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Japan Times
WORLD / FOCUS
Aug 3, 2021

With time slipping away, prospects of a climate deal at COP26 are waning

With less than three months before climate talks in Glasgow, diplomats are struggling to pull global climate policy back from the brink of disaster.
The national flag of Saudi Arabia at their pavilion at the COP29 climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Nov. 14
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Nov 26, 2024

How Saudi Arabia turned back climate progress at COP29

After three decades of being the main opposition at the annual climate talks, the Saudis have developed a sophisticated playbook.
Although a quick resolution to the war may seem appealing, forcing Ukraine to capitulate would merely embolden Russia and its Chinese, Iranian and North Korean allies.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 26, 2024

Trump’s best hope for peace is to support Ukraine

Nearly two months before his return to the White House, Donald Trump appears intent on pressuring Ukraine to accept territorial losses in exchange for ending the war.
European Council President Antonio Costa looks on as he attends a handover ceremony at the European Council in Brussels on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 2, 2024

Before tackling Trump, new EU leader aims to end infighting

For years, attempts to shore up the EU have been hampered by internal dysfunction.
Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani gets a hit during Game 1 of the World Series on Oct. 25. The Golden At-Bat is an idea that would change everything about how baseball — the ultimate team sport — has always worked.
BASEBALL
Dec 7, 2024

Golden At-Bat could give MLB a new shine. Is it worth it?

What if a team could choose one at-bat in every game to send its best hitter to the plate even if it wasn’t that guy’s turn to hit?
Muharram Idris, a former commander of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), near Banda Aceh, Indonesia's Aceh province, on Nov. 22. Idris once led 3,000 men to fight Indonesia's army in separatist Aceh, but now serves as a local official after the legacy of a devastating tsunami two decades ago brought peace to the province.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 19, 2024

'Peace was born': How the 2004 tsunami changed Indonesia's Aceh

The giant waves that engulfed the impoverished province killed tens of thousand — and paved the way for an end to three decades of conflict.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his annual end-of-year news conference and phone-in, in Moscow, on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 20, 2024

Putin offers Trump talks while defending his invasion of Ukraine

The order to invade Ukraine "should have been made earlier," and Russia should have prepared better, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at a ceremony for military combat officers at an army base near Mitzpe Ramon, Israel, on Oct. 31.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 23, 2024

Israel's Netanyahu eyes Iran after triumphs over Hamas, Hezbollah and Syria

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has had a succession of monumental wins that include the top leaders of Hamas and Hezbollah being eliminated.
Climate demonstrators protest against investments in fossil fuels during the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington on Oct. 21.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Dec 30, 2024

After a year of hard climate talks, ‘minilateralism’ is an alternative

Global environmental agreements have never been simple, but a variety of factors, such as political polarization, make countries less willing to compromise.
South Korea's Finance Minister and new acting president Choi Sang-mok speaks as he presides over a meeting of the National Security Council at the Government Complex in Seoul on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 31, 2024

South Korea's acting President Choi to appoint two Constitutional Court justices

The move is an effort to restore stability after the impeachment of two of his predecessors this month triggered political turmoil.
U.S. Army soldiers with the NATO multinational battle group on the territory of Bulgaria stand in formation with a U.S. flag and an armored vehicle during a visit by NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte at the Novo Selo military ground near Mokren, Bulgaria, on Dec. 19.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jan 11, 2025

NATO won't back Trump's new defense spending target but will raise its sights

A new target is likely to be agreed at a NATO summit in June, but the key questions are what that new target will be and whether it will be enough to satisfy Trump.
What does the year hold for Japan? Make your own predictions using some key phrases.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 17, 2025

Let’s make some predictions about what will happen in the year ahead

The start of the new year comes with expectations as to how the following months will unfold. Learn how to respond to what others predict.
The Middle East is at a pivotal moment and U.S. President Donald Trump has the chance to reshape the region, with potential solutions for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Lebanon's civil war, Syria's restoration and Iran's nuclear ambitions.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 23, 2025

U.S. President Trump, you can remake the Middle East if you dare

U.S. policy must be to ensure that all three stages of this ceasefire agreement are carried out and followed by a real diplomatic process for a wider settlement.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks at a news conference following the central bank's policy meeting on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 28, 2025

BOJ watchers think next interest rate hike will be in six months

The central bank is likely to pause a while before bringing the rate up to 0.75%, the highest rate since 1995.
The Yangshan Deepwater Port in Shanghai on Jan. 20. China's Finance Ministry said it would impose levies of 15% for U.S. coal and LNG and 10% for crude oil, farm equipment and some autos.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 4, 2025

