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Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
May 14, 2021

‘COVID-Zero’ havens may find reopening harder than taming virus

Some fear territories that prioritized safety early in the pandemic may be left behind by rivals with higher caseloads that have boosted vaccine uptake.
Japan Times
WORLD
Oct 1, 2020

Ski, party, seed a pandemic: Travel rules that let COVID-19 take flight

Nine months into an outbreak that has killed 1 million people, Ischgl, Austria, is where the era of global tourism collided with a pandemic.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 23, 2020

Celebrating 75 years of the United Nations

The U.N. and the belief in global solidarity that it embodies have never been more essential as the world finds itself in turmoil amid a virus pandemic and a recession.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Aug 31, 2020

A costly waiting game for inbound foreign workers

While some permanent residents and students are slowly trickling back into Japan, businesses are waiting to hear if new hires can join their ranks.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Aug 12, 2020

Jimmy Lai's arrest shows why the West lost faith in Hong Kong courts

The statements issued by China and Hong Kong after Monday’s arrest of media tycoon Jimmy Lai underlined how quickly a national security law passed in June is undermining the city’s independent judicial system.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Apr 17, 2019

Examining Carlos Ghosn and Japan's system of 'hostage justice'

As the Carlos Ghosn saga continues to unfold, domestic and international attention continues to mount on what many are calling a "hostage justice" system.
EDITORIALS
Mar 8, 2019

North Korea's food gap raises a moral dilemma

Japan, like other governments, will have to decide whether to help minimize the suffering of civilians due to North Korea's latest food shortage, or continue the punishing sanctions regime.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 11, 2019

'Artisan' miners seen helping Maduro turn Venezuela's useless currency into gold he trades with Turkey

Venezuela's most successful financial operations in recent years have not taken place on Wall Street, but in primitive gold-mining camps in the nation's southern reaches.
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 31, 2018

Tough talks predicted as Vietnam seeks to curb China's actions in South China Sea

Tough negotiations lie ahead over a new pact between China and Southeast Asian nations aimed at easing tensions in the South China Sea, as Vietnam pushes for provisions likely to prove unpalatable to Beijing, documents reviewed by Reuters suggest.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 15, 2018

Jig is up for Riyadh: Khashoggi case reshapes the Middle East

The fate of missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi threatens to upend the fundaments of fault lines in the Middle East.
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Oct 3, 2018

Photos confirm U.S.-Chinese warships' near-miss as experts say South China Sea encounter likely to affect allied operations in region

Experts said a near-miss between a U.S. Navy destroyer and a Chinese warship in the disputed South China Sea earlier this week could have dire implications for American allies and partners operating in the waterway and elsewhere — including Japan — after the U.S. confirmed that photos showing just...
ASIA PACIFIC
Oct 1, 2018

U.S. sends warship near man-made islets in South China Sea's Spratly chain

The United States has sailed a warship near two of China’s man-made islands in the disputed South China Sea, the latest in a series of recent moves by the U.S. military in the strategic waterway and in the diplomatic arena amid rising tensions between Washington and Beijing.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 9, 2018

China's bold plans to reshape the world

Intimidation is increasingly one of China's first tools of choice, but the heavy-handed approach is yielding mixed results.
EDITORIALS
Jun 11, 2018

A Group of Seven fiasco in Canada

U.S. President Donald Trump's actions are working at cross purposes to his goal of making America great again.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
May 13, 2018

North Korea wants the world to watch as it blows up its nuclear test site, but are there ulterior motives?

