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U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday. According to four U.S. officials, Biden has quietly authorized Ukraine to use U.S.-supplied weapons against military targets inside Russia.
WORLD / Politics
May 31, 2024

Biden allows Ukraine limited use of U.S. arms to strike inside Russia

Revelation by U.S. officials marks a policy shift by Biden, who had refused to allow Ukraine to use U.S. weaponry for strikes inside Russia.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's government is implementing a tax cut of ¥40,000 per person from June to ensure income growth that outpaces inflation.
BUSINESS
May 31, 2024

Kishida government's much-touted tax cut to start in June

The prime minister has stressed that the tax cut is designed to ensure income growth that outpaces inflation.
U.S. soldiers participate in a joint exercise conducted for South Korean and U.S. soldiers in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi province, South Korea, on March 20.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 31, 2024

China's military drills 'remain underdeveloped' amid regional tensions

Noting the U.S. military may eventually lose its edge over China in the region, a new study says China is challenged by a lack of combat experience.
A ground crew worker refuels a plane at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in Arizona.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 31, 2024

Waste-to-fuel company that raised $1 billion verges on collapse

Fulcrum BioEnergy has recently laid off nearly all of its staff of about 100 and halted most of its operations, according to more than a half-dozen former employees.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump gestures following the announcement of the verdict in his criminal trial over charges that he falsified business records to conceal money paid to silence adult-film actress Stormy Daniels in 2016, outside Trump Tower in New York City on Thursday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal / ANALYSIS
May 31, 2024

Trump guilty verdict adds twist to 2024 race: a convicted felon

While such a development may change the trajectory of the presidential race, few experts are confident it will.
Fans watch a training session during the French Open at Roland Garros in Paris on May 25.
TENNIS
May 31, 2024

Players react as French Open bans alcohol in crackdown on unruly fans

After the French Open banned fans from drinking alcohol in the stands on Thursday to clamp down on inappropriate behavior, Iga Swiatek was told by a rival player "she cannot complain" about noise occurring during her matches.
Researchers at Tokyo's Juntendo University investigated whether an SGLT2 inhibitor, a drug that promotes sugar excretion through urine, could remove aging cells by administering it to obese mice for a week.
JAPAN / Science & Health
May 31, 2024

Diabetes drug shows promise for aging-related illnesses in mice study

The Juntendo University study shows an SGLT2 inhibitor successfully eliminating senescent cells, which accumulate with age, in the mice's visceral fat.
My Number cardholders will soon be able to save their identity verification information on smartphones.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 31, 2024

Japan enacts revised My Number law enabling info on smartphones

The move is expected to boost My Number cardholders' convenience.
With brightly colored hair and equally colorful attire, the 48-year-old Maaya Orii certainly stands out in a crowd.
LIFE / Style & Design
Jun 1, 2024

Paging Dr. Maaya, the neurosurgeon doubling as a fashion designer

Maaya Orii works as a neurosurgeon in Tokyo on weekdays and as a doctor in Kushiro, Hokkaido, on weekends. In her spare time, she’ll shift gears and focus on fashion.
Keidanren Chairman Masakazu Tokura speaks during an interview in Tokyo on May 23.
BUSINESS
May 31, 2024

Keidanren to propose policy on foreign workers

The association will draw up a medium-term vision of the economy and society called "Future Design 2040."
Sokyo Ono’s “Shinto: The Kami Spirit World of Japan” reveals how a mystic sense of nature lies at the heart of Shinto.
CULTURE / Books
May 31, 2024

'Shinto: The Kami Spirit World of Japan': A helpful guide to uncovering an integral part of Japanese life

Sokyo Ono’s book provides a concise introduction to all the fundamental elements of Shinto, including its symbols, beliefs and deities.
This untitled work was completed and installed in 1994 by a prominent Nigerian artist named Sunday Jack Akpan.
COMMUNITY / Voices / Black Eye
Jun 3, 2024

How a cache of African art found a home in western Tokyo

When I first encountered these statues, I was just minding my business headed for Tachikawa Station. I was struck dumb, paralyzed damn near mid-step.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators hold a rally on London’s Waterloo Bridge on May 11. The current protests have many similarities to the student uprisings of the late 1960s, only the latter envisioned a new political movement to ameliorate the ills of their time.
COMMENTARY / World
May 31, 2024

Echoes of despair amid global outrage over Gaza conflict

Everyone knows that the situation in Gaza is unacceptable. But a great deal of energy has been devoted to postponing the kind of intervention that the crisis requires.
As mind-numbingly big as the clean-energy price tag may be, it’s actually a bargain compared with the potential economic destruction of unabated climate change.
COMMENTARY / World
May 31, 2024

$215 trillion to save the planet is a bargain

And as mind-numbingly big as $215 trillion may be, it’s actually a bargain compared with the potential economic destruction of unabated climate change.
Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida said that the automaker will continue to communicate with its suppliers to see whether unfair practices persist and set up a new team directly under him to accelerate reforms on its relations with its subcontractors.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 1, 2024

