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December 05, 2024
 

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Jesse Johnson
Self-Defense Force troops take part in an amphibious landing exercise on Tokunoshima island in Kagoshima Prefecture last November.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 1, 2024
Japan's SDF marks 70th anniversary as it faces change and challenges
The SDF is grappling with dramatic policy shifts while facing down challenges ranging from recruitment to rising Chinese military assertiveness.
North Korea's claimed successful separation and guidance control test of individual mobile warheads is seen in this image released Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 27, 2024
In a first, North Korea claims successful multiple-warhead missile test
Such a capability would potentially allow Pyongyang to use a single missile to drop nuclear warheads on a broad swath of targets.
A vapor trail believed to be created by a North Korean ballistic missile is seen from South Korea's Yeonpyeong Island near the two countries' maritime boundary on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 26, 2024
North Korea missile launch ends in midair explosion, Seoul says
The launch came as the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier visited South Korea for joint military exercises with Seoul and Tokyo.
News of a North Korean missile launch is shown at a the main rail station in Seoul on May 30.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 25, 2024
State-run think tank makes rare call for Seoul to consider own nukes
While discussions have grown about Seoul deploying or building it own nuclear weapons, it is extremely unusual for a state-run body to broach the issue.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un toast during a reception at the Mongnangwan Reception House in Pyongyang on Wednesday following summit talks.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jun 21, 2024
New Kim-Putin pact sparks unease — and talk of more aid for Ukraine
An opaque new treaty signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this week could end up bolstering U.S.-allied cooperation.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin walk past children during a welcoming ceremony in Pyongyang's Kim Il Sung Square on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 19, 2024
Putin and Kim sign mutual defense pact in dramatic upgrade of ties
The North Korean and Russian leaders inked a "strategic partnership treaty," upgrading ties to a level that Kim said was on par with a formal alliance.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un shakes hands with Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia's Amur region last September.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 18, 2024
Putin pledges to take Russia-North Korea ties to 'a higher level'
The Russian leader is expected to ask for even more weapons, while Kim will seek continued military tech support and cash to keep his regime afloat.
The Philippines' BRP Sierra Madre, which was intentionally grounded on the contested Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea in 1999, is home to one of the country's military outposts.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 18, 2024
China appears to adopt new tactic in maritime clash with Philippines
Manila has claimed that Chinese vessels had engaged in “dangerous maneuvers” in the South China Sea, including attempting to tow a Philippine ship.
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.
China Coast Guard vessels fire water cannons toward a Philippine resupply vessel as it made its way to the Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea in March.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 15, 2024
China Coast Guard's new 60-day detention rules take effect
The regulations allowing the arrest of foreign nationals suspected of trespassing in waters "under China's jurisdiction" have stoked fears of escalation.
Tourists rest in the shade at the Tsukiji outer market in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jun 12, 2024
Japan marks first 'extremely hot day' of 2024
The temperature hit 35 degrees Celsius in Fukushima Prefecture and rose above 30 C in parts of Tokyo, the Meteorological Agency said.
South Korean soldiers work on a loudspeaker that is set up for propaganda broadcasts during a military drill near the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas in Paju, South Korea, in this image released Sunday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 10, 2024
Pyongyang floats more balloons amid vows of retaliation against Seoul
Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korea's leader, promised a strong response to South Korea's restarting of its loudspeaker broadcasts for the first time in years.
U.S. President Joe Biden has said he has “made clear” to Chinese leader Xi Jinping long-standing U.S. policy that refrains from endorsing Taiwanese independence, but has said the U.S. will defend the island “if China unilaterally tries to change" the status quo.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 5, 2024
Biden says he won't rule out use of U.S. military to defend Taiwan
The U.S. president, in an interview with Time magazine, delivered another broadside to Beijing on its most sensitive issue.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks at the Shangri-La Dialogue security conference in Singapore on Saturday.
JAPAN
Jun 4, 2024
