting his reality with tangible objects.
CULTURE / Art
Mar 16, 2025

Augmented reality artist Omega C navigates a precarious scene for XR art

Just this year, XR art featured heavily in the digital art festival Dig Shibuya and is the focus of the ongoing “Machine Love” exhibition at Mori Art Museum.
A red panda at the central zoo in Lalitpur, on the outskirts of Kathmandu
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Mar 14, 2025

Nepal community efforts revive red panda population

Conservationists say educational outreach and sustainable livelihood programs helped improve the effectiveness of Nepal's conservation efforts.
Takuya “Moby” Okamoto after Game 5 of the 2016 World Series, which the Cubs went on to win in seven games to snap a 108-year drought
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 14, 2025

In a sea of Dodger Blue, Japanese superfan ready to cheer on the Cubs

The Dodgers may garner the lion's share of attention in Japan among MLB clubs, but don't tell that to Takuya “Moby” Okamoto, Japan's biggest Cubs fan.
Kyoko Watanabe made a home for herself in Ishinomaki after moving there to participate in disaster relief efforts following 3/11, and now operates a business focused on the creative reuse of <i>akiya</i> (abandoned houses).
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Mar 17, 2025

From abandoned houses to ‘creative communities’: An Ishinomaki entrepreneur's vision for rural Japan

Kyoko Watanabe moved to Miyagi Prefecture to help with disaster relief efforts following 3/11. She ended up building a company and a vision for revitalizing rural Japan.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s public humiliation tactics, such as belittling foreign leaders and political opponents, mirror those of dictators like Stalin and Mao, reflecting his authoritarian tendencies.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 14, 2025

Fear and loathing in the Oval Office

Trump should be thought of as a dilettante despot, the Roman emperor of reality TV.
Rail enthusiasts and local residents hold up a specially designed banner for arriving and departing trains at Higashi-Nemuro Station in Nemuro, Hokkaido, on Friday, the station's final day of operation.
JAPAN
Mar 14, 2025

People bid farewell to Japan's easternmost train station

As the number of users is unlikely to recover from a prolonged decline, JR Hokkaido has decided to close the station.
Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani arrives for practice on Friday at Tokyo Dome.
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 14, 2025

Hype reaches fever pitch as Ohtani and the Dodgers get set for games in Tokyo

Shohei Ohtani talked about getting over jet lag and his excitement for the Tokyo Series as the Dodgers prepare to put on a show for Japanese fans.
Cubs pitcher Shota Imanaga and teammate Seiya Suzuki during a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 14, 2025

Cubs see Tokyo trip as great chance to bond as a team

The Chicago Cubs plan to make the most of their time in Japan, both as a way to kickstart the push to reach the postseason and as a way to come together as a team.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with reporters following the Group of Seven foreign ministers meeting in La Malbaie, Quebec, on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 15, 2025

U.S. aligns with G7, urging Russia to accept Ukraine ceasefire

In a joint statement, the U.S. backed Ukraine's territorial integrity and warned Russia to follow Kyiv in accepting a ceasefire or face possible further sanctions.
Idled blast furnaces at U.S. Steel's Granite City Works in Granite City, Illinois, in July 2017
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 15, 2025

U.S. Steel activist investor boosts holding in turnaround push

The move comes as hope for the deal that drew massive attention during the 2024 American presidential election has shown little progress.
Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time” won the award for best film at the 48th Japan Academy Film Prize ceremony.
CULTURE / Film
Mar 15, 2025

‘A Samurai in Time’ wins top prize at Japan’s premier film event

This country’s answer to the Oscars also saw awards go to “Oppenheimer” and “Faceless.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer greets Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as he arrives to attend a summit held at Lancaster House in central London on March 2.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Mar 15, 2025

As Trump thaws ties, Russia has a new public enemy No. 1: Britain

For most of the war, Russia lambasted Washington for its role in supplying aid to Kyiv. With Donald Trump in office, that has changed.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei looks on during a meeting with students in Tehran on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Mar 15, 2025

Despite tough talk, economic woes may force Iran to bargain with Trump

Behind the defiant rhetoric of Iran's leaders in public, there is a pragmatic willingness within Tehran to strike a deal with Washington.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington on March 3.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 15, 2025

Trump administration weighs travel ban on dozens of countries, memo says

The move harkens back to Trump's first term ban on travelers from seven majority-Muslim nations.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called South African Ambassador to the U.S. Ebrahim Rasool "a race-baiting politician who hates America and hates @POTUS," referring to U.S. President Donald Trump by his White House X account handle.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 15, 2025

U.S. expels South African ambassador, saying he 'hates' Trump

The expulsion of the ambassador — a very rare move by the United States — is the latest development in rising tensions between Washington and Pretoria.
The logo of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, better known as the Unification Church, is seen at the entrance of its Japan branch headquarters in Tokyo in October 2023.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Mar 15, 2025

Unification Church faces dissolution in Japan

The dissolution would remove the church's tax-exempt status while branding the organization a harmful entity.
Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly speaks alongside U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio during the Group of Seven foreign ministers' meeting in La Malbaie, Quebec, on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Mar 15, 2025

At G7 meeting, U.S. allies’ top diplomats wonder where Rubio stands

The top U.S. diplomat has had to walk a fine line between delivering Trump's "America First” message and looking to cultivate allies.
Mark Carney, Canada's incoming prime minister (center), during a swearing-in ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Friday. Carney has been sworn in as Canada's 24th prime minister, bringing the former central banker to power in the middle of an explosive trade war with the U.S.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 15, 2025

Canada has a new prime minister with a very hard first assignment

Mark Carney steps into his role as U.S. President Donald Trump sets his sights on Canada’s sovereignty and keeps threatening more tariffs.
Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte appears on a screen in a courtroom at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 15, 2025

Duterte’s swift descent from ‘Punisher’ president to inmate

Duterte's team seemed unconcerned about rumors that the International Criminal Court might issue an arrest warrant against him. It was a fatal mistake.
Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in Bangkok in August 2023. Thaksin has vowed cheaper power in Thailand to allow the country to emerge as a data center hub.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 15, 2025

Thaksin vows cheaper power to turn Thailand into data center hub

Thailand aims to slash electricity costs by more than 25% by next year to emerge as a hub for data centers and artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Former FIFA Council member Moya Dodd believes developing the facilities needed to host the Olympics would have long-term benefits for India.
OLYMPICS
Mar 15, 2025

India's 2036 Games bid a chance to boost infrastructure, says sports governance expert

The world's most populous nation has never hosted the Olympics, though New Delhi staged the Asian Games in 1951 and 1982 as well as the Commonwealth Games in 2010.
A bullet train at Tsuruga Station on March 16 last year, the day the Hokuriku Shinkansen line was extended to Fukui
JAPAN
Mar 15, 2025

Fukui enjoys visitor boost after shinkansen extension

About 6.42 million people visited Fukui between March 16 last year and Feb. 15 this year, up by about 1 million from a year before.
Japanese soldiers prepare to go underground amid a sarin gas attack in the Tokyo subway system on March 20, 1995.
JAPAN
Mar 15, 2025

Ex-police official regrets delays in raiding Aum facilities

A former National Police Agency executive regrets failing to raid Aum Shinrikyo bases before the doomsday cult mounted its sarin nerve gas attack in the Tokyo subway system.
A U.S. Navy ship fires missiles at an undisclosed location, after President Donald Trump launched military strikes against Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis on Saturday over the group's attacks against Red Sea shipping, in this screen shot.
WORLD
Mar 16, 2025

Trump launches large-scale strikes against Yemen's Houthis

The strikes — which could last days and maybe weeks — are the biggest U.S. military operation in the Middle East since Trump took office in January.
A Voice of America crew make a live report as they stand in a causeway leading to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's estate in Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, last December.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 16, 2025

Trump freezes U.S.-funded media outlets including Voice of America

The abrupt freezing of U.S.-funded outlets will be a blow to efforts at countering Russian and Chinese information offensives.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba answers questions during an Upper House Budget Committee meeting Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Mar 16, 2025

Opposition set to step up offensive against Ishiba

Ishiba, already hurt by low public support, has found himself in a bind ahead of this summer's Upper House election as the scandal shakes his image as a "clean politician."

Longform

"Shake hands with Lima-chan," a statue that shares the name of the Peruvian capital looks in the direction of Peru, where a sister statue, "Sakura-chan," is located. Erected in Yokohama's Rinko Park in 1999, it commemorates Peruvian-Japanese friendship.
The journey of Peru’s Nikkei: Finding identity in Japan