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NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte delivers remarks during a news conference at alliance headquarters in Brussels on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
May 10, 2025

NATO chief said to seek defense spending at 5% of GDP by 2032

U.S. President Donald Trump has demanded that NATO allies ramp up their military spending to 5% of GDP, a level that not even the United States currently hits.
Pope Leo XIV, in his first public appearance after he was elected, on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, on Thursday
WORLD / Politics
May 12, 2025

World Catholics see the first American pope as hardly American

The new pope, formerly Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, has signaled that his identity will defy easy categorization.
Hachidori Solar President Shota Ikeda in Tokyo in January
ENVIRONMENT
May 18, 2025

A 26-year-old asked to help shape Japan’s climate goals has a warning

Shota Ikeda has called for emissions reductions of at least 75% to be considered.
Empowering nuns and laypeople could help preserve struggling parishes and restore the Catholic Church’s role as a vital community anchor, especially with nuns who have long been its most dedicated and overlooked servants.
COMMENTARY / World
May 12, 2025

To save Catholicism, let’s talk nuns, not popes

All eyes were on Rome as Pope Leo XIV was announced. But to secure the future of the faith, Catholics should look closer to home.
"The Bank of Japan’s stance to continue to raise the policy interest rate is unchanged” given low real rates and the outlook for its price goal to be met, one of the nine board members said at the central bank's April 30 to May 1 meeting, according to a summary of opinions released Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 13, 2025

BOJ still intends to raise rates while monitoring tariffs, summary shows

The written account of the BOJ gathering comes as risk appetite returns to global financial markets following the cooldown in U.S.-China tariff tensions on Monday.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer travels to the resort island of Jeju, South Korea, to join his counterparts at the meeting of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation members on Thursday and Friday.
WORLD / Politics
May 15, 2025

Trade chiefs jostle for time with Greer at APEC meeting in South Korea

Many will seek talks with the U.S. trade representative to try to blunt the impact of U.S. President Donald Trump’s barrage of tariffs.
Solar panels on display at the Canton Fair in Guangzhou, China, on April 16
BUSINESS / Tech
May 15, 2025

Rogue communication equipment found in Chinese-made solar power inverters

The rogue components provide undocumented communication channels that could allow security measures to be circumvented remotely, sources said.
George Simion gestures while attending a presidential debate in Bucharest on May 8.
WORLD / Politics
May 15, 2025

MAGA goes east: Romania's presidential frontrunner rides hard-right wave

George Simion, a nationalist who campaigns to "Make Romania Great Again," opposes military aid to Ukraine and is critical of the EU's leadership.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk speak with U.S. President Donald Trump via phone during the European Political Community Summit in Tirana, Albania on May 16.
WORLD / Politics
May 22, 2025

Kyiv pitches tougher Russia sanctions plan to EU as U.S. wavers

A Ukrainian white paper calls for EU members to take a more aggressive and independent position on sanctions as Washington's role becomes uncertain.
A candlelight vigil is held in Lafayette Square in Washington on Thursday following the fatal shooting of two employees of the Israeli Embassy.
WORLD
May 23, 2025

Israeli embassy staffers killed in U.S. aspired to Middle East bridge-building

The staffers were shot as they left an annual event for young Jewish diplomats, this year focusing on resolving humanitarian crises in the Middle East.
An employee of Kyowa Industrial walks next to the company's factory in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture, in April.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 24, 2025

Tariff crossfire hits Toyota, Nissan and Ford suppliers in Japan

Thousands of small and midsize makers of auto parts in Japan, including suppliers for Toyota and Nissan, are facing a crisis as U.S. tariffs threaten their bottom lines.
Shinjiro Koizumi, Japan's newly appointed agriculture minister, arrives at the ministry building in Tokyo on Wednesday. He replaced Taku Eto, who quit after saying he’s never needed to buy rice, a comment that angered many people.
EDITORIALS
May 23, 2025

Rice price uproar intensifies ruling party's election fears

When the remarks triggered a predictable and understandable backlash, Eto explained that he was trying to make a joke.
The ASEAN logo is displayed with Kuala Lumpur's skyline in the background on Friday ahead of an ASEAN summit in the city.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
May 24, 2025

U.S. tariff tensions test Southeast Asian leaders at regional summit

ASEAN leaders will express deep concern over U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff blitz when they meet at a summit Monday, according to a draft statement.
According to the Aichi prefectural police, the suspect is a high school student in the prefectural capital of Nagoya who returned to Japan after being taken into custody by Thai authorities.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 24, 2025

Aichi police arrest Nagoya teen for involvement in Myanmar fraud ring

The boy allegedly conspired with other suspects to defraud a man from Mie Prefecture who was on a business trip to the U.S. state of Oregon.
A house damaged during a Pakistani artillery shelling in Poonch, in India-administered Kashmir, on May 14
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 26, 2025