North Korea wants the world to watch as it blows up its Punggye-ri nuclear test site, the country has said, announcing that it will hold a "ceremony" between May 23 and May 25, inviting foreign journalists to witness what it said would be a "transparent" event.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Dec 18, 2017

Japan set to bank ¥40 billion per year for tourism sector with new departure tax

From January 2019 Japan is set to impose a ¥1,000 tax on everyone departing the country, to secure funding for tourism infrastructure and promotion amid record-breaking arrivals of international travelers.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 24, 2017

Chinese fighter jets intercept U.S. spy plane in latest close encounter between two militaries

Two Chinese J-10 fighter jets have intercepted a U.S. Navy surveillance plane in an "unsafe" and "unprofessional" manner in international airspace over the East China Sea, the Pentagon said Monday, in the latest such incident involving the two militaries.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 2, 2017

Amazon comes knocking on remote Australia, where brick-and-mortar retailers are king

Amazon.com Inc., which has lost billions overseas trying to replicate its U.S. success, is now attempting to crack one of the biggest and most sparsely populated nations where bricks-and-mortar retailers are king.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 22, 2017

North Korea declares medium-range missile ready 'for action,' shows off apparent photos from space

North Korea said Monday that its test-firing a day earlier of a solid-fuel, medium-range missile capable of striking most of Japan was "perfect" and that the weapon was ready to be deployed "for action."
JAPAN / AFTEREFFECTS OF MARCH 2011
Mar 9, 2017

Tepco's biggest hurdle: How to remove melted fuel from crippled Fukushima reactors

Six years after the triple meltdown at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, recent investigations underneath the damaged reactor 2 using cameras and robots came close to identifying melted fuel rods for the first time.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 6, 2017

Kim assassination a wake-up call

North Korea is not a curiosity to ignore, it is a danger to be confronted.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Aug 7, 2016

Chinese Senkaku swarm tactic spells trouble for Japan

China's use of its 'maritime militia' - an armada of fishing boats - near the disputed Senkaku Islands could spell trouble for Tokyo as Beijing ramps up its assertiveness in the East China Sea.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 8, 2016

Beijing turns on Japanese judge as Hague tribunal ruling over South China Sea nears

Beijing has been taking a multipronged approach to softening the blow from the verdict, including targeting the nationality of the judge who oversaw the tribunal's formation.
JAPAN
May 16, 2016

Head of Japan Olympic Committee defends payment to consulting firm

The president of the Japanese Olympic Committee tells the Diet that payments made by the Tokyo Olympic bid team to a consulting firm in Singapore were clean and legitimate.
Israeli tanks near the border with Gaza, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, as seen from Israel, on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jan 22, 2025

Hamas' tight grip on Gaza complicates plan for lasting peace

Hamas remains deeply entrenched in Gaza and its hold on power represents a challenge to implementing a permanent ceasefire.
An immigration detention center in Bangkok. A group of Uyghurs were sent to China in accordance with international standards, Thailand's defense minister said, in Thailand's first confirmation of the deportation.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 28, 2025

Thailand sends 40 Uyghurs back to China after decade in detention

Rights experts warned that the Uyghurs were at risk of torture, ill-treatment and "irreparable harm" if returned.
China had accounted for the biggest international student body in the U.S. for 15 years until it was overtaken by India last year.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 22, 2025

Trump visa cuts and tariff hikes turn Chinese students away from American Dream

A growing number of Chinese students are exploring other destinations.
The Trump administration's escalating campaign against Harvard — cutting billions in funding, blocking foreign students, and threatening its independence — marks an unprecedented attack on U.S. higher education.
EDITORIALS
May 30, 2025

U.S. soft power is a casualty in Trump’s war on Harvard

The fight against Harvard will do extensive and potentially irreparable injury. It is an extraordinary act of self-harm.
India’s potential participation in the Japan-U.K.-Italy fighter jet project GCAP makes strategic sense but should be postponed until the core partners solidify the program to avoid delays, conflict and operational risk.
COMMENTARY
Jun 12, 2025

India should join the Global Combat Air Program — but not just yet

GCAP is more than just a weapons platform. It is a statement of strategic autonomy, industrial innovation and trilateral cooperation among democracies.
A visitor looks into North Korea from South Korea's Odusan Unification Observatory in Paju on June 12.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jun 20, 2025

Rights abuses continue in North Korea a decade after probe, says U.N.

A U.N official said he is still surprised by the continued prevalence of executions, forced labour and reports of starvation in the authoritarian country.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji