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Jesse Johnson
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Apr 10, 2017
Stage set for showdown between Trump and Kim as tensions surge on Korean Peninsula
With a U.S. aircraft carrier strike group steaming toward waters off the Korean Peninsula and important anniversaries looming for nuclear-armed North Korea, the stage has been set for a showdown between U.S. President Donald Trump and the North's leader, Kim Jong Un.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 9, 2017
U.S. Navy carrier strike group heads toward Korean Peninsula amid rising tensions
The USS Carl Vinson-led aircraft carrier strike group has been sent to waters in the Western Pacific near the Korean Peninsula, the U.S. Navy's Pacific Command and media reports said Sunday ahead of the anniversary of the birth of North Korea's founder.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 7, 2017
U.S. strike on Syria changes North Korea dynamic as Trump, Xi meet
U.S. President Donald Trump’s stunning order for a missile strike on a Syrian military airfield Friday may change the calculus on how China views his threats of unilateral action against nuclear-armed North Korea, experts say.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 7, 2017
Fighter jet spotted on South China Sea island, more believed in hangars: U.S. think tank
A Chinese fighter jet has been spotted on a Chinese-controlled island in the South China Sea for the first time in a year, a U.S. think tank said Thursday as President Donald Trump met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 6, 2017
More Americans view China in positive light amid easing economic concerns: poll
As U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping meet Thursday and Friday at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, it will be against a backdrop of softening American views toward China — despite a series of thorny issues the two powers face.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 5, 2017
Tillerson's curt — and unusual — statement could signal shift on North Korea
Twenty-three words. That was apparently as much ink U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was willing to devote to North Korea after the reclusive country's latest missile launch Wednesday.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 5, 2017
North Korea fires missile into Sea of Japan days ahead of first Xi-Trump summit
Prime Minister Abe lashed out at North Korea's firing Wednesday of a ballistic missile into the Sea of Japan, just days before a summit between U.S. President Trump and Chinese President Xi.
JAPAN
Apr 3, 2017
Amid North Korean saber rattling, Japan, South Korea, U.S. hold first joint anti-submarine drills
Japan, South Korea and the U.S. have conducted the first joint anti-submarine warfare (ASW) drills involving the three countries amid North Korea's growing submarine-launched ballistic missile threat.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 3, 2017
Former U.S. defense chief's North Korea strategy: Deal with it as it is, not as we wish it to be
"We must deal with North Korea as it is, not as we wish it to be."
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 2, 2017
ICC chief lauds Japan's commitment but is concerned court is underrepresented in Asia
On a swing through Northeast Asia over the weekend, Silvia Fernandez de Gurmendi, the first female head of the International Criminal Court, lauded Japan's commitment to the relatively young institution but voiced concerns about underrepresentation in Asia.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 30, 2017
Imagery shows gathering at North Korean nuclear test site not seen since 2013 atomic blast
New satellite imagery taken Tuesday shows a gathering of up to 100 people at the administrative area of North Korea's main nuclear test site — a level of activity not been seen since January 2013, a month before Pyongyang's third atomic test, the influential 38 North website said Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 29, 2017
Satellite imagery shows North Korea may be in final stages of preparing for nuclear test
Satellite imagery of North Korea's main nuclear test site "strongly suggests" that preparations for the country's sixth atomic test are entering the final stages, a leading U.S. website that monitors the isolated nation said Tuesday.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 28, 2017
Report warns that Beijing's military bases in South China Sea are ready for use
Major construction at three of China's large man-made islands in the disputed South China Sea is wrapping up, allowing Beijing to deploy fighter jets and mobile missile launchers to the area at any time, a think tank said Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 27, 2017
Pyongyang threatens 'own style of pre-emptive attack' after joint U.S.-South Korea 'decapitation' drills
North Korea has threatened its own pre-emptive strikes in response to recent drills for "decapitation" strikes by U.S. and South Korean special operations forces aimed at taking out the leadership in Pyongyang.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Mar 21, 2017
Did America's top diplomat inadvertently offer China a 'new great power relationship'?
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's use of phrases and language commonly employed by China's Communist Party during his first trip to the country as top diplomat has left some regional experts wondering if he may have inadvertently endorsed Beijing's push for a new "great power relationship."
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 20, 2017
North Korean state-run propaganda website depicts U.S. aircraft carrier, bomber engulfed in flames
The YouTube channel of North Korea's state-run Uriminzokkiri propaganda website has released a video showing images of a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier and strategic bomber engulfed in flames.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 19, 2017
Amid North Korea threat, Tillerson hints that 'circumstances could evolve' for a Japanese nuclear arsenal
U.S. secretary of state says possibility of Japanese atomic weapons may have to be considered as tensions on Korean Peninsula surge.
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 19, 2017
North Korea hails test of powerful new rocket engine
North Korea heralded the successful development of a new "high-thrust engine" during a visit to the country's rocket test site by leader Kim Jong Un, the reclusive nation's state media said Sunday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Mar 17, 2017
Tillerson's tough talk on North Korea garners mixed reviews
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson issued bold proclamations during his Asia visit, saying that “all options are on the table” in dealing with nuclear-armed North Korea.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 17, 2017
China planning 'monitoring station' on hotly contested South China Sea shoal
China is planning to build an "environmental monitoring station" on a hotly disputed reef at the center of an ongoing territorial row over the South China Sea, according to a top official who administers Beijing's regional island claims.

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