Nissan challenges TV Tokyo report on subcontractors

The automaker denied allegations that it continued to pressure its suppliers into slashing prices even after receiving a warning from the fair trade regulator.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol addresses the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Seoul on Monday as Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese Premier Li Qiang listen on.
EDITORIALS
May 31, 2024

A long-neglected trilateral resumes — to expected results

Revival of this trilateral has been driven by Chinese uncertainty: worries about its economy and anxiety regarding geopolitical developments.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers a keynote address at the Shangri-La Dialogue security conference in Singapore on Friday night.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 31, 2024

Marcos lays out red line in South China Sea at security conference

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivered his clearest remarks yet on his red lines in the ongoing row with China over the disputed waterway.
Local residents rush to get cold water at an ice factory in Jacobabad, Pakistan, on Tuesday. It is yet another brutal summer in the age of climate change, in a part of the world that is among the most vulnerable to its dire effects.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Jun 1, 2024

A matter of survival as South Asia’s heat wave reaches 52 degrees

It is yet another brutal summer in the age of climate change, in a part of the world that is among the most vulnerable to its dire effects.
Palestinians walk and inspect the damage after Israeli forces withdrew from Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 1, 2024

Hamas responds positively to Biden's new Gaza truce proposal

"It's time for this war to end and for the day after to begin," said Biden, who is under election-year pressure to stop the conflict, now in its eighth month.
Pop project Kirinji was featured on the second episode of Tiny Desk Concerts Japan, an offshoot of NPR’s long-running web series that features artists performing stripped-down sets inside the cozy offices of the organization’s music department.
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Jun 1, 2024

The best-case scenario for Tiny Desk Concerts Japan

NHK's new project, an offshoot of NPR's web series that shows artists performing stripped-down sets, could become a place for the full spectrum of Japanese music to shine.
The National Diet Building in Nagatacho, Tokyo. The guidelines, to be released as early as this month, are expected to include measures to ensure that higher costs are reflected in product and service prices.
JAPAN
Jun 1, 2024

Japan to highlight resolve to defeat deflation

According to a draft, the government will aim to build a sustainable economy and society while resolving social problems the country faces.
Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara (left) shakes hands with Chinese defense chief Dong Jun on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue security conference in Singapore on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 1, 2024

Japan defense chief tells China counterpart of 'serious' military concerns

Defense Minister Minoru Kihara met Chinese defense chief Dong Jun on the sidelines of a major Asian security conference in Singapore on Saturday.
Wang YunHe's residence in Singapore, overlooking the country's premier shopping belt.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jun 1, 2024

Singapore wealth flows face new scrutiny in superhacker case

The case is a reminder of the difficult balancing act faced by Singapore and other financial hubs as they push to attract the world’s ultra rich.
Voters stand in line to cast their ballot at a polling station on the seventh and final phase of voting of India's general election, in Patna on Saturday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 1, 2024

India’s long, bitter election fight heads toward finish line

The results won’t be declared until June 4, but Saturday will offer a clue as to whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on track for a third term.
South Korea's first openly gay legislator, Cha Hae-young
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Jun 1, 2024

'We exist': South Korea's first LGBTQ councilor tackles inclusion

Cha Hae-young was elected to the Mapo district council on June 1, 2022 — the same day as Seoul's annual LGBTQ Pride march.
Defense Minister Minoru Kihara delivers a speech during the Shangri-La Dialogue regional security conference in Singapore on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 1, 2024

Japan defense minister warns of ‘simultaneous crises’ in Asia and beyond

Defense chief Minoru Kihara said Tokyo is “ready to lead the way” in preserving and strengthening a free and open international, rules-based order.
Defense Minister Minoru Kihara and his South Korean counterpart, Shin Won-sik, meet on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue security conference in Singapore on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 1, 2024

Japan and South Korea agree to prevent repeat of 2018 naval row

The move to shelve long-standing political differences is seen as a significant step toward restoring bilateral defense and security cooperation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks at a campaign rally on April 8. Exit polls revealed on June 1 indicated that the opposition was struggling to significantly cut into the sizable majority held by Modi's party.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 2, 2024

Modi set for landslide election win in India, exit polls show

No prime minister since Jawaharlal Nehru — who ruled India for 17 years after independence — has managed to secure three consecutive terms in power.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during the Shangri-La Dialogue security conference in Singapore on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 2, 2024

Zelenskyy pillories China over reluctance to use sway to end Ukraine war

The Ukrainian president also implored Asian leaders to attend a peace conference slated for later this month in Switzerland.
In “A Gentleman from Japan,” Thomas Lockley lays out the history of English exploration around the globe during the 16th century, delving into the life of the first recorded Japanese person to set foot in the United Kingdom, the United States and South America.
CULTURE / Books
Jun 2, 2024

'A Gentleman from Japan': A journey of firsts in the age of exploration

Written in fast, novelistic prose, Thomas Lockley uses the thread of one Japanese man’s experience to guide his readers into a complex world of suspicion and danger.

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