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Oracle plans to spend $6.5 billion building a cloud services center in Malaysia, becoming the latest global tech name to invest in Southeast Asian AI infrastructure.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 2, 2024

Oracle to invest $6.5 billion to set up cloud facilities in Malaysia

Oracle's venture is set to be one of the largest single tech investments in Malaysia so far.
A Nepali paramilitary police force office in the village Hilsa, Nepal, on Oct. 12, 2023
ASIA PACIFIC
Oct 14, 2024

China’s ‘new Great Wall’ casts a shadow on Nepal

The fortification building spree is placing intense pressure on China’s poorer, weaker neighbors.
Ukrainian service members rest in a dugout near the front-line city of Toretsk, Ukraine, on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 30, 2024

As U.S. election nears, Europe worries over impact on Ukraine war and NATO

A Donald Trump win remains a concern given his strong criticism of the military alliance and his ambivalent view of Kyiv's fight against Russia's invasion.
Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, addresses Iranian students in Tehran on Saturday.
WORLD
Nov 3, 2024

Iran’s supreme leader threatens Israel with ‘crushing response’ to strikes

After years of avoiding direct military clashes, Iran and Israel have been locked in an escalating cycle of retaliation that has drawn in their allies and proxies.
Royal Canadian Navy Commander Vice Adm. Angus Topshee inspects an honor guard with Maritime Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Adm. Akira Saito during a meeting at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN
Nov 4, 2024

Canada Navy chief sees more chances for multiservice exercises with Japan

Ottawa has been gradually boosting its military engagement with Asian partners since unveiling its Indo-Pacific Strategy in late 2022.
The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Longform
Dec 2, 2024

Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?

Shrinking funding and limited support spark fears for the country's scientific prowess moving forward.
War Tours co-founder Dmytro Nykyforov stands next to a destroyed Russian tank at a tank graveyard during a tour near Dmytrivka village, outside Kyiv, on Nov. 7.
WORLD
Dec 3, 2024

Ukraine sees influx of Western war tourists

Ukraine's destroyed Irpin brige, blown up to stop Russian troops in 2022, is now one of many hotspots for thrill-seeking tourists visiting the country.
Fans in Saudi Arabia celebrate after the nation was confirmed as host of the 2034 FIFA World Cup
SOCCER / World cup
Dec 12, 2024

Saudi Arabia awarded 2034 FIFA World Cup despite human rights concerns

FIFA also confirmed that Morocco, Spain and Portugal will be joint hosts of the 2030 World Cup, in which three games will also be played in South America.
A production line at Mazda's plant in Salamanca, Guanajuato state, Mexico
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 12, 2024

Mazda’s Mexico investment to hinge on Trump’s tariff decisions

Mazda joins a growing number of auto firms that have either paused or signaled they may reconsider plans in the country.
Indian activists angered over the jailing of a leading Hindu monk in Bangladesh try to break a police barricade during a protest in Kolkata on Nov. 28 demanding his release.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 16, 2024

Bangladesh’s descent into Islamist violence

An unstable Bangladesh mired in radical Islamism and political violence has long been India’s geopolitical nightmare
A thermal power plant at an undisclosed location in Ukraine that was damaged during a missile attack amid Russia's invasion
COMMENTARY / World / The Year Ahead
Dec 27, 2024

When Russia fights the wrong enemy

The longer the war in Ukraine continues, the weaker Russia will become, leading many to wonder when it will decide to staunch its losses.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet speaks during the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Sept. 22, 2023.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 24, 2024

Under Cambodia’s new leader, room for dissent narrows

While Prime Minister Hun Manet has often spoken of the need for independent media and civil society in Cambodia, his government has moved in the opposite direction.
An Air Self-Defense Force airman sets up a drone during a bilateral live fire exercise at Draughon Range, near Misawa Air Base, in Aomori Prefecture in July 2023.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jan 5, 2025

Taking a page from Ukraine war, SDF carves out growing role for drones

Whether for use in the air, on land or at sea, the SDF is gradually integrating these increasingly capable and often autonomous systems into their units.
A member of Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) stands along a street after rebels seized the capital and ousted Syria's Bashar Assad, in Hasakah, Syria, on Dec. 11.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 20, 2025

Negotiators zero in on potential deal to disarm Syria's last battleground

Many thorny issues still need to be resolved, however, including how to integrate Kurdish-led forces into Syria's security framework.
“The Elephant Man” and “Twin Peaks” director David Lynch became a favorite among Japanese moviegoers who flocked to new arthouse cinemas (known as “mini theaters”) popping up around the country in the 1980s and ’90s.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Jan 23, 2025

How 'Twin Peaks' turned David Lynch into Japan's favorite weirdo

The director’s work thrived in the early days of arthouse “mini theaters,” and cherry pies and canned coffee fueled the nation's "Twin Peaks" mania.
Shipping containers at an industrial port in the Keihin Industrial Zone in Kawasaki. Japanese businesses see a larger role for Japan if global trade breaks down and multilateral trade institutions become less effective without U.S. participation.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 23, 2025

