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Ukrainian guards patrol a stretch of land on the border with Romania. New guidance carries a clear message to Ukrainian men abroad who may be avoiding the draft: You don’t get the benefit of state services if you don’t join the fight.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 27, 2024

Ukraine is denying consular services to men outside the country

The drive to bring fighting-age men back to Ukraine, or keep them from leaving, is part of a broader effort to enlist new soldiers urgently.
Visitors walk past an image of Chinese leader Xi Jinping inspecting the Shandong aircraft carrier, at the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Naval Museum on the 75th founding anniversary of the PLA Navy, in Qingdao, China, on April 23.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 1, 2024

China's newest aircraft carrier begins first sea trials

Experts say the Fujian aircraft carrier — Beijing's most advanced yet — will take it closer to its goal of projecting its military far beyond its shores.
Kim Kyu-li holds a protest placard at her home in southwest London.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 1, 2024

As border reopens, North Koreans in China vanish

Hundreds of North Koreans have been repatriated by China in recent months, where they face imprisonment, torture and even execution.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong (left) and Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Richard Marles (third from left) escort South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul (second from left) and Defense Minister Shin Won-sik for a meeting of the two countries' foreign and defense ministers in Melbourne on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 1, 2024

South Korea discusses participating in AUKUS tech pillar

Talks over Seoul's inclusion in the defense technology pillar of the security pact come weeks after Japan also said it was in discussions to join.
Members of a group representing family members of Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea hold a news conference in Washington on Tuesday.
JAPAN
May 1, 2024

'No objection' from U.S. to Japan ending sanctions if abductees return

The head of an abductees family group said he wanted Tokyo to carry out "strong diplomatic negotiations behind closed doors."
Advanced Micro Devices' processors and memory chips
BUSINESS / Tech
May 2, 2024

AI hardware stocks get pummeled even as big tech keeps spending

Hardware makers have seen their shares rally this year amid an arms race for artificial intelligence computing power that’s lifting sales and profits.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attends a news conference in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 5, 2024

Kishida, fresh off Latin America visit, vows to zero in on political funds reform

Grappling with record-low approval ratings, the prime minister hopes to amend the Political Funds Control Act during the current session of parliament.
A man maneuvers media equipment following an Israeli police raid on an Al Jazeera de facto office at the Ambassador Hotel in Jerusalem on Sunday.
WORLD
May 6, 2024

Israel raids Al Jazeera’s offices after banning broadcaster

Al Jazeera’s broadcasts and access to its website are now blocked throughout Israel.
Naoya Inoue celebrates his victory over Luis Nery in their IBF-WBA-WBC-WBO super bantamweight title boxing match at Tokyo Dome on Monday.
MORE SPORTS / Boxing
May 7, 2024

After blockbuster boxing victory, what next for ‘Monster’ Inoue?

Some want the boxer to take on more fights outside of Japan.
PRESS
May 17, 2024

New Japan Times Archive release: Early Showa Era publication “The Japan Times Weekly” now available

The Japan Times (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; Chairperson, Publisher and President: Minako Suematsu) has now digitized the archival publication "The Japan Times Weekly" and made it available via "Japan Times Book Viewer," a platform that allows users to search and browse the newspaper’s archives...
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham speaks to reporters during a news conference in Washington on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 15, 2024

Japan concerned over U.S. officials' remarks on atomic bombings

The remarks justifying the August 1945 atomic bombings could put a damper on bilateral ties between Tokyo and Washington.
If OpenAI’s mostly male engineers are trying to build the perfect girlfriend, they are on the right track. If they are trying to build a more reliable AI model, there is still more work to do.
COMMENTARY / World
May 15, 2024

OpenAI's new ChatGPT can flirt. What could go wrong?

What are the social and psychological consequences of regularly speaking to a flirty, fun and ultimately agreeable artificial voice?
Sharp's plant in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, is the only remaining production site for LCD TV panels in Japan.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 15, 2024

Sharp to halt LCD plant in Osaka Prefecture by September

The major electronics maker, which continues to bleed red ink, is hoping to prevent a further deterioration of its earnings.
Zhang Yufei was among the 23 Chinese swimmer who tested positive for a banned substance months before the Tokyo Olympics.
OLYMPICS
May 16, 2024

World Anti-Doping Agency combating trust issues ahead of Paris Olympics

WADA is facing a allegations it helped cover up the positive tests of elite Chinese swimmers before the Tokyo Olympics.
A representative explains the features of the Afeela electric vehicle, a Honda-Sony Mobility concept car, at the CES 2024 trade show, in Las Vegas on Jan. 9. The Honda-Sony alliance plans to deliver its first EV model in the spring of 2026 in North America.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 16, 2024

Honda to double investment in electric vehicles and software

The automaker had planned to invest ¥5 trillion ($32.3 billion) for the 10 years through March 2031, but it now plans to spend ¥10 trillion by that point.
Toshiba announced on Thursday that it would cut up to 4,000 jobs as part of a restructuring plan.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 17, 2024

Toshiba takes advantage of private status to chart new course

The company has announced that it will cut up to 4,000 jobs as part of a restructuring.
BOJ Gov. Kazuo Ueda has talked about the potential need for a monetary policy response given foreign exchange rates’ impact on the economy. Last month, the yen touched its weakest level in 34 years, ¥160 per dollar, before rebounding.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 20, 2024

BOJ Gov. Ueda finally toughens message on the weak yen

Though most of the factors behind the flailing currency lie outside of Japan, the central bank and Finance Ministry have some agency in determining events. They should use it.
Supporters of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange protest outside The Royal Courts of Justice, Britain's High Court, in central London on Monday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
May 21, 2024

WikiLeaks' Julian Assange wins right to appeal extradition from Britain to U.S.

