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Philippine, Australian, Japanese and U.S. warships take part in the four nations' first-ever joint military drills in the South China Sea on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 7, 2024

Philippines, U.S., Australia and Japan hold joint military drills in disputed South China Sea

The exercises came as the Chinese military held a “joint maritime and aerial combat patrol” in an unspecified area of the waterway.
A boat carrying Philippine Coast Guard personnel moves past a China Coast Guard ship during a resupply mission in the disputed South China Sea on Nov. 10, 2023.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 8, 2024

China’s huge sea buildup dwarfs Philippine push on tiny island

China's military presence in the South China Sea outshines Manila's plans to invest in a small, underdeveloped island there.
The financial center of Panama City, Panama, in 2019. Starting Monday, 27 people will be tried over charges connected to the "Panama Papers" case.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Apr 8, 2024

'Panama Papers' trial to begin eight years after tax scandal

Twenty-seven people have been charged with money laundering in connection with the tax evasion scandal.
Of 26 fires attributed to pets activating gas or induction heating stove controls, 19 were caused by cats, the National Institute of Technology and Evaluation (NITE) said.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 8, 2024

The cat did it: Warnings issued for pet-related household fires

Most of these incidents were caused by cats and dogs — and even a baby goat — triggering gas and induction heating stoves while their owners were away.
Broken fridges in the yard of a recycling workers' tenement house in Dongxiaokou village in Beijing in 2014
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Apr 8, 2024

Climate-warming gases being smuggled into Europe, investigation says

Law enforcement agencies across the European Union are struggling to keep track of illicit shipments entering via Turkey, Russia and Ukraine.
A U.N. conference on Afghanistan in Geneva in September 2021. In December last year, the U.N. decided to appoint a special envoy for Afghanistan, but the role hasn't been filled yet.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 3, 2024

Could a new U.N. envoy move the needle on Afghanistan?

If the Taliban refuse to dialogue with other Afghans, the U.N. should empower those outside of the group. The appointment of a special envoy could help.
U.K. Foreign Secretary David Cameron
WORLD / Politics
Apr 10, 2024

Cameron lobbies old adversary Trump to unlock Ukraine aid

Despite sparring in the past, the U.K.'s foreign secretary sees the former U.S. president as key to giving Ukraine more funding.
Koki Nagata (right) offers a Buddhist altar to a Noto Peninsula earthquake evacuee in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, on March 29.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 10, 2024

Kumamoto shop owner gives away free Buddhist altars to Noto quake victims

“I hope it will be a source of comfort for those who lost their loved ones and homes," said shop owner Koki Nagata.
The Nishi no Ma room of the State Guest House Akasaka Palace in Tokyo will be opened to the public from Thursday.
JAPAN
Apr 10, 2024

State guest house room in Tokyo to be opened to public

Sketching events and brass band events are also planned for visitors.
Koichi Wakata holds his final news conference as a JAXA astronaut in Tokyo on March 29.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 10, 2024

Former ISS commander and astronaut Koichi Wakata joins U.S. space firm

Wakata, 60, left the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency at the end of March after staying in space for 504 days.
D.B. Weiss, co-creator of the Netflix sci-fi drama series "3 Body Problem," is interviewed in Las Vegas, in January.  Some Chinese viewers have expressed disappointment with the adaptation's departure from the original source material.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 10, 2024

The ‘3-Body Problem’ of adapting content across borders

From anime to the latest Netflix blockbuster, changing material can be a controversial subject. How much modification is acceptable?
Chinese President Xi Jinping applauds at the closing session of the National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 11.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 10, 2024

Xi says nobody can stop 'family reunion' with Taiwan

Xi said that people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are Chinese.
U.S. Steel's Edgar Thomson steel mill in Braddock, Pennsylvania
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 11, 2024

How the U.S. Steel takeover became about Biden and swing states

The turmoil threatens to strain U.S. relations with Japan while underscoring how the politics of winning swing-state voters influences business.
A staff member attends to a dog at a day care center for pets operated by Peace Winds Japan in Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture.
JAPAN
Apr 11, 2024

Nonprofit group provides vital pet care in quake-hit Ishikawa

Peace Winds Japan, based in Hiroshima, has been assisting with pet care in disaster-hit areas since the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake.
A Wisconsin resident prepares to vote in the presidential primary election in Superior, Wisconsin, on April 2.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Apr 16, 2024

Can we trust the polls? How emerging technologies affect democracy

In a global election year, all eyes are on the ties between emerging technologies and democracy.
Smoke rising above buildings after an aerial bombardment in Khartoum North, Sudan, in May 2023
WORLD / Politics
Apr 11, 2024

Iranian-made drones may be turning tide to army's favor in Sudan civil war

Residents say newer drones appear to monitor RSF movements, target their positions and pinpoint artillery strikes in a city that forms part of the capital.
O.J. Simpson appears in district court during his trial at the Clark County Regional Justice Center in Las Vegas in September 2008.
SPORTS
Apr 12, 2024

O.J. Simpson, football star who faced trial for ex-wife's murder, dies at 76

One of the most popular U.S. athletes of the 1970s, Simpson was later found responsible for his former wife's death then imprisoned for other crimes.
Yagana Yamani, 25, one of the 276 schoolgirls kidnapped from their dormitory by Boko Haram Islamist militants in 2014, in her home in Chibok, Nigeria
WORLD / Society
Apr 12, 2024

A decade on, tragedy of Nigeria’s Chibok Girls endures outside the spotlight

Roughly 90 Chibok girls are still missing, and a third are believed to have died in captivity.
People pray in Port-au-Prince last month.
WORLD / Society
Apr 12, 2024

Waiting for change, Haitians endure hell on earth

Conditions remain horrific one month after Haiti's prime minister said he would step down.
Then-U.S. President Donald Trump signs an executive order rolling back regulations from the 2010 Dodd-Frank law on Wall Street reform at the White House in Washington in February 2017.
BUSINESS / Markets / FOCUS
Apr 13, 2024

If Trump wins, he plans to free Wall Street from 'burdensome regulations'

If elected, Trump would likely cut back protections for small-scale investors and borrowers, and allow companies to raise money with less scrutiny.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. salutes during a welcome ceremