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Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Jan 16, 2021

Amid pandemic, children's activities may be just the distraction we all need

There wasn't much to raise spirits in the Tokyo area during the new year holiday. With record-breaking daily numbers of new COVID-19 cases and reports that a second state of emergency was likely to be implemented, many people were keen to stay indoors.
ENVIRONMENT
Jan 16, 2021

The true cost of the climate crisis on Japan

The prime minister has called for Japan to be carbon neutral by 2050, but bolder measures look necessary to reduce the economic damage caused by global warming.
Japan Times
JAPAN / View from Osaka
Jan 16, 2021

Kansai's 2030 vision is to think like a penguin

Kansai Economic Federation, which includes some of Kansai's largest and most influential firms, hopes to tap patrons with the spirit of a “first penguin” to revive the region's fortunes.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Jan 16, 2021

North American leagues in renewed struggle against COVID-19

The NBA postponed three more games and the NHL pushed back the Dallas Stars' season opener again amid a surge of COVID-19 cases that has put professional sports on notice in North America
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 16, 2021

Two U.S. bases in South Korea shelter in place as coronavirus curbs extended nationwide

U.S. Forces in Korea (USFK) said Saturday it has imposed a shelter-in-place order on two of its largest bases — U.S. Army Garrison Yongsan and Camp Humphreys — until Tuesday after a cluster of coronavirus infections.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jan 16, 2021

Kingmaker maneuvers behind the men vying to succeed Germany's Merkel

The conservative leader favoured by German voters isn't even running in this week's contest to head up Angela Merkel's party, but he aims to play a pivotal role in determining its candidate to succeed her as chancellor, party sources say.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 15, 2021

Why many Asian countries are being cautious on vaccines

The nations quickest to enact social distancing and contact-tracing systems have mostly kept COVID-19 in check, but their citizens now find themselves lagging in receiving vaccinations.
Japan Times
Rugby
Jan 15, 2021

New rugby league to feature two-conference top flight with 12 teams

The Japan Rugby Football Union hopes a larger first division will result in higher-quality matches when the new league kicks off in January 2022.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 15, 2021

Call the Senate vote on Trump's removal and be done with it

The Biden administration must have the chance to start with a clean slate. That can't happen until we put the vote behind us.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 15, 2021

Can America lead again?

Whether Biden can restore and sustain America's global leadership depends on how effectively he mends domestic fractures and addresses deep-seated misgivings about globalization.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 15, 2021

North Korea unveils new submarine-launched missile at parade

'Powerful weapon' likely to put all of Japan within range, and experts say it could lay the groundwork for longer-range solid-fueled missile.
Japan Times
PARALYMPICS
Jan 15, 2021

Paralympian Neil Fachie says athletes face moral dilemma over vaccine

British Paralympian Neil Fachie believes athletes face a moral dilemma over being vaccinated for COVID-19 ahead of high-risk individuals but said he would take the shot if it was offered before this year's Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo.
Japan Times
EDITORIALS
Jan 14, 2021

The man who opened the U.N. peacekeeping door to Japan

Brian Urquhart was the quintessential international civil servant — determined and unflappable — whose vision remained fixed on the big picture.
BASKETBALL
Jan 14, 2021

Brave Thunders step up late to beat Jets in quarterfinals

Kawasaki booked a spot in the semifinals alongside the Alvark Tokyo, Utsunomiya Brex and SeaHorses Mikawa.
Reiwa Shinsengumi deputy leader Yasuhiko Funago during a news conference at the Diet building on Tuesday
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 18, 2025

Reiwa Shinsengumi lawmaker with ALS to retire

Yasuhiko Funago, 67, said that it would be difficult for him to serve another six-year term considering his age and physical strength.
Japan Post President Tetsuya Senda speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jun 18, 2025

Japan Post to accept loss of truck transport business permit

The transport ministry is expected to revoke the permit by the end of this month at the earliest.
European Council President Antَnio Costa (from left to right), Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Italian leader Giorgia Meloni, French President Emmanuel Macron, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, U.S. President Donald Trump and leader Minister Keir Starmer pose for a family photo during the Group of Seven summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jun 18, 2025

Asia overshadowed as G7 struggles with crises and lack of unity

Mentions of China's growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific were conspicuously absent from the statements that emerged from the latest summit.
The first five months of 2025 saw 18,140,100 visitors enter Japan, up from 14,641,780 in the same period last year.
JAPAN
Jun 19, 2025

Foreign visitors to Japan at record high for May

The increase in visitors during May was driven by travelers from China, Taiwan and the United States, who visited for holidays and on cruise ship port calls.
The anti-interventionist part of the Republican Party is watching with alarm as U.S. President Donald Trump has gone from seeking a peaceful diplomatic settlement with Iran to possibly having the United States support Israel's military campaign.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 19, 2025

Trump faces uproar from MAGA base over possible Iran strike

Some of Trump's biggest Republican allies are in the unusual position of being at odds with a president who largely shares their isolationist tendencies.
The Lakers' LeBron James stands on the team's logo during a game against the Mavericks in January 2024.
BASKETBALL / NBA
Jun 19, 2025

Buss family to sell Lakers to Dodgers owner in record-shattering deal

The Buss family is selling its controlling interest in the team to billionaire Mark Walter, who already owns a minority stake in the franchise.
Gentleman thief Lupin (Kanichi Kurita) and crew head to an uncharted island in the Bermuda Triangle and find themselves up against vaguely human monsters inspired by "The Island of Doctor Moreau” in “Lupin the IIIrd The Movie The Immortal Bloodline.”
CULTURE / Film
Jun 19, 2025

‘Lupin the IIIrd The Movie The Immortal Bloodline’ goes big on action, light on plot

Takeshi Koike’s latest “Lupin” film needs more than poison gas, bullets and nudity — its characters need something to do.
South Korea's F-15K fighters were involved in a joint aerial exercise with Japanese and U.S. fighters off South Korea's Jeju island Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jun 19, 2025

Japan, U.S. and South Korea conduct joint aerial drill

It was the first three-way joint training since the administration of South Korean President Lee Jae-myung was inaugurated on June 4.
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.
From participants on the JET Programme to full-time content creators, Megan and Ben share their lives in Japan on screen. They recently signed with Tokyo-based influencer agency GeeXPlus.
LIFE / Digital
Jun 19, 2025

The Hitobito's Megan and Ben uncover the real Japan, one video at a time

The couple moved to Japan to be teachers. Now, their YouTube clips are viewed by millions.
Russia's President Vladimir Putin and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un attend a state reception in Pyongyang on June 19, 2024.
WORLD
Jun 19, 2025

Russian ties do little for Iran while boosting North Korea

Iran has little to show for its relationship with Moscow as it continues to be pummeled by waves of Israeli attacks.
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.
Protesters from the Socialista National Confederation of Labor, angered by China's actions in the South China Sea, hold a rally outside the Chinese Consulate in Makati City, Metro Manila, in June 2015.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 19, 2025

Beijing's peace message on South China Sea contradicts its actions

The four principles articulated in a recent Chinese paper are propaganda and concocted realities of communist thinking.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past