Search - politics

 
 
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 30, 2022

What makes a fascist?

Parties or regimes exhibiting certain features might not be fascist today; but they could become so in predictable ways.
Japan Times
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Nov 30, 2022

Restoring nature could depend on how countries help farmers

Around the world, government subsidies that harm nature amount to at least $1.8 trillion each year — equivalent to 2% of global GDP.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 30, 2022

Democrats were smart to meddle in GOP primaries

Democrats' meddlingu00a0in GOP primaries is aimed at helping extremist Republican candidates advance in order to improve the general election chances of Democrats.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Oct 28, 2022

China’s chest-thumping nationalism now goes too far, movement’s godfather says

Wang Xiaodong, once called the standard-bearer of Chinese nationalism, now fends off criticisms of being too moderate, even a traitor. “They've forgotten,” he said, “I created them.”
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 25, 2022

U.K. Tories are finally ‘ready for Rishi.’ Is it too late?

The Tory psychodrama has paused for now, but Rishi Sunak has warned of an “existential threat” to the party if it doesn't change.
Japan Times
WORLD
Oct 25, 2022

Rishi Sunak’s prize for predicting Truss chaos: He gets to clean up the mess

Just seven weeks after Truss traveled to meet Queen Elizabeth II to become prime minister, Sunak will meet King Charles III on Tuesday to formally replace her.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Oct 24, 2022

It's a man's world: No more female leaders in China's Communist Party

In the world's biggest political party — which counts 96 million active members — women have never held much power, and now hold even less.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 23, 2022

Ill health or power play? Hu Jintao's congress exit sparks speculation storm

While Chinese state media said Hu was escorted out by security due to ill health, he appeared reluctant to leave his seat — leading to speculation his departure was a political power play.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 17, 2022

Project aims to help mothers run in Japan's local elections next year

The project — called “Kosodate Senkyo Hack!” — aims to give a greater voice in local politics to the dwindling ranks of families with small children.
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Sep 26, 2022

Japan and China's 'hot' economic ties increasingly complex

Fifty years on from Japan's restoration of relations with Beijing, trade and investment between the two nations is now more likely to feel an impact from political tensions.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Sep 22, 2022

The war in Ukraine offers valuable lessons on changing global relations

With Sweden and Finland applying to join NATO, and other countries getting closer to Russia, the conflict has had a significant effect on international politics.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 19, 2022

Xi’s heir is likely among China’s rising ‘Luckiest Generation’

A group of Communist Party cadres born in the 1970s that missed both the havoc of the Mao era and the economic crises facing today's graduates is one to watch at next month's party congress.
Japan Times
WORLD
Sep 10, 2022

Charles, in first speech as king, pledges a reign of service to Britain

The king's speech capped a day of mourning across Britain, but it was also a vivid demonstration of continuity in this constitutional monarchy.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 2, 2022

Unification Church and the LDP: A scandal or a witch hunt?

Japan performs a balancing act with political parties and how closely they should be allowed to work with religious groups.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 31, 2022

Presidents don’t move prices. So why all the tweets?

For Biden it's gasoline; for Trump it was stocks. Taking credit on social media for market swings will always backfire eventually.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 13, 2022

Anti-American sentiment throws a long shadow over geopolitics

There is even a virulent strain of anti-American sentiment among countries with much to lose if they distance themselves from Washington and its policies.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 10, 2022

The true legacy of Shinzo Abe’s foreign policy

Japan's transformative statesman not only defended democracy, he sought to repair ties with China for a more secure world.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 9, 2022

Shinzo Abe: A compassionate statesman, strategist and husband

A former adviser reflects on his days serving the late prime minister.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jun 10, 2022

Trump is depicted as a would-be autocrat willing to hang onto power at all costs

Whether the Jan. 6 panel can change public views of the events of that day remains unclear, but many political strategists and analysts consider it unlikely.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 9, 2022

Why does the West refuse to call Putin’s Russia fascist?

Many in the West have pumped their assets into the Kremlin's mafia-capitalist system and have been corrupted in return.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 8, 2022

The long-lasting legacy of a short-term prime minister

Yoshihide Suga's time leading Japan was brief, but his accomplishments are surprisingly formidable. It's time to give his reputation another look.
A native of Saskatchewan, Canada, Jon Heese naturalized as a Japanese citizen in 2007 and embarked upon a career in local politics the following year.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Sep 8, 2025

Canadian-born politician tackles Ibaraki’s issues big and small

After being elected to four terms in the Tsukuba Municipal Assembly, Jon Heese now serves as a prefectural assemblyman — and one of Ibaraki Prefecture’s biggest cheerleaders.
Haruo Tsukamoto, a rank-and-file member of the Liberal Democratic Party and a rice farmer in Ibaraki Prefecture, questions if the party still stands for people like him.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 2, 2025

The party that ruled Japan for decades is in danger of crumbling

Long-time supporters are questioning if the Liberal Democratic Party still stands for them even as populist and far-right challengers make inroads.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi (left), former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi (center) and agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi arrive at a news conference for the Liberal Democratic Party presidential election at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Sept. 23. The three are the front-runners ahead of Saturday's vote.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 2, 2025

No matter who wins the LDP presidential race, prospects for change are dismal

The key for the LDP is whether the once-proud party can win back its traditional supporters who have abandoned it in recent elections and shifted to opposition parties.
Fire engulfs Nepal's main administrative building in Kathmandu on Sept. 9, following a police crackdown on protests over government corruption and social media restrictions. This violent unrest is part of a larger pattern of instability in South Asia that threatens regional security and India’s strategic interests.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 5, 2025

India’s reckoning with its dangerous neighborhood

All these stories point to a larger worrying trend: Democracy in India’s neighborhood is in retreat.
Much of the current media coverage is skewing the portrayal of Japan’s new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, using inflammatory labels that distort public understanding and amplify foreign disinformation.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 24, 2025

When media distortion threatens democratic stability

Systematic bias — employing loaded terminology and decontextualized narratives — undermines informed democratic discourse
Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi announced on Thursday that she would retire when her term concludes in early 2027.
WORLD / Politics
Nov 7, 2025

Democratic giant, trailblazer and Trump foe Nancy Pelosi to retire

Nancy Pelosi, a towering figure in U.S. politics and the first woman to serve as House speaker, announced Thursday that she would step down after the next election.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years