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Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jan 16, 2021

Stories that cater to the soul, the intellect and the stomach

Examining the challenges facing Soka Gakkai, a new teen comic book hero and coffee franchises nationwide amid the pandemic.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 10, 2021

For Trump and America, a final test of accountability

The fresh bid to remove Trump from office and strip him of his power without waiting until his term expires Jan. 20 capped a traumatic week that has rattled Washington.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 25, 2020

Mark Zuckerberg has another answer to Bitcoin

As German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz put it, referring to Libra's name change, 'a wolf in sheep's clothing is still a wolf.”
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Dec 12, 2020

For Biden’s economic team, an early focus on climate

One issue that could distinguish Biden's core economic team from its predecessors? Climate change.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 9, 2020

Getting NATO back on track

Biden could start this process of reconciliation between France and Germany — and, more importantly, between the U.S. and its NATO partners — by canceling Trump's planned troop withdrawal.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 6, 2020

Report points to microwave ‘attack’ as likely source of illnesses that hit diplomats and spies

The report provides the most definitive explanation yet of the strange illness that struck scores of U.S. government employees.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 3, 2020

Thai protests target king’s billions of dollars in property investments

Thailand's royal family has long been the biggest shareholder in two of the country's most valuable companies as well as vast plots of land in central Bangkok.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 31, 2020

How Japan’s subscription economy could redefine the way consumers and firms interact

Japan has lagged behind other nations in terms of subscription-based activities, but the model is finally catching on as consumers explore new ways of doing business.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / MORNING ENGLISH
Oct 20, 2020

Let's discuss hanko

Take a look at the English vocabulary of traditions held in Japan's bureaucratic systems.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 16, 2020

Is Indonesia selling out to investors?

An omnibus law passed last week chisels away at Indonesia's wall of labor protections, making it a win for employers and investors while angering unions.
Japan Times
WORLD
Oct 9, 2020

Biden considering new White House office on climate change

Democrat Joe Biden is considering creating a special White House office led by a climate "czar” to coordinate efforts to fight global warming if he is elected president, according to people familiar with the deliberations.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 12, 2020

As Myanmar erases names of destroyed Rohingya villages, U.N. map-makers follow suit

On maps produced in 2020 by the U.N. mapping unit in Myanmar, which it says are based on Myanmar government maps, the site of the destroyed village is now nameless.
COMMENTARY / World / Post-Coronavirus Briefing
Sep 4, 2020

Neither U.S. nor China will lead post-coronavirus order

The age of the two economic superpowers, which have been engaged in a tit-for-tat trade war, could be over.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Aug 31, 2020

Trump lauds Abe as Japan's 'greatest prime minister' as bromance set to end

In their phone call Monday morning — the pair's 37th such call — Abe said Japan would continue working to develop new national security policies.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Aug 15, 2020

Waking up to child abuse by caregivers

Children who are sexually abused may not understand what is happening to them or are cowed into silence by their abusers.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 30, 2020

Split over Japan's virus law between cities and government widens

A nationwide surge in new infections has triggered debate at all levels of government on not only how the law should be changed but when.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 29, 2020

China hawks gain ground among Japan's conservatives, long divided on Beijing

In March, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was forced to postpone plans to greet Chinese leader Xi Jinping as a state guest. Months later, the topic is still making waves.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 28, 2020

In St. Paul, police reform is working

Not far from where George Floyd was killed, a young mayor is making big changes.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 5, 2020

Pompeo warns U.S. investors against fraud at China companies

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday warned American investors against fraudulent accounting practices at China-based companies and said the Nasdaq's recent decision to tighten listing rules for such players should be "a model" for all other exchanges around the world.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
May 30, 2020

Resignation raises uncomfortable questions about Japan prosecutors' powers

The public and the media cried foul because Kurokawa was seen to be sympathetic to the interests of the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 18, 2020

U.S. mulls paying companies and providing tax breaks to pull supply chains from China

U.S. lawmakers and officials are crafting proposals to push American companies to move operations or key suppliers out of China that include tax breaks, new rules and carefully structured subsidies.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 18, 2020

COVID-19: A strategic shock shakes the world

For Japan, COVID-19 has taken a 2020 that was meant to be a stable and historic year with the Olympics and has thrown it into disarray.
Pakistani army chief Asim Munir
WORLD / Politics
Jun 19, 2025

Pakistan army chief discusses Israel-Iran conflict with Trump

The meeting came as the capital was fixated on speculation that the U.S. may join Israel’s attacks aimed at disabling Iran’s nuclear program.
Kirsty Coventry, who will formally take over as the president of the International Olympic Committe on Monday, speaks during a news conference in Costa Navarino, Greece, in March.
OLYMPICS
Jun 21, 2025

As sports embrace gender tests, Coventry and IOC may follow

Such testing has its share of critics and the Olympics have already tried it once only to abandon it in 1996.
Rice paddies in the city of Asahikawa, Hokkaido. Rice is a major crop for Hokkaido, with the region having produced 562,400 tons of it last year.
BUSINESS / Economy / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Jun 30, 2025

U.S. import pressure raises concerns for Hokkaido agriculture

The U.S. is nudging Japan to import more rice, soybeans, and maize — vital crops that support Hokkaido's economy.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks at a ceremony in the Peace Memorial Park in Itoman, Okinawa Prefecture, on Monday.
JAPAN / History
Jun 23, 2025

Okinawa marks 80th anniversary of end of ferocious ground battle

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba spoke of the horrific ground war involving Okinawan residents, noting that 200,000 lives were lost, or about one in four Okinawans.
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yoshihiko Noda speaks during an interview at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 27, 2025

Ahead of election, CDP chief vows 'responsible' tax cut

"Measures to cope with rising prices will be the biggest focus (of the July 20 House of Councilors election)," Yoshihiko Noda said.
A container is loaded onto a cargo ship at Hai Phong port in Vietnam. A trade deal secured by Vietnam with the U.S. sets a high bar for Japan's tariff talks.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 3, 2025

Vietnam steals a march and leaves Japan in a tough spot on U.S. tariffs

The deal sets a high bar for Japan and other countries still negotiating with the United States.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba takes part in a debate with leaders of seven other political parties at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on Wednesday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 4, 2025

Sizing up the forthcoming Upper House election

Given all that is taking place, this is shaping up to be one of the most unusual Upper House elections in decades.
Mourners pay their respects to former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday in the city of Nara where he was shot to death while giving a stump speech three years ago.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / EXPLAINER
Jul 8, 2025

Three years after Abe's shooting, where do things stand?

The criminal trial against the alleged shooter is proceeding at a snail's pace due to the sensitivity, complexity and social impact of the case.

Longform

After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan