December 01, 2024

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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.

JAPAN / Explainer

Dec 1, 2024

Don’t worry, you can still use your Japan health insurance card — for now

While the government will stop issuing new health insurance cards on Monday, there is a one-year grace period for their integration with My Number cards.

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te presents a souvenir to Ingrid Larson, managing director of the American Institute in Taiwan, in Honolulu on Saturday.

ASIA PACIFIC / Politics

Dec 1, 2024

Taiwanese leader in Hawaii after calling island a force for global peace

Beijing could hold more military exercises to coincide with Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te's Pacific tour, which will also include a stopover in Guam.

Anti-government fighters pose for a picture on a tank on the road leading to Maaret al-Numan in Syria's northwestern Idlib province on Saturday.

WORLD

Dec 1, 2024

Syrian rebels sweep into Aleppo as Russia conducts strikes

The offensive forced the Syrian army to redeploy in the biggest challenge to President Bashar Assad in years.

Former chief of staff to the U.S. secretary of defense Kash Patel speaks during a campaign rally for former U.S. President Donald Trump in Las Vegas in October.

WORLD / Politics

Dec 1, 2024

Trump picks Kash Patel to head FBI

Patel has called for stripping the FBI of its intelligence-gathering role and purging anyone who refuses to support Trump's agenda.

Britain's Andy Murray and Serbia's Novak Djokovic during a practice session ahead of the 2022 Laver Cup in London on Sept. 22, 2022.

TENNIS

Dec 1, 2024

Shared experiences make Murray the 'perfect coach,' Djokovic says

Murray, a three-time major winner, retired after the Paris Olympics at the age of 37, finally admitting defeat in his long battle against injury.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum delivers a speech during the inauguration of a family medicine unit in San Nicolas de los Garza, Nuevo Leon State, Mexico, on Saturday.

WORLD / Politics / FOCUS

Dec 1, 2024

Trump’s demand that Mexico stop migrants and drugs may never be met

Mexico's new leader must find ways to appease Trump while avoiding the perception that she easily bends to U.S. demands.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on the campaign trail pledged that he would make it costly for countries to move away from the U.S. dollar. And he’s threatened to use tariffs to ensure they complied.

BUSINESS

Dec 1, 2024

Trump demands ‘commitment’ from BRICS nations on using dollar

Backlash against the dollar’s dominance gained traction in 2022 when the U.S. led efforts to impose economic sanctions on Russia.

Kingdom Arena in Riyadh in January ahead of a match between Inter Miami and Al-Hilal.

SOCCER

Dec 1, 2024

Saudi Arabia 2034 World Cup bid presents 'medium risk' for human rights: FIFA

The release of the report Saturday comes ahead of the FIFA Congress on Dec. 11, when a vote will be held to officially appoint the hosts for the 2030 and 2034 World Cups.

The mother of Israeli hostage Edan Alexander (L) hugs an organizer at a pro-Israel rally in New York on Oct. 6.

WORLD

Dec 1, 2024

Hamas releases video of U.S.-Israeli hostage in Gaza

Around half of the 101 foreign and Israeli hostages still held incommunicado in Gaza are believed to be alive.

Charles Kushner attends the funeral for Ivana Trump, socialite and first wife of former U.S. President Donald Trump, at St. Vincent Ferrer Church in New York in July 2022.

WORLD / Politics

Dec 1, 2024

Trump taps Charles Kushner, father of his son-in-law, as envoy to France

The choice is in keeping with Trump's pattern, so far, of selecting people, often wealthy, who are close to his family or of proven loyalty.

Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili attends an opposition rally to protest after the government halted the EU application until 2028, in Tbilisi, on Thursday.

WORLD / Politics

Dec 1, 2024

Georgian president pledges to stay on after violent clashes

Georgian police and special forces cleared protesters and barricades from the main street of Tbilisi.

Princess Aiko on Nov. 22 ahead of her 23rd birthday on Sunday at the Imperial Palace

JAPAN

Dec 1, 2024

Princess Aiko, only child of emperor, turns 23

This year, the princess graduated from Gakushuin University in Tokyo and began working at the Japanese Red Cross Society in April.

FIFA's headquarters in Zurich

SOCCER

Nov 30, 2024

Saudi Arabia's 2034 World Cup bid gets higher score than U.S., Canada and Mexico

The higher score came despite the fact the Middle East nation has yet to construct several stadiums proposed for the tournament.

Shanghai Pudong International Airport during the Lunar New Year travel rush in February 2024

JAPAN

Nov 30, 2024

China resumes short-term visa waiver for Japanese visitors

The maximum period of visa-free stays was also extended to 30 days from the previous 15 days.

Masafumi Tabuchi leaves Tokyo police headquarters on Saturday.

JAPAN / Politics

Nov 30, 2024

Defeated Japan election candidate held over promising to pay campaign staff

Paying or promising to pay campaign staff is a violation of the election law.

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te waves ahead of his departure on a Pacific island tour, at Taoyuan International Airport on Saturday.

ASIA PACIFIC / Politics

Nov 30, 2024

Taiwan's Lai departs on Pacific island tour

Lai, on his first trip abroad since taking office in May, will stop over in Hawaii as he visits Taiwan allies Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau.

Lower House member Hiroaki Tabata holds a news conference on Friday in Toyama.

JAPAN / Politics

Nov 30, 2024

LDP member reportedly tried to hide membership scandal

Hiroaki Tabata admitted during a news conference Friday night that his office had signed people up for LDP membership without their consent.

An outdated lineup, elevated spending on sales incentives and a lack of hybrids in North America has led Nissan to slash jobs and production.

BUSINESS / Companies

Nov 30, 2024

Nissan CFO set to step down as carmaker faces raft of challenges

The change follows an announcement last month that the company will eliminate 9,000 jobs and cut a fifth of its manufacturing capacity.

The 225-issue Nikkei stock average jumped on Nov. 6 after it appeared as though Donald Trump had won the U.S. presidential election.

BUSINESS / Markets

Nov 30, 2024

Rush to ‘value up’ may be Asia stocks best defense against Trump

Governments are rushing to implement their own versions of Japan’s structural reforms that helped drive its benchmark index to a record high this year.

Ottawa's Zoe Boyd battles Boston's Loren Gabel during a Professional Women's Hockey League game in Ottawa in January.

MORE SPORTS / Ice Hockey

Nov 30, 2024

Fans flocking to PWHL as women's league returns for second season

Buzz is growing around the top-flight North American league as it enters its second season.

Sauber's Valtteri Bottas during a practice session for the Qatar Grand Prix. Audi will take over the Sauber team when it enters Formula One in 2026.

MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing

Nov 30, 2024

Audi's deal with Qatar deepens Formula One's Gulf ties

Four of the current 24 races are in the Middle East — more than the number held in the United States.

The Nikkei stock average outside a brokerage in Tokyo in late October.

BUSINESS / Markets

Nov 30, 2024

Japan companies boosting benefits for long-term shareholders

Behind the move are growing calls for listed companies to reward shareholders more through measures including dividend hikes.

Workers building a railway in front of Lusail Stadium in Doha in 2018

SOCCER

Nov 30, 2024

FIFA should pay workers injured building Qatar World Cup, internal report says

The report offered no specific dollar amount of compensation.

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

SWCC keeps changing with keyword ‘new challenges’

SWCC keeps changing with keyword ‘new challenges’

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international-reports

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.

Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat

By Greg Dvorak