December 24, 2024

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COMMENTARY

Japan

Greenpeace activists protest next to a fake whale's tail in front of the Japanese Embassy in Berlin in 2010. The real motivation behind Japan's whaling may lie in asserting its maritime sovereignty, as the country defends its exclusive economic zone amid territorial disputes.

COMMENTARY / Japan

Dec 19, 2024

For Japan, whaling is intertwined with maritime sovereignty

By Maxime Polleri

While Japan has an undeniable culture surrounding seafood, the current generation of people do not show much interest in whale meat.

Nissan and Honda may be nearing a merger to address Nissan's struggles, forming a second major hub in Japan's auto industry to rival Toyota.

COMMENTARY / Japan

Dec 19, 2024

A Honda-Nissan merger is a slow-moving savior

By Gearoid Reidy

Nissan is struggling — burning through cash and with billions of dollars of debt due in a little over a year.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin meets with his Japanese counterpart, Gen Nakatani, at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Tuesday.

COMMENTARY / Japan

Dec 13, 2024

The global spy alliance should let Japan join

By KARISHMA VASWANI

Tokyo’s inclusion in the club is long overdue, especially as the region combats China’s growing assertiveness and the unpredictability of North Korea’s nuclear ambitions.

Yutaka Mataebara (second from left) dines with his managerial colleagues at an event celebrating the 100th anniversary of The Japan Times.

COMMENTARY / Japan

Dec 13, 2024

Here's to Yutaka Mataebara, the 'iron man' of The Japan Times

By Brad Glosserman

Mataebara was a pillar of the JT: During his 44 years at the paper until he retired in 2006, he worked in a variety of departments, including as the editor in chief.

A Toyota production line in New Jersey. The U.S. is a key market for Japanese automakers, who are closely monitoring policy changes in Washington as the incoming Trump administration is likely to change the course set by President Joe Biden.

COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing

Dec 12, 2024

Japan’s auto industry looks down the road to Trump presidency

By Makoto Shiono

Of the cars sold in the U.S., 40% are from Japanese makers, who are determined to hold onto this market share despite Washington's policy vagaries in the auto field.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol delivers his speech declaring martial law in Seoul on Dec. 3.

COMMENTARY / Japan

Dec 10, 2024

Impending fallout from Yoon's political problems

By Stephen R. Nagy

It is conceivable that a potential Lee administration, with its pro-Beijing positions, may annul Yoon’s positive contributions to stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

The U.S. decision to suspend the use of a firing range in the Senkakus has had lasting consequences, undermining Japan's claims to the islets and sending mixed signals about U.S. support for Japanese sovereignty over the area.

COMMENTARY / Japan

Dec 10, 2024

A restart of Senkaku firing ranges is long overdue

By Robert D. Eldridge

The suspension also had strategic consequences, depriving both U.S. and Japanese forces of vital military training ranges.

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

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Visitors to Kyoto walk along a street near Kiyomizu Temple in April. A popular tourist spot, Kyoto has seen what locals feel to be an overwhelming amount of tourists in 2024.

Is Japan ready for 60 million tourists?

By Kathryn Wortley

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

SWCC keeps changing with keyword ‘new challenges’

SWCC keeps changing with keyword ‘new challenges’

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