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Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 24, 2021

Is the Chinese Communist Party returning to the 'communist' path?

To address a sense among the public that economic unfairness is a growing problem, Xi Jinping announced his 'common prosperity' policy aimed at correcting the country's income disparity.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 22, 2021

Will Japan’s next PM take a shot at constitutional amendment?

An important political factor at play here is that every single LDP candidate has to voice support for constitutional amendment if they hope to win the party presidential race.
JAPAN / Politics / The LDP's game of thrones
Sep 9, 2021

The LDP's outspoken 'maverick' steps up to fight for the party's top spot

Cosmopolitan and media savvy, Taro Kono is a reformist but has his share of liabilities.
Japan Times
WORLD
Aug 19, 2021

'The Taliban are knocking:' Afghan allies of U.S. fear the worst

Joe Biden's rapid pullout left thousands of Afghans who worked for the U.S. military in a desperate race to escape.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Aug 14, 2021

Olympian tattoos fail to leave their mark on the Japanese press

After Tokyo was awarded the Olympics in 2013, many thought tattoos would be a major issue during the Games. In the end, they barely scratched the surface of public attention.
Then-U.S. President Donald Trump meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas, in Panmunjom, South Korea, in June 2019.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Nov 27, 2024

Trump team weighs direct talks with North Korea's Kim

Several in Trump's team now see a direct approach from him, to build on a relationship that already exists, as most likely to break the ice with Kim Jong Un.
Keith Kellogg, then-national security adviser to then-U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, speaks during a press briefing on Sept. 22, 2020, in the White House in Washington.
WORLD / Politics
Nov 28, 2024

Trump picks Keith Kellogg as envoy for Ukraine and Russia

The retired general is a longtime adviser who’s supported the president-elect's aims of ending the war swiftly, including by potentially cutting off military aid to Kyiv.
The primary motivation for potentially adding Japan to the Five Eyes alliance is the considerable intelligence contributions the country could make concerning China, North Korea, Eastern Russia and East and Southeast Asia.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 30, 2024

If ever invited, should Japan make it 'Six Eyes'?

The primary motivation for potentially adding Japan to the alliance is the considerable intelligence contributions the country could make.
People watch South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of martial law and the following announcement that he will lift the martial law, after parliamentary vote, at a railway station in Seoul on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 4, 2024

South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol, embattled conservative

The novice politician took office with some of the lowest approval ratings of any democratically elected South Korean president.
World Anti-Doping Agency Director-General Olivier Niggli speaks during the agency's symposium in Lausanne, Switzerland, in March.
OLYMPICS
Dec 4, 2024

Anti-doping agency froze out investigators who warned about China

The decision by WADA’s leaders to keep its own investigators in the dark raises new questions about WADA's response to possible doping by Chinese athletes.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba responds to questions from the press corps at the Prime Minister's Office on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 5, 2024

Martial law turmoil will likely affect Japan-South Korea ties

Some Japanese government officials are struggling to understand President Yoon Suk Yeol's intention, saying the martial law issuance was surprising and unexpected.
Lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo sits alone as the only People Power Party lawmaker to remain in the chamber for a vote on the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 7, 2024

Move to impeach South Korea's Yoon in limbo after ruling party walkout

While lawmakers debated the motion, introduced by the main opposition Democratic Party, only a single member of Yoon's People Power Party remained in his seat.
A liquefied natural gas plant operated by Sakhalin Energy in Sakhalin, Russia. Japan, the world's second biggest LNG buyer, depends on Russia for 9% of its LNG.
BUSINESS / Companies / ANALYSIS
Dec 12, 2024

Rival supplies and depleting fields give Japan an exit from Russian gas

Japan, the world's second-biggest liquefied natural gas buyer, depends on Russia for 9% of its LNG.
Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Shinjiro Koizumi during a meeting last month in Tokyo
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 12, 2024

LDP and opposition far from consensus over corporate donations

At this point, there is no prospect of any bill securing a majority and the focus is on whether parties can compromise with each other and reach an agreement.
Children stand next to the sea at the Kara Tepe camp for refugees and migrants on the island of Lesbos, Greece, in October 2020.
WORLD / Society
Dec 13, 2024

