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Sanjay in front of his home in Texas
WORLD / Politics
Jan 28, 2025

Trump’s birthright citizenship rattles H-1B visa workers expecting a baby

The U.S. is fairly unique in offering unconditional birthright citizenship, creating a special enticement for foreign workers.
With Donald Trump's second term as U.S. president, Japan faces a new era in its relationship with the United States, requiring a shift from values-based diplomacy to a transactional approach.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 28, 2025

New era for U.S.-Japan depends on adapting to Trump’s America

The next four years will be more consequential and transactional for leaders in Tokyo as the Trump administration puts America first.
Former Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos (left) and Robert Socolow, a professor emeritus in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Princeton University, reveal the location of the minute hand on the Doomsday Clock at a Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists news conference in Washington on Tuesday.
WORLD / Society
Jan 29, 2025

'Doomsday Clock' moves closer than ever to midnight

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists said the United States, China and Russia have the prime responsibility to pull the world back from the brink.
Smoke from the Palisades Fire rises over the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California,  on Jan. 7.
WORLD / Science & Health
Jan 29, 2025

Scientists race to gauge Los Angeles fires’ impact on ocean life

The more than 15,000 structures that burned in the Los Angeles fires released carcinogenic clouds of ash that blew far out to sea.
U.S. President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 30, 2025

Trump reverses spending freeze order that sparked chaos

The abrupt move — only two days after the freeze was first announced — quickly drew parallels to the chaotic policy rollouts that unfolded during Trump’s first administration.
Trump started his term on Jan. 20 by issuing an executive order "Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism," which declared the government will only recognize two sexes — male and female.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 30, 2025

LGBTQ+ Americans in crisis as Trump rolls back rights

Nine organizations supporting LGBTQ+ people said they had a surge in use of their crisis services and calls to their helplines on Trump's first day in office.
U.S. President Donald Trump holds a letter to the U.N. stating the U.S.' withdrawal from the Paris Agreement during the inaugural parade inside Capital One Arena, in Washington, on Jan. 20.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jan 31, 2025

The global climate order teeters under a second assault from Trump

Inflation and threats to energy security have eroded the political strength of climate-forward leaders and emboldened Trumpian populists around the world.
U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks during an 'Unleashing American Energy' event at the Department of Energy in Washington in June 2017.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 31, 2025

Japan weighs Alaska LNG pipeline pledge to win Trump's favor

President Trump may raise the project when he meets Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba for the first time in Washington as soon as next week.
The U.S. Office of Personnel Management building in Washington
WORLD
Feb 1, 2025

Elon Musk's aides block access to federal personnel database, sources say

Affected officials can still log on and access functions like email but can no longer see the datasets that cover every facet of the federal workforce.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents walk down a street during a multi-agency targeted enforcement operation in Chicago, Illinois on Jan. 26.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 1, 2025

TikTok influencers leverage power of gossip to thwart ICE raids

They say that as authorities ramp up raids in the early days of the Trump administration, they’re trying to inform migrants of their rights.
Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato holds a virtual meeting with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent last week.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 2, 2025

Japan to closely monitor impact on yen of Trump tariffs, Kato says

Kato spoke as the world braces for first salvo in Trump's tariff war, with general levies of 25% on Canada and Mexico and 10% on China.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (left) speaks during an executive order signing ceremony with U.S. President Donald Trump and Howard Lutnick, chief executive officer of Cantor Fitzgerald and U.S. commerce secretary nominee, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Monday.
BUSINESS
Feb 4, 2025

Trump orders creation of U.S. sovereign wealth fund and says it could buy TikTok

The text of the executive order was sparse on details, and simply directed the Treasury and Commerce Departments to submit a plan for such a fund within 90 days.
A Ukrainian serviceman fires a howitzer toward Russian troops, in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, on Jan. 11.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Feb 4, 2025

Ukraine's politics warms up as U.S. focuses on war's endgame

In the past week, one Ukrainian political camp has accused President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's team of caring more about elections than the war.
While it's unclear whether U.S. President Donald Trump will follow through with his promised 25% levies on Mexico and Canada after agreeing to a 30-day pause on Monday, the blowback would be profound for Nissan.
BUSINESS / Companies / ANALYSIS
Feb 4, 2025

Trump tariffs will only add to the pain for hard-hit Nissan

The blowback from potential tariffs on Mexico and Canada would be profound for Japan's No.3 carmaker, which is struggling to turn itself around.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) headquarters in Washington in 2023. Groups with EPA grants say they have been unable to access funds from the agency.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Feb 5, 2025

Trump’s freeze on climate money sows fear and confusion

A federal judge temporarily blocked the spending pause days later but uncertainty persists, with the full impact of the disruption still coming into view.
Toyota is investing in increased capacity for electric vehicles and has unveiled plans to establish a subsidiary in Shanghai.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 5, 2025

Toyota raises annual profit guidance despite quarterly income drop

The automaker now expects a profit of ¥4.7 trillion ($31 billion) for the fiscal year ending March, up from its previous forecast of ¥4.3 trillion.
U.S. President Donald Trump's imposed and since paused tariffs on Canada and Mexico, coupled with his broad levies on China — and possibly others soon — pose risks of economic retaliation, supply chain disruptions and long-term damage to U.S. influence.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 5, 2025

The tariff man is making a risky bet

The optimal tariff argument ignores the substantial risks that Trump is taking. A generalized trade war will make everyone worse off.
A cargo ship full of shipping containers at the port of Oakland in Oakland, California, as trade tensions escalate over U.S. tariffs on Monday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 6, 2025

Economists brace for Trump's new trade war to rekindle inflation worldwide

Stubborn growth in consumer prices was bothering much of the world even before U.S. President Donald Trump entered the White House.
China, under President Xi Jinping, is resisting Donald Trump’s trade tariffs, but may need to respond with major fiscal stimulus, currency devaluation or allowing TikTok’s sale to navigate economic challenges.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 5, 2025

China’s Mr. Big Won’t Cave in to Trump for Nothing

Does Xi Jinping have a trade war game plan? He’ll need to make hard choices.
Far from making America great again, Donald Trump’s actions since assuming the presidency are giving a giant boost to China’s attempts at world leadership.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 7, 2025

‘America First’ in action

Far from making America great again, Trump is giving a giant boost to China’s claims to world leadership.
U.S. President Donald Trump (right) and Russian President Vladimir Putin talk during a bilateral meeting at the G20 summit in Osaka in 2019.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 11, 2025

Russia seen playing hardball with Trump on Ukraine peace discussions

Donald Trump, who has repeatedly stated he wants to end the war in Ukraine, said he thought he was making progress, though he has not shared how he hopes to end the conflict.
Firefighters work at a site of a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the town of Kramatorsk, Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 11, 2025

Trump funding freeze threatens Ukraine probe of alleged Russian war crimes

At stake are six U.S.-funded projects at the Prosecutor General's Office valued at $89 million, according to a Ukrainian document on the U.S. funding and cuts.
Rory McIlroy celebrates on the 18th hole after winning the Pebble Beach Pro-Am in Pebble Beach, California, on Feb. 2.
MORE SPORTS / Golf
Feb 13, 2025

Rory McIlroy had conversation with Donald Trump about PGA-LIV deal

McIlroy said he played golf with Trump in early January and felt Trump supported the PGA over Saudi-backed LIV.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump meet while attending the Group of 20 summit during Trump's first term, in Osaka in June 2019.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 16, 2025

U.S. and Russian officials to meet in Saudi Arabia for Ukraine war talks

The meeting could pave the way for a potential leaders’ summit as soon as the end of the month to discuss ending the war in Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reacts during the Munich Security Conference in the German city on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 16, 2025

Zelenskyy says draft U.S. minerals deal 'does not protect' Ukraine

The negotiations illustrate the pitfalls Zelenskyy faces as he seeks to win Donald Trump's backing and secure post-war security guarantees.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Oleksiy Chernyshov (center left), German Head of the Federal Chancellery and Minister for Special Tasks Wolfgang Schmidt and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz attend the Munich Security Conference in Munich on Saturday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 18, 2025

Security demands cast new shadow on Europe's finances

Some fear a political backlash if governments simply slash social spending to buy more soldiers and guns.
Newly manufactured cars ready for shipping. U.S. President Donald Trump said he is likely to impose new 25% tariffs on imported cars, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals in the coming months.
BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 19, 2025

Trump floats 25% tariffs on U.S. auto, drug and chip imports

The U.S. president has also threatened other streams of tariffs, all part of an effort to reconfigure the country's trading relationships across the globe.
Kash Patel, who was approved on a 51-49 mostly party line vote, takes over the Federal Bureau of Investigation at a turbulent time.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 21, 2025

Kash Patel confirmed to lead reshaping of FBI under Trump

Patel overcame intense opposition during his confirmation process, especially from Democrats who argued he isn’t qualified.
U.S. President Donald Trump is seen on a TV screen in Kabul. Trump’s first term resulted in talks that eventually led to the Taliban’s return to power, but this time around, Afghans hope that the president will take a tough stance against the brutal regime.  
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 21, 2025

What Trump’s return could mean for Afghanistan

Despite Afghan refugees being denied admission to the U.S., at least for now, there is hope that the new Trump administration will undermine the brutal Taliban regime in Kabul.
Elon Musk listens as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Feb. 11.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 23, 2025

Musk orders U.S. federal workers to report on work by Monday or resign

It is unclear what legal basis Musk has to terminate federal workers if they fail to respond or what would happen to employees that cannot detail confidential work.

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami