Search - politics

 
 
U.S. Vice President and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and her husband, second gentleman Douglas Emhoff, wave from the stage on the fourth and last day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Aug 24, 2024

Harris faces challenge of translating convention joy to fall momentum

Trump is no pushover, and history is littered with presidential candidates who roused their partisans at conventions only to fall short come November.
Giant figures depicting Russian authors Anton Chekhov, Alexander Pushkin, Daniil Kharms and Fyodor Dostoyevsky are paraded through a carnival in central Moscow in September 2015.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 27, 2024

When art is all that remains

Looking at the Kremlin today, one wonders, “Do they really now know how this story ends?” Art will always have the last word.
The shutdown of Elon Musk's X has drawn parallels with authoritarian regimes, damaging Brazil’s international reputation and raising concerns about judicial overreach.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 4, 2024

Shutting off Elon Musk won't help Brazil's democracy

While regulating hate speech is complex, the approach by Brazil's Supreme Court might be excessive and counterproductive.
A steel plant in Shanghai operated by Baoshan Iron & Steel. Nippon Steel said in July it will dissolve its joint venture with the Chinese firm.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 9, 2024

Japanese firms sour on China after long years of brushing off risks

Almost half of Japanese firms in China polled in a recent survey said they won’t spend more or will cut investment this year.
A water tower at the United States Steel Edgar Thomson Works steel mill in Braddock, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 4
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 14, 2024

Biden administration is likely to delay decision over U.S. Steel

The White House has faced backlash for politicizing its review of Nippon Steel’s takeover of the company.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (right) and British Foreign Secretary David Lammy speak to the media outside of the West Wing of the White House in Washington on Friday following a meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 14, 2024

Biden hasn’t let Ukraine strike deep into Russia. Could Britain change that?

A trip to Washington by Britain’s prime minister, Keir Starmer, came after President Vladimir Putin of Russia warned that the allies’ next step could mean war for NATO.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni shake hands at a news conference in Rome on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 17, 2024

Starmer courts Meloni in Rome with eye on risk from U.K. right

The British prime minister said he’s looking to his Italian counterpart for lessons on tackling what is known as irregular migration.
Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito speaks during a prefectural assembly session on Thursday in Kobe. A motion of no confidence against Saito, who is accused of workplace bullying, was submitted to the prefectural assembly on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 19, 2024

Hyogo assembly passes no-confidence motion against embattled governor

The extremely rare move forces Gov. Motohiko Saito, who is accused of workplace bullying, to either step down or dissolve the assembly within 10 days.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer during the opening day of the U.K. Labour Party annual conference in Liverpool on Sunday
WORLD / Politics
Sep 23, 2024

Starmer struggles to reclaim ‘change’ narrative after missteps

Labour is facing backlash for cutting winter energy aid for millions of pensioners in an effort to fix national finances amid donor scandals.
Former Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda attends a news conference after being elected as the new leader of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan on Monday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 23, 2024

Former PM Yoshihiko Noda elected new leader of main opposition CDP

The win puts him on track for a showdown with a new leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in a general election likely to be held sooner rather than later.
Former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba takes a seat in the Liberal Democratic Party president's office in Tokyo after being elected to the post on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 27, 2024

Ishiba wins: An unusual result for an unusual election

The very lawmakers who long shunned former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba made him president in an unexpected twist to the Liberal Democratic Party leadership race.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump, shake hands during a meeting on Friday in New York.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 28, 2024

On trip to U.S., Zelenskyy finds Ukraine’s fortunes tied to the election

A whirlwind week of top-level meetings failed to alleviate concerns in Kyiv that a Trump presidency could lead to a dramatic shift in American policy.
Combination image of Republican vice presidential nominee U.S. Senator JD Vance attending a debate with Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Governor Tim Walz in New York on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 2, 2024

Walz and Vance's 'Midwestern nice' debate gives U.S. voters a break

This year's presidential cycle has been dogged by political division and intense rhetoric
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav has repeatedly stressed that Israel must take the fight to Lebanon.
WORLD
Oct 4, 2024

Israel's hawkish Yoav Gallant is driving the war in Lebanon

Officials in Israel like Yoav Gallant have called to push the Lebanese militant group away from their shared border to allow displaced people to return.
U.S. voters are increasingly concerned about misinformation spreading the good-old-fashioned way — through politicians sowing falsehoods.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 4, 2024

More than AI misinformation, U.S. voters worry about lying politicians

Politicians face almost no legal consequences for distorting the truth, researchers say.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delivers his inaugural policy address to parliament in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 4, 2024

Ishiba omits divisive proposals in first policy speech as PM

He elaborated on his long-held ideas about creating a disaster-prevention agency and increasing grants for rural municipalities.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump campaigns at the Dodge County Airport in Juneau, Wisconsin on Oct. 6. Even before he kicked off a comeback bid, foreign governments realized that Trump was still a force in American politics and  took him into account in their dealings with the United States.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 12, 2024

Much of the world treats Trump as a shadow president

The former U.S. president has remained a force in international politics, with governments taking him into account in their dealings with the U.S.
Tomoko Tamura, leader of the Japanese Communist Party, says it is "crucial" for the JCP to increase its parliamentary share in the upcoming Lower House election.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 13, 2024

JCP unlikely to withdraw candidates for opposition cooperation

The foundations for electoral cooperation among opposition parties "have collapsed," Tamura said in a recent interview.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (right) welcomes Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau upon his arrival at the Group of 20 Summit in New Delhi on Sept. 9, 2023.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 16, 2024

Canada-India rift seen as a momentary gain for Modi and Trudeau

The divide could bolster Narendra Modi's image as a hawk on national security while taking the spotlight off of Justin Trudeau reportedly being asked to step down.
Chinese President Xi Jinping makes a toast during the National Day reception on the eve of the 75th founding anniversary of the People's Republic of China, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Sept. 30.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Oct 16, 2024

Xi’s stronger grip on legislature shows lack of checks on power

Nearly 70% of laws made in China this year feature language explicitly affirming the party’s authority.
Bidzina Ivanishvili, former prime minister and founder of the Georgian Dream party, waves during a pro-government rally in support of a bill regarding "foreign agents" in Tbilisi, Georgia, on April 29.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 22, 2024

Georgia's shark-owning billionaire tells voters: Don't risk war with Russia

Memories are fresh of a 2008 war with Russia over the Moscow-backed breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, which lasted five days and ended in Georgia's defeat.
“Vote harassment” continues to be a significant barrier to women’s participation in politics, with only two prefectures having passed local ordinances aiming to eliminate the problem.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 24, 2024

1 in 4 female candidates face sexual harassment during campaigns

Despite a record 314 women running in Sunday's Lower House election, harassment continues to be a barrier to women's participation in politics.
General Motors CEO Mary Barrabefore an investor meeting in Spring Hill, Tennessee, on Oct. 8. Barra said that the company had fixed battery-manufacturing problems and that its electric vehicles would soon be profitable.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 24, 2024

Electric vehicles may be struggling. GM’s leader is still a believer.

General Motors CEO Mary Barra says the company is still committed to doing away with combustion engine cars in the United States by 2035.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who serves concurrently as leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, makes a speech at a campaign event for the Lower House election, in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 26, 2024

In tight Japan election, candidates make last-ditch appeals

Opinion polls have suggested the ruling bloc might fall short of a majority, delivering a potentially devastating blow to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba during an interview with reporters at the Liberal Democratic Party's headquarters in Tokyo on Sunday night
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 28, 2024

Japan faces political upheaval after LDP-led coalition loses majority

The electoral rout opens up a potential path for the opposition to steer the lower chamber’s agenda if they can act cohesively.
On Sunday, voters delivered the LDP its biggest electoral setback since 2009, showing their dissatisfaction with recent scandals that have ravaged the party and fundamental issues in its makeup.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 28, 2024

Japan's October surprise

The debacle facing the LDP may be the immediate result of recent scandals, but there are deeper, structural reasons why voters have lost confidence in the party.
Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Chisato Morishita bows to reporters on Sunday in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, after she was projected to win a seat in the Lower House election.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 28, 2024

Record number of women elected to Japan's Lower House

A total of 73 female candidates won seats in Sunday’s general election, making up about 16% of the membership of the chamber of parliament.
Anna Sawai and Hiroyuki Sanada won the outstanding lead actress and actor awards in a drama series, respectively, for "Shogun" at the 76th Primetime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles on Sept. 15.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 30, 2024

'Peak Japan' is now, so seize the moment, Japan

Japan has never been hotter! Japan is the number one country in the world right now, as voted on by everyone else except for the Japanese.
Abortion rights supporters and anti-abortion demonstrators protest outside the Supreme Court in Washington in April.
COMMENTARY
Nov 4, 2024

Civil rights are on the ballot this election

Never in recent history have so many Americans had their rights on the line in one race.
A front page announcement for Hideki Yukawa's Nobel Prize win in the fields of physics informs readers of Japan's first-ever Nobel laureate.
JAPAN / History / Japan Times Gone By
Nov 4, 2024

Japan Times 1949: Yukawa wins Nobel award

Along with Japan receiving its first Nobel Prize 75 years ago, a lengthy write-up on the man who sought to kill the emperor appeared on our front pages.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years