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July 05, 2025
 

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MINING

Japan's deep-sea drilling vessel Chikyu is seen anchored at a pier in Shimizu port, Shizuoka Prefecture, in 2013.
JAPAN
Jul 3, 2025
Japan plans 'world first' deep-sea mineral extraction
Earlier this week the country pledged to work with the United States, India and Australia to ensure a stable supply of critical minerals.
Albin Enbacke is among the train drivers responsible for ferrying iron ore from the Kiruna mine.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 3, 2025
Sweden’s arctic railway prepares for a more militarized future
Should Finland’s border with Russia ever become an active front, the track would be one of the best ways for NATO to transport vehicles and supplies.
United Wa State Army (UWSA) soldiers march during a media display in Pansang, Wa territory in northeast Myanmar in 2016. The armed group controls one of the world's largest tin mines.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 12, 2025
China-backed militia secures control of new rare earth mines in Myanmar
Beijing is heavily reliant on Myanmar for the rare earth metals and oxides needed to produce magnets that power critical goods.
Thai fisherman Chaweng Yothaud (right) collects water samples to test for alleged arsenic poisoning along the Kok River in the Golden Triangle region in northern Thailand's Chiang Rai province.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 11, 2025
Toxic Thailand rivers pinned on Myanmar mines
Around a dozen extraction operations have sprung up in Myanmar's Shan state since around 2022, in territory controlled by the United Wa State Army.
People swim in the Mediterranean Sea on a sunny and warm spring day during the third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3), which gathers leaders, researchers and activists to discuss how to protect marine life, in Nice, France, on Tuesday.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Jun 11, 2025
Leaders warn race for minerals could turn seabed into 'wild west'
Anxiety over Trump's push to fast-track deep-sea mining in international waters took center stage at the opening of the U.N. Ocean Conference in France.
U.S. Secretary of Treasury Scott Bessent (L) and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (R) shake hands as they pose for a photo during trade discussions at the Lancaster House in London on Monday.
BUSINESS
Jun 10, 2025
U.S.-China trade and minerals talks in London set to extend to second day
Washington and Beijing are trying to revive a temporary truce struck in Geneva that had briefly lowered trade tensions and calmed markets.
Workers transport soil containing rare earth elements for export at a port in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China in 2010.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 4, 2025
Global alarms rise as China's critical mineral export curbs take hold
China has a stranglehold on minerals crucial for sectors ranging from aerospace to semiconductors.
Workers ride motorbikes into Weda Bay Industrial Park (WBIP), a major nickel processing and smelting hub, in Lelilef Sawai, Central Halmahera, North Maluku, Indonesia, on April 18.
ENVIRONMENT
May 28, 2025
Nickel rush for stainless steel guts Indonesia tribe's forest home
The plight of the Indigenous people there started gaining attention last year after a video online showed emaciated members emerging from their homes to beg for food.
Ukrainian lawmakers discuss ratifying the deal with the United States about mineral resources during a session of parliament in Kyiv on May 8.
BUSINESS
May 28, 2025
Ukraine revamps minerals sector, eyeing billions in investment from U.S. deal
The country has deposits of 22 of 34 minerals deemed as critical by the European Union for industries such as defense, high-tech appliances and green energy.
The site of a rare earth metals mine in China
BUSINESS / Companies
May 23, 2025
Rare earth production outside China 'major milestone'
Lynas' announcement illustrates how much more needs to be done to broaden the supply of elements critical for electric vehicles and renewable technology.
Rainmaker Mountain in Pago Pago, American Samoa
BUSINESS
May 21, 2025
Trump sets stage to sell ocean mining rights off American Samoa
There’s growing appetite in Washington for new domestic sources of critical minerals, following China’s decision to curb exports of rare-earth materials.
The Lynas Rare Earths processing plant in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia
BUSINESS
May 18, 2025
Australian firm produces heavy rare earth, in first outside China