China hits back with tariffs on U.S. goods after Trump imposes new levies

Trump on Monday suspended his threat of 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada at the last minute, but there was no such reprieve for China.
French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during the AI Action Summit in Paris on Monday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Feb 11, 2025

France and EU promise to cut red tape on artificial intelligence technology

European lawmakers last year approved the bloc's artificial intelligence law, the world's first comprehensive set of rules governing the technology.
U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Thursday
WORLD / Politics
Feb 14, 2025

Trump floats idea of U.S., Russia and China halving defense spending

Trump’s proposal highlights how willing he is to upend standard foreign-policy craft and foster closer ties with two U.S. adversaries.
Ukrainian soldiers from the Shkval Special Forces Assault Battalion during training exercises in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine on Thursday
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Feb 15, 2025

Trump team makes confused start to Ukraine diplomacy

This was a disorienting week for those anxious over how the new Trump administration will fulfill Donald Trump's vow to end the Ukraine war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy gives a news conference in Kyiv on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 27, 2025

Trump confirms Zelenskyy visit to sign Ukraine minerals deal

The Ukrainian leader said the success of the deal would hinge on talks in Washington on Friday and continued U.S. aid.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio (left) and national security adviser Mike Waltz speak with the media following meetings with a Ukrainian delegation on Ukraine-Russia peace talks, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 12, 2025

Ukraine-U.S. ceasefire proposal puts onus on Putin

The Russian president may attach his own set of conditions for ending the war with Ukraine that would be difficult for Kyiv and its European allies to accept.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with reporters following the Group of Seven foreign ministers meeting in La Malbaie, Quebec, on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 15, 2025

U.S. aligns with G7, urging Russia to accept Ukraine ceasefire

In a joint statement, the U.S. backed Ukraine's territorial integrity and warned Russia to follow Kyiv in accepting a ceasefire or face possible further sanctions.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin hold a bilateral meeting at the Group of 20 leaders summit in Osaka in June 2019.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Mar 18, 2025

Trump discussion with Putin to focus on what Ukraine will lose

In an echo of the Yalta Conference in 1945, the American and Russian leaders will talk on Tuesday about who gets what in the process of ending the war in Ukraine.
After U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin's phone call, talks aimed at advancing toward a broader peace plan will begin immediately, the White House, though it was unclear whether Ukraine will be involved.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 19, 2025

Putin spurns a Ukraine ceasefire but Trump calls talk a win

The Russian leader agreed only to limit attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, with experts saying Moscow could be playing for time.
Despite the high cost of defending Ukraine, voters on both sides of the Atlantic — including Republicans in the United States — remain surprisingly united in their support for the country.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 20, 2025

The American and European publics still stand with Ukraine

Public attitudes in the U.S. are even more striking. When it comes to Ukraine, Americans broadly agree with Europeans.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio addresses the audience during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers at the alliance's headquarters in Brussels on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 5, 2025

U.S. will know within weeks if Russia is serious about peace, Rubio says

The statement comes as European allies accuse Moscow of stalling over the Trump administration's call for a ceasefire.
People embrace at the site of a deadly Russian missile strike on a residential area, where multiple children and adults were killed, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, on Saturday.
WORLD
Apr 6, 2025

Zelenskyy slams 'weak' U.S. response to Russian strike on his hometown

The missile strike on his hometown killed 18 people, including nine children.
Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff during a meeting in St. Petersburg on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 12, 2025

U.S. envoy meets Putin as Trump tells Moscow to 'get moving' on Ukraine

The talks come at a time when U.S.-Russia dialogue aimed at agreeing on a ceasefire ahead of a possible peace deal to end the war in Ukraine appears to have stalled.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a ceremony in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on March 28.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 12, 2025

Trump carves up world and international order with it

Russia wants Ukraine, China demands Taiwan and now the U.S. president seems to be following suit, whether by coveting Canada, Greenland or the Panama Canal.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks with U.S. President Donald Trump at St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on Saturday.
WORLD
Apr 26, 2025

Trump and Zelenskyy meet one-on-one in Vatican basilica to seek Ukraine peace

The meeting, their first since an angry encounter in Washington in February, comes at a critical time in negotiations aimed at bringing an end to the war in Ukraine.
There is strong demand for funding from Japanese companies as the economy emerges from years of deflation, and issuers are trying to pinpoint the best time to sell bonds before the Bank of Japan raises interest rates again.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 28, 2025

Revived corporate bond deals in Japan underline need for funding

Volatility is particularly tricky for Japan to navigate given that the market has been less exposed to extreme swings after years of rock-bottom interest rates.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji