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Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Jun 15, 2023

The future lies in helping to make China a responsible superpower

Under its aim of realizing a 'community with a shared future for mankind,' Beijing is increasingly involving itself in global issues.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / Perspectives
Jan 9, 2023

Technology remains key to geopolitical success

One of Japan's immediate challenges is to resolve tech supply chain issues and counter China's stranglehold of the world's semiconductor market.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 6, 2023

Russian Muppets or American puppets?

The experience in the 1990s of trying to introduce “Sesame Street” to Russia offers valuable insights into the Russian mind.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 4, 2023

Between war and red tape, many Iraqis lack official papers

The absence of civil status documents obstructs access to basic services such as 'education, health care, and social security benefits.'
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 3, 2023

The world’s fantasy destination has an answer to climate oblivion

The Maldives has turned to island building to stave off the impact of global warming, with tourists hoped to foot the bill. But the initiatives come with an environmental cost.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 12, 2022

New technologies offer more accurate nature health checks

Researchers and companies are creating tools to track and protect biodiversity.
WORLD
Dec 6, 2022

25 years after Kyoto Protocol, U.N. climate process stumbles on

The ultimate failure of the protocol offers a cautionary tale on how such international deals can fall short, but also the capacity of climate action to evolve.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Nov 30, 2022

Chinese milestone sets stage for new space race with U.S.

Beijing has successfully sent a new team of astronauts to its space station, a significant achievement that could mark the beginning of a rivalry with the dominant space power: the U.S.
Japan Times
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Nov 30, 2022

Restoring nature could depend on how countries help farmers

Around the world, government subsidies that harm nature amount to at least $1.8 trillion each year — equivalent to 2% of global GDP.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 22, 2022

Why is the Swiss franc still a safe-haven currency?

While other leading safe-haven currencies have taken a hit as of late, the Swiss franc keeps going strong.
Japan Times
WORLD
Nov 9, 2022

The world’s democracies ask: Why can’t America fix itself?

Conversations across continents reveal alarm over the United States' direction, as it slides away from ideals it once pressed other nations to adopt.
Japan Times
WORLD
Nov 9, 2022

As the 'Third Pole' melts, climate diplomacy is hard to come by

The country is one of eight that occupy the largest volume of glacial ice outside the North and South Poles — and the ice is melting.
Tokyo Gendai is described by fair organizers Art Assembly as Tokyo Bay’s first international contemporary art fair in 30 years.
CULTURE / Art
Jul 22, 2023

Can a new art fair finally put Tokyo on the map?

Tokyo Gendai puts on a good event but still needs to change Japanese opinions on contemporary art.
A woman in Vatican City on July 19 during a heat wave. Projecting temperatures is inherently imprecise because modern humans have never experienced such extremes.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jul 29, 2023

An overheating planet requires extreme climate solutions

Projections say warming will only get worse, but humans exert control over planet-warming pollution and can change these models’ trajectories.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 4, 2023

U.N. experts criticize Johnny’s sex abuse investigation

The experts called on the government to do more to investigate decades of suspected abuse against male idols by Johnny Kitagawa.
The impact of China's latest metal curbs will likely be limited, experts say, as the United States is already looking for alternative supply chains.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Aug 11, 2023

China’s gallium curbs to have limited impact on U.S. defense

China said the recent export controls are necessary to safeguard national security, but experts believe this is a way for the country to hit back at U.S.
Leaders at Sweden's Psychological Defense Agency, a state agency, in Stockholm
WORLD / Society
Aug 14, 2023

Sweden is not staying neutral in Russia’s information war

Officials say the Kremlin has targeted Sweden with a concerted psychological campaign to discredit the country and undermine its bid to join NATO.
Prachi Gupta (left) after the birth of her first child in 2018
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Aug 14, 2023

For foreign expecting mothers in Japan, a struggle over maternity norms

Different expectations over things like natural births and weight gain can cause anxieties for non-Japanese.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 15, 2023

Return of Chinese group tours to Japan to bring economic boost

The average amount of spending by individual Chinese tourists is the second largest at ¥338,238, just behind ¥358,888 by travelers from the U.K.
People visit Semicon China, a trade fair for semiconductor technology, in Shanghai in 2021
BUSINESS
Aug 24, 2023

China quietly hires overseas chip talent as U.S. tightens curbs

The revamped recruitment drive is said to offer perks including home-purchase subsidies and typical signing bonuses of $420,000 to $700,000.
Anti-World Bank protestors gather outside where the International Monetary and Financial Committee’s plenary session was being held in Washington in mid-April. 
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 28, 2023

The global order’s triple policy challenge and the tasks ahead

With public and private debt at record levels, political leaders face the monumental task of allocating resources to address critical global challenges.
Travelers arrive for security checks at the newly-inaugurated terminal of Ercan airport outside Nicosia in the self-declared Turkish Republic of North Cyprus on July 21
WORLD / Politics
Aug 28, 2023

New airport sparks unlikely dreams in isolated north Cyprus

Tourism provides crucial income for the north, whose economy relies on Ankara for support and, like Turkey, has suffered from soaring inflation.
A protest against the redevelopment of Dharavi, one of Asia's largest slums, in Mumbai. Banners read: "Remove Adani, Save Dharavi" and "First we fought the whites now we fight the thieves".
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 28, 2023

Billionaire's bid to remake Mumbai slum spurs residents' doubts

Amid massive financial setbacks and allegations that political allies gave him favorable treatment, some question Adani's intentions.
North Korean leader Kim Jong visits a command training center of the Korean People's Army General Staff at an undisclosed location in North Korea in this image released Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 31, 2023

North Korea holds 'nuclear strike drill' targeting South

The drills were intended to "send a message" to the North's enemies, as large-scale military exercises between Washington and Seoul were set to conclude.
A woman stands under surveillance cameras on a riverside, during the National People's Congress in Shanghai on March 7.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 3, 2023

China to its people: Spies are everywhere, help us catch them

China’s ruling Communist Party is enlisting ordinary people to guard against perceived threats to the country.
Johnny & Associates President Julie Keiko Fujishima (second from right) acknowledged that company founder Johnny Kitagawa had sexually abused agency employees for decades during a press conference in Tokyo on Sept. 7.
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Sep 9, 2023

What’s in a name? A lot of baggage and trauma, unfortunately.

Johnny and Associates' recognition of abuse is a step in the right direction, but more needs to be done to move forward.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 11, 2023

North Korean weapons cache gives Kim a role in the Kremlin’s invasion

Kim Jong Un is expected to cross into Russia this week for his first trip outside the peninsula in four years for talks with Vladimir Putin.
Singapore has topped Hong Kong for the first time in the Economic Freedom of the World Index.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 21, 2023

In first, Singapore tops Hong Kong to become ‘world’s freest economy’

Hong Kong fell to second place in the Economic Freedom of the World Index for the first time since its began in 1970.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo gives a news conference at the Boeing aircraft hangar facility in Shanghai on Aug. 30.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 12, 2023

Foreign businesses face a hostile China

The Chinese government's "zero-COVID" policy and regulatory favoritism toward local companies have created obstacles for foreign businesses.
Pudong's Lujiazui Financial District in Shanghai in August
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 13, 2023

Most Japanese companies pessimistic on China’s economy

A quarter of firms said they wouldn’t invest in China this year, while another 22% said they would reduce the amount they invest, a report has shown.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’