Upgrade for U.S. military's command in Japan gains steam
U.S. defense chief Lloyd Austin has said that basing a four-star commander in Japan is something the Pentagon is “looking at very closely.”
Visitors take pictures in a booth showing photographs before a rally to commemorate the 35th anniversary of Beijing's Tiananmen Square crackdowns, at the Library Square in Taipei on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 4, 2024
35 years on, Tiananmen memory eroded by Chinese censorship and Sino-U.S. rivalry
While commemorations of the crackdown are effectively banned in mainland China and in Hong Kong, events were being held in Taiwan and other locations.
A North Korean soldier is seen at a guard post inside the country in this picture taken from Paju, South Korea, near the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas in June 2020.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 3, 2024
Seoul to suspend inter-Korean military pact with Pyongyang over balloons
South Korea said the halt will last "until mutual trust between the two Koreas is restored,” after the North sent trash-filled balloons across the border over the last week.
Philippine Coast Guard personnel aboard the BRP Bagacay observe a China Coast Guard ship during the distribution of fuel and food to fishers by a civilian-led mission in the disputed South China Sea on May 16.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 3, 2024
Beijing slams 'ignoble' U.S. role in South China Sea dispute
Responding to a warning by the Philippines' president, Beijing accused Washington of exploiting the issue to "drive a wedge between China and other regional countries."
A plastic bag carrying trash that crossed the inter-Korean border with a balloon believed to have been sent by North Korea is seen in Seoul in this picture released Sunday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 3, 2024
North Korea halts sending trash balloons over border to South
Pyongyang has threatened a resumption of the "unpleasant" practice in the event South Korean activists restart the flying of anti-regime leaflets.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during the Shangri-La Dialogue security conference in Singapore on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 2, 2024
Zelenskyy pillories China over reluctance to use sway to end Ukraine war
The Ukrainian president also implored Asian leaders to attend a peace conference slated for later this month in Switzerland.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrives at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 1, 2024
Zelenskyy arrives in Singapore to address key Asia security summit
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will deliver an address to the Shangri-La Dialogue Asia security conference Sunday and meet with the U.S. defense chief.
South Korea's Yoon backs down after parliament rejects martial law
Soldiers try to enter the National Assembly building in Seoul, after South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law late Tuesday evening.
BOJ weighs case for first triple hike since Japan’s bubble burst
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda reiterated in an interview published Saturday that authorities will raise rates if the economy performs in line with projections.
Australian says romance scam tricked her into smuggling drugs into Japan
Donna Nelson says her life was turned upside down when she learned that the man she was falling for had tricked her into smuggling 2 kilograms of methamphetamine into Japan.
Jetstar Japan loses lawsuit over disciplinary action against cabin crew
Jetstar Japan has been ordered to pay back wages to two cabin crew members for the periods they were suspended.
Nomura CEO takes pay cut after former employee charged with attempted murder
Kentaro Okuda, CEO of Nomura Holdings, speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on Tuesday.
U.S. Space Force launches first unit in Japan
Activated on Wednesday, U.S. Space Forces Japan — a component similar to the one established at South Korea’s Osan Air Base in 2022 — will operate out of Yokota Air Base in the city of Fussa, western Tokyo, with a staff of about 10.
Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?
The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
Europe eyes 'boots on the ground' in Ukraine as possible peace deal option
A serviceman with the Ukrainian Army's 24th mechanized brigade fires a machine gun during an exercise, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the country's Donetsk region on Friday.
Seven strangers and an algorithm: Can this new dinner app help you make friends?
Timeleft uses an algorithm to match its users with five or six strangers in an effort to prompt “human connection” over dinner at a restaurant. It determines the attendees with the help of a simple personality quiz available when you sign up for the service.
Don’t worry, you can still use your Japan health insurance card — for now
A My Number card reader at a pediatric clinic in Tokyo. While the government will stop issuing new health insurance cards on Monday, most people will remain unaffected by the move in the short term as existing health insurance cards can still be used for another year.

Podcast

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

Longform

The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?
By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’
Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’

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