India and Pakistan battle for global sympathy after border truce

Both sides are sending delegations to global capitals to influence international perception of the conflict, as tensions between the nuclear-armed rivals continue to simmer.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivers a speech during the ASEAN-GCC-China Economic Forum's official dinner in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 28, 2025

China aims to capitalize on U.S. tariff turmoil with new ASEAN-GCC forum

The summit with Southeast Asian and Arab Gulf states is the latest sign of more countries looking to join hands to fend off U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff push.
Hakubun Shimomura speaks as a witness at a meeting of the Budget Committee of the House of Representatives on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 28, 2025

LDP's Shimomura denies he ordered kickbacks to resume in 2022

In a hearing in February, a former chief accountant of a now-defunct faction said "a faction executive" asked for the kickback system to restart in July 2022.
French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during a news conference with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
May 28, 2025

Macron weighs recognition of Palestinian state as Gaza toll mounts

French officials are considering the move ahead of a United Nations conference France and Saudi Arabia are co-hosting from June 17 to 20.
Vehicles of delegations leave the Omani Embassy after a fifth round of nuclear talks between Iran and the United States, in Rome on May 23.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 1, 2025

Damning IAEA report spells out past secret nuclear activities in Iran

The findings pave the way for a push to declare Tehran in violation of its non-proliferation obligations.
A screen shows the Muchu College metaverse school, with avatars and the face of Hiroaki Tsujita, CEO of operator Wowfull.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Jun 16, 2025

Metaverse and local subsidies help children in alternative learning

Municipalities are subsidizing the use of alternative educational institutions to help families with children who are not attending regular schools.
An Iranian newspaper's cover shows a photo of U.S. President Donald Trump and U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff in Tehran on May 11. The U.S. has started new talks with Iran with the aim of imposing fresh nuclear restrictions on Tehran.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 4, 2025

Any U.S. deal with Iran must tackle nuclear watchdog's blind spots

The International Atomic Energy Agency has lost track of elements of Iran's nuclear activities since U.S. President Donald Trump ditched a 2015 deal with Tehran.
Members of a group working for the reconstruction of the Machinomachi district of Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, attend training for the opening of a temporary disaster broadcasting station, in Onagawa, Miyagi Prefecture, on May 16.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 4, 2025

Quake-hit residents eyeing reconstruction through power of radio

A group of people, mainly residents of Wajima's Machinomachi district, are preparing to open a full scale emergency broadcasting FM radio station in mid-June.
The measures to sanction judges follow a January vote at the U.S. House of Representatives to punish the International Criminal Court in protest over its arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jun 6, 2025

Trump administration imposes sanctions on four ICC judges in unprecedented move

The ICC slammed the move, saying it was an attempt to undermine the independence of an international judicial institution.
BTS member RM (left) plays saxophone while V looks on while holding flowers at an outdoor facility in Chuncheon on Tuesday.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jun 11, 2025

Two BTS megastars released from South Korea military

As the members of one of the world's biggest pop groups complete their military service obligations, fans hope for a new album.
SMBC Nikko Securities has already introduced a family trust system under which relatives can act as agents for older customers for their investments.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 12, 2025

New securities system enables those with dementia to invest with family's help

Under the system, investors can designate trusted family members as their agents while they are still mentally capable.
Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations Riyad Mansour (at podium) speaks during a meeting of the U.N. General Assembly at U.N. Headquarters in New York City on Thursday.
WORLD
Jun 13, 2025

United Nations votes overwhelmingly for immediate Gaza ceasefire

Israel's U.N. Ambassador accused the General Assembly of "blood libel" and a "farce."
Japan faces a growing crisis of social isolation, with over 1.4 million people — many middle-aged — living reclusive lifestyles, and experts say only long-term, trust-based community support can reverse the trend.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 16, 2025

Japan needs to rethink how it helps hikikomori

While hikikomori, the Japanese term for acute social withdrawal, often brings to mind young recluses in dark bedrooms, the reality is broader.
People march during a protest calling for abortion law reform in London on June 17, 2023.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jun 18, 2025

U.K. parliament votes to decriminalize abortion

Abortions have been legal in England and Wales for almost 60 years, but only up to 24 weeks and with the approval of two doctors.
Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and their daughter Princess Aiko visit the Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum in Itoman on June 4.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 19, 2025

Parties are still arguing about the rules on imperial succession

Allowing female members to remain royalty after marriage, starting a maternal lineage, adoptions — there are a slew of ideas but a shortage of answers.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s support for Israel’s attack on Iran has sparked outrage among MAGA loyalists who see it as a betrayal of his anti-war promises.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 19, 2025

Trump's MAGA coalition won't survive a bunker-buster in Iran

As the U.S. president weighs whether to join Israel’s war against Iran, a rift cleaves his own base, not to mention the world.

Longform

Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.
Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?