Assange, 52, is wanted in the U.S. on 18 charges, nearly all under the Espionage Act, relating to WikiLeaks' mass release of secret U.S. documents.
A lithography system made by ASML at an Intel facility in Hillsboro, Oregon, on April 19.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 21, 2024

ASML and TSMC can disable chip machines if China invades Taiwan

Sources said the chipmakers have ways to shut-off the world’s most sophisticated chipmaking machines in the event of an attack.
Iwao Hakamata's older sister Hideko (left) marches to the Shizuoka District Court in the city of Shizuoka on Wednesday for a retrial of her younger brother Iwao, who had been on death row over a 1966 murder case.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 22, 2024

Trial ruling date for man accused of 1966 murder set for September

Iwao Hakamata, who in a rare example is being retried over a 1966 murder case, will be given a verdict on Sept. 26.
Ecuador has sought funding to fight the effects of climate change, including a June 2023 flood that followed heavy rains in Esmeraldas. So far, the developed world has offered the debt-strapped nation more loans than grants.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
May 23, 2024

Rich nations reap climate finance dividend, benefiting from rates and terms

Developed nations have pledged to send $100 billion a year to poorer countries to aid adaptation, but money from the deals is being funneled back into rich economies.
International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan attends a meeting with Venezuela's National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez (not pictured) at the Federal Legislative Palace, in Caracas, Venezuela April 22, 2024.
WORLD / Politics
May 23, 2024

Why a prosecutor went public with arrest warrant requests for Hamas and Israeli leaders

ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan accused Netanyahu and his defense minister of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Toshihiro Kinjo (center), a research support technician at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, inspects an audio recording device in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture, on April 3 as Masako Ogasawara, a research support specialist at OIST, looks on.
PODCAST / deep dive
May 23, 2024

What does climate change sound like in Okinawa?

This week, Japan Times climate editor Chris Russell joins us to discuss what researchers at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology are listening to.
South Korean leader Yoon Suk-yeol (left), U.S. President Joe Biden (center) and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida walk during the Camp David summit on the outskirts of Washington last August. South Korea and Japan will be going into the summit with China more aligned than before following the Camp David meeting.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
May 24, 2024

At Japan-South Korea-China trilateral summit, a chance to manage tensions

Just holding the summit is an accomplishment amid the considerable issues that divide the three countries.
A transport ministry probe into Japan Airlines on Friday targeted daily operations pertaining to flight operations and safety management at company facilities near Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, including JAL's safety promotion headquarters.
JAPAN
May 24, 2024

Emergency probe of Japan Airlines carried out following incidents

The on-site investigation comes after the wings of two JAL planes collided while the aircraft were on Haneda Airport’s parking apron.
Makoto Hasebe during a news conference following his retirement, in Tokyo on Friday. Hasebe played in 114 games for Japan's national team and played over 500 professional games between Japan and Germany.
SOCCER
May 24, 2024

Makoto Hasebe at peace with retirement, says body still 'wants to kick the ball'

Hasebe will eventually return to Germany and begin to lay the foundation for his coaching career.
Masanori Katayama, chairman of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, said the association will work with the Japan Auto Parts Industries Association to address the problem of subcontractor bullying.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 24, 2024

Japan’s automakers vow to stop squeezing their suppliers

Member companies of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association have agreed to treat subcontractors more fairly when the latter pass on cost increases.
Judge Nawaf Salam (from left), Judge Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf and Judge Georg Nolte attend a hearing at the International Court of Justice as part of South Africa's request on a Gaza cease-fire, at The Hague on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
May 25, 2024

Top U.N. court orders Israel to halt Rafah offensive

The landmark ruling is likely to increase international pressure for a cease-fire more than seven months into the war sparked by Hamas' Oct. 7 attack.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida meets with Chinese Premier Li Qiang for bilateral talks in Seoul on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 26, 2024

Kishida meets China's Li and South Korea's Yoon before trilateral summit

The Japanese leader discussed improving ties with Seoul and how to stabilize Tokyo's relationship with Beijing in separate bilateral talks.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visits the Academy of Defense Sciences in Pyongyang in this image released Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 29, 2024

North Korea's Kim admits failure, but vows to continue building spy satellites

The satellite-carrying rocket had self-destructed Tuesday "due to an abnormality in the first-stage engine," the North Korean leader said.

Longform

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