'Invisible' refugee children caught in Europe's migration red tape

In the first nine months of 2024, arrivals of unaccompanied children to the main entry points to the European Union were 8% higher, despite overall arrivals slowing.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin meets with his Japanese counterpart, Gen Nakatani,  at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Tuesday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 13, 2024

The global spy alliance should let Japan join

Tokyo’s inclusion in the club is long overdue, especially as the region combats China’s growing assertiveness and the unpredictability of North Korea’s nuclear ambitions.
The U.S. Air Force's CV-22 Osprey displayed during Japanese-American Friendship Festival at Yokota Air Base in Tokyo on May 18
JAPAN
Dec 15, 2024

U.S. and Japanese Ospreys grounded this month after precautionary landing

While the details about the precautionary landing are not known, the incident has raised concerns over the vulnerability in Osprey components.
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Andrew leave after Prince Philip's Thanksgiving Service at Westminster Abbey in March 2022. Revelations that a suspected Chinese spy became a confidant of Britain's Prince Andrew is renewing scrutiny of King Charles' disgraced brother.
WORLD
Dec 15, 2024

Latest scandal raises fresh questions about U.K.'s Prince Andrew

The latest scandal erupted on Thursday after judges upheld a government ban on the Chinese businessman, identified only as H6, from entering Britain.
The ancient city of Hatra, Iraq, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 27, 2024

Why cultural heritage must be protected in wartime

Attacks on cultural sites are acts of cultural erasure, born of the same eliminationist motives that also drive genocide.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump arrives to speak during Turning Point's annual AmericaFest 2024 in Phoenix on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Dec 23, 2024

Trump upending global politics a month before taking office

While it’s not unusual for political leaders at home and abroad to jockey for the ear of an incoming president, the scale of Trump’s pre-inauguration influence is vast.
Volunteers place eelgrass seeds on slabs of agar gel with tweezers during an event in Shiogama, Miyagi Prefecture, on Nov. 9.
JAPAN
Dec 25, 2024

Seagrass bed restoration work spreads in Miyagi Prefecture

Seagrass and seaweed beds are capturing global attention as they absorb carbon dioxide.
A full house at Dolphins Arena takes in a bout featuring Takarafuji during the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament in July.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Dec 25, 2024

New Nagoya arena won't ease sumo's ticket crunch

A shiny new arena in Nagoya will seat 17,000 but capacity won't be nearly that high for sumo, meaning there's no relief on the horizon for ticket-hungry fans.
A poster depicting the characters of "JoJo's Bizarre Adventure" in Tokyo's Shibuya Station in 2023.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 28, 2024

Sony's Crunchyroll finds its early lead in anime under attack

Netflix, Walt Disney and Amazon are all digging into their deep pockets to license shows, making it more expensive for anime-steaming site to compete.
The wreckage of the Jeju Air aircraft that went off the runway and crashed at Muan International Airport lies near a concrete structure it crashed into, in Muan, South Korea, on Dec. 30.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 2, 2025

South Korea to send Jeju Air crash black box to U.S.

The damaged flight data recorder has been deemed unrecoverable for data extraction domestically.
U.S. President Joe Biden decided Friday to block the proposed $14.9 billion purchase of U.S. Steel by Japan's Nippon Steel, with the firms blasting the decision, calling it a "clear violation of due process" and a political move, and vowing to "take all appropriate action" to protect their legal rights.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 4, 2025

Biden blocks Nippon Steel’s $14.1 billion takeover of U.S. Steel

The two firms blasted the decision, calling it a "clear violation of due process" and a political move, and saying they would "take all appropriate action" in response.
U.S. President Joe Biden meets with President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House on Nov. 13. Trump’s presidency is expected to disrupt U.S. energy transition efforts through weakened policies and heightened trade tensions.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 6, 2025

Can Biden’s green boom survive Trump’s wrecking ball?

The incoming administration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump promises to undo at least some of the progress made on decarbonization under President Joe Biden.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a news conference at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa on Monday to announce his resignation.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 7, 2025

Canada's Trudeau resigns after nine years in power as Liberals force him out

Trudeau, 53, currently the longest-serving leader of any Group of Seven country, bowed to sagging approval numbers and a rebellion within his political party.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.