Beijing has banned the export of processing technology that could help rival nations, and has been accused of using state-imposed quotas to control supply.
A gold miner holds up a piece of gold along the Madre de Dios River near Puerto Maldonado, Peru.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
May 6, 2025
Mining murders show Peru’s struggles with illegal gold rush
Skyrocketing gold prices are creating a further incentive for illegal mining activities in the country.
In France, a state-of-the-art rare earths plant to extract key minerals like dysprosium and terbium is being built with French and Japanese support — the first of its kind outside China. Its significance goes beyond the project itself.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 5, 2025
New rare earth plant shows strength of Japan-France cooperation
In France, a state-of-the-art rare earths plant is being built with French and Japanese support, showing the way for those who see the benefits of working together and not alone.
China's Bayan Obo rare earth mine in Inner Mongolia. As U.S.-China tensions strain critical mineral supply chains, Tokyo’s multipronged approach based on sovereignty, resilience and sustainability is gaining quiet relevance.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 5, 2025
Japan's resource security path may hold answers to trade turmoil
Critical mineral supply chains are made vulnerable by China's dominance and U.S. protectionism. Japan's strategy may provide clues as to how to secure these vital resources.
An open-pit mine in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, on April 23. The financial payoff from the deal may take a decade or longer to materialize.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
May 2, 2025
U.S. and Ukraine may wait decade or more to see revenue from minerals deal
While the financial benefits from the deal are uncertain, officials in Ukraine believe it will help shore up U.S. support for Kyiv.
Greenpeace activists hold banners during a protest against the deep sea mining vessel Hidden Gem, commissioned by Canadian miner The Metals Company, off the coast of Manzanillo, Mexico, on Sept. 27, 2023.
WORLD / Politics
May 1, 2025
U.N. body warns over Trump's deep-sea mining order
Washington wants to spearhead mining for mineral-rich nodules in the deepest ocean floor, sidestepping a global effort to regulate such potentially damaging exploration.
The United States and Ukraine signed a minerals deal on Wednesday, offering a measure of assurance to officials in Kyiv.
WORLD / Politics
May 1, 2025
U.S. and Ukraine sign resources deal after fraught negotiations
The signing ceremony on Wednesday concluded weeks of contentious negotiations and pulled the two countries back from a rift.
The Maersk Launcher, chartered by a seabed-mining company to explore the practices viability, returns from an expedition to the Clarion Clipperton Zone in the Pacific Ocean in June 2021.
WORLD
Apr 26, 2025
Trump moves to ramp up deep-sea mining for critical minerals
The move comes amid increasing concern over new Chinese curbs on the export of rare-earth materials.
Brine pools at the Atacama salt flat in Antofagasta region, Chile, in 2023. Local Chilean Indigenous communities are pushing for greater control over lithium extraction in the country just as the government plans to raise production.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Apr 8, 2025
As Chile revs up lithium plans, Indigenous people demand more control
Mining companies describe a potential system as "unprecedented" in Chile, adding that it would comply with international treaties on Indigenous rights.
Japan unveils new overtourism countermeasures
The majority of tourists in Japan tend to stay in Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto, resulting in overcrowding in popular tourist spots and a strain on transportation systems.
South Korea couple beat same-sex barriers to parenthood
South Korean lesbian couple Kim Kyu-jin (left) and her wife, Kim Sae-yeon, pose with a "pregnant woman" badge during an interview in Seoul last month.
Toyoko Kids: The lonely street children of Tokyo
Many young people who feel neglected at home flock to the Toyoko area to find a community where they can fit in.
Rising sex tourism exposes loopholes in Japan's anti-prostitution law
While financial misfortunes during the COVID-19 pandemic may have driven some women to work the streets, others simply want more money to spend — or want to pay off their debts — at host clubs.
Opportunities await the bold in the Year of the Wood Dragon
2024 marks the Year of the Dragon in the Chinese zodiac, with the year predicted to be a good time for fresh starts.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

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