Tag - focus

 
 

FOCUS

U.S. President Joe Biden meets with steelworkers at United Steel Workers headquarters in Pittsburgh in April.
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Jun 29, 2024
Biden and Trump battle for blue-collar voters as steel merger looms over vote
Just how many rank-and-file workers ignore union chiefs and vote for Donald Trump could have a decisive impact in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin.
Foreign tourists visit Tsukiji Outer Market in Tokyo on June 14.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 29, 2024
Why it feels like everyone in the world is heading to Japan right now
The yen’s historic collapse coupled with the post-pandemic surge in global tourism has sparked interest in the nation like never before.
U.S. President Joe Biden looks down as he participates in the first presidential debate of the 2024 elections with his predecessor and current Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, at CNN's studios in Atlanta on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 29, 2024
Here’s what it would take to replace Biden as nominee
Democrats have ways to replace Joe Biden on the presidential ticket — but doing so without their standard-bearer’s acquiescence would be a daunting task.
A rare earths plant owned by Neo Performance Materials in Sillamae, Estonia
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Jun 27, 2024
In race to regain rare earth glory, Europe falls short on mineral goals
EU demand for rare earths is forecast to soar sixfold in the decade to 2030 and sevenfold by 2050.
An altar is decorated with a portrait of Aum Shinrikyo founder Chizuo Matsumoto at an Aleph facility in Tokyo this month.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Jun 27, 2024
Japan authorities remain on alert over Aum successor group
Aleph, which has most of the roughly 1,650 worshippers of Aum Shinrikyo's three successor groups, continues to worship the teachings of cult leader Chizuo Matsumoto.
China Coast Guard personnel aboard rigid hull inflatable boats (in black) during a confrontation with Philippine Navy personnel near the Second Thomas Shoal in disputed waters of the South China Sea on June 17
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Jun 26, 2024
China’s ax-wielding coast guard tests limits in South China Sea
The Philippines Armed Forces called the June 17 moves by China a "brutal assault" and said the Chinese sailors acted like pirates.
This screen grab taken from video posted on the WikiLeaks X account on Tuesday shows WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange looking out the window of a private jet as he flies from London to Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands after reaching a plea deal with the U.S. authorities.
WORLD / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Jun 26, 2024
Assange walks free, but plea deal sets a chilling precedent
The Committee to Protect Journalists says the prosecution had grave implications for journalists and press freedom worldwide.
A rendering of the next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed and manufactured by Japan, Britain and Italy
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 25, 2024
Concerns raised over strength of Japan's fighter jet export 'brakes'
The closed nature of decision-making has been criticized, while worries persist over the potential use of Japanese equipment.
People holds a banner saying "Protect children from joint custody after divorce" during a rally outside the parliament building in Tokyo in March.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Jun 25, 2024
Gender gap fuels disputes as Japan gets joint custody
The change has proved polarizing in a country where campaigners say sole custody acts as a bulwark against forms of domestic abuse.
For Japan, carbon credits are seen as important as the nation waits for its climate technology bets to pay off.
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Jun 24, 2024
Japan makes a late play on under-fire carbon credit trading
The government and Japanese companies see carbon offsets as important as they wait for their climate tech bets to pay off.
Amid AI chip juggernaut Nvidia's staggering successes, startups seeking the attention of Silicon Valley venture capitalists are being asked to innovate — but without a clear indication of where the next chapter of AI will be written.
BUSINESS / Tech / FOCUS
Jun 23, 2024
Beyond Nvidia: the search for AI's next breakthrough
Startups are being asked to innovate — but without a clear indication of where the next chapter of AI will be written.
Renho announces her campaign pledges for the Tokyo gubernatorial election, in the capital on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 21, 2024
The campaigners that Tokyo hopeful Renho doesn't want you to know about
The candidate for governor has kept quiet about Japanese Communist Party activities in support of her — ties that could alienate some voters.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida arrives at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 21, 2024
For Kishida, the LDP election means a fraught summer ahead
Attention is turning to what the prime minister will do as potential rivals rally support ahead of September's vote for party president.
Philippine Coast Guard personnel prepare rubber fenders after China Coast Guard vessels blocked their way to a resupply mission at the Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea on March 5.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 19, 2024
In South China Sea dispute, Philippines' bolder hand tests Beijing
Publicizing China's actions, combined with Manila's deepened military alliance with the U.S., has constrained Beijing's ability to escalate matters at sea.
Astronaut Koichi Wakata poses for a photo after holding a news conference on March 29 to announce his retirement from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency at the end of March.
JAPAN / Science & Health / FOCUS
Jun 18, 2024
After three decades, Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata moves to private sector
Wakata became chief technology officer for the Asia-Pacific region at U.S. startup space company Axiom Space in April.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visit the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia's far east Amur region on Sept. 13, 2023.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 17, 2024
Putin to visit North Korea from Tuesday for meeting with Kim
The Russian president is expected to ask Kim Jong Un for even more weapons, adding to an influx of arms in the wake of a summit last year.
Renho speaks to reporters on Wednesday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 13, 2024
Renho, the liberal politician who might dethrone Tokyo's Koike
Her candidacy in July's gubernatorial race presents voters in the capital with two choices: Change or stability.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during an Upper House committee session on Monday.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 13, 2024
LDP allies concerned effort to improve funding transparency may be weakened
The House of Councilors began substantive deliberations on the legislation on Monday.
A tourist from the U.S. (second right) sings karaoke as "mama" Kuri Awaji (left) waves a glow stick at her bar Kuriyakko in Tokyo.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 13, 2024
Tourists get taste of old Japan at hidden 'snack bars'
Snack bars are cozy, retro establishments often crammed into small buildings and equipped with karaoke systems that echo late into the night.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and digital minister Taro Kono attend a digitalization panel in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 11, 2024
Japan's parliament faces a long road to digitalization
Concerns over decorum and the possibility of the use of electronic devices being obtrusive to proceedings are among reasons cited for maintaining restrictions.

Longform

Dul Saroth (left) and Soeum Samrach, deminers with the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority, practice using the Advanced Landmine Imaging System in Cambodia’s Siem Reap province in August.
The Japanese tech that could one day make Southeast Asia landmine-free