Japan contemplates global free-trade leadership as U.S. goes protectionist

Tokyo could find opportunity in the turmoil while avoiding direct confrontation with Washington.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s reluctance to engage with newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump while strengthening ties with China raises concerns about Japan’s strategic priorities.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 31, 2025

Ishiba nudges his ‘little Japan’ closer to China

Prime Minister Ishiba’s reluctance to engage with Trump while strengthening ties with China raises concerns about Japan’s strategic priorities and its alliance with the U.S.
A sign that reads ''Buy Canadian Instead'' is displayed after the top five U.S. liquor brands were removed from sale at B.C. Liquor Stores, as part of a response to U.S. President Donald Trump's 25% tariffs on Canadian goods, in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Sunday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 3, 2025

Trump says Americans could feel 'pain' in trade war with Mexico, Canada and China

Wall Street and Washington's largest trading partners signaled hope that the trade war would not last long.
An Afghan woman sits with her children along the roadside in Kandahar on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 10, 2025

Pakistan to force tens of thousands of Afghan refugees out of the capital

Pakistan has ordered Afghan refugees in Islamabad to leave by March 31, as Trump’s refugee ban leaves thousands in limbo.
Volunteer Nhoun Niyok shows villagers how to use a mosquito net to prevent malaria in Cambodia's northeastern Mondulkiri province on Jan. 16.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Feb 14, 2025

Cambodia nears Khmer Rouge survivor's dream of eradicating malaria

The hope is for zero cases this year — a remarkable turnaround for a country that was formerly an epicenter of multi-drug resistant strains.
A Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy helicopter is seen from aboard a Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) aircraft in the skies above Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea on Feb. 18.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 26, 2025

Standoff in the skies: Witnessing an unsafe intercept over the South China Sea

A Chinese military helicopter edged dangerously close to a Philippine plane on patrol over the flash point Scarborough Shoal, an incident witnessed by The Japan Times.
Victims of scam centers who were tricked or trafficked into working in Myanmar are stuck in limbo at a compound in Myawaddy on Feb. 26.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Mar 1, 2025

Some foreigners pulled out of Myanmar scam centers face struggle to get home

Hundreds of foreign nationals have little food, scant health care and filthy toilets in the remote camp they have been taken to, two detainees said.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding global trade, there are some bright spots — namely, the booming trade in services, where the United States is leading the way.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 23, 2025

America’s big trade win

American workers are reaping the rewards. Services exports directly generated 4.1 million jobs in America in 2022, according to the U.S. International Trade Administration.
A resident looks on next to a collapsed building in Mandalay, Myanmar, on Friday, after an earthquake rocked the country's central region.
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 29, 2025

Myanmar quake toll passes 1,000 as rescuers dig for survivors

At least 1,007 people were killed and nearly 2,400 injured in Myanmar, with 30 more missing, the junta said in a statement.
Rescue teams work to save residents trapped under the rubble of the destroyed Sky Villa Condominium development building in Mandalay on Sunday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 30, 2025

Aid rushes into Myanmar after earthquake kills over 1,700

Critical infrastructure — including bridges, highways, airports and railways — across the country of 55 million lay damaged, slowing humanitarian efforts.
A woman cries while offering morning prayers to start the Eid al-Fitr festival in Mandalay, Myanmar, on Monday, three days after a powerful quake hit the Southeast Asian nation.
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 31, 2025

Rescue hopes fading three days after deadly Myanmar quake

Intense heat, with temperatures reaching as high as 40 C, has exhausted rescue workers and accelerated body decomposition, which could complicate identification.
People inspect the debris of a collapsed building in Mandalay, Myanmar, on Friday after an earthquake.
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 1, 2025

Signs of life detected in quake-hit Bangkok skyscraper as overall death toll tops 2,000

Civil war in Myanmar is complicating efforts to reach those injured by the country's biggest quake in a century.
French amateur weightlifting champion Sylvie Eberena trains in Mantes-la-Jolie, France, on March 26.
SPORTS
Apr 12, 2025

Athletes frustrated as France mulls Muslim headscarf ban in sport

Muslim athletes in France are raising concerns as the government considers banning the hijab for athletes in competitions.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping waves as he arrives for a two-day state visit at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 14, 2025

Xi seeks to win with Southeast Asia trip as Trump pauses some tariffs

Xi arrived in Vietnam on Monday and was due to visit Malaysia and Cambodia later this week, just days after Trump raised tariffs on China but gave everyone else a 90-day pause.
Travelers prepare to spend the night at the Atocha train station in Madrid on Monday following a massive power cut.
WORLD
Apr 29, 2025

Spain and Portugal hunt for cause of power outage as electricity returns

In Spain, schools and offices reopened, public transport restarted after long delays, traffic gridlock eased and many hospitals had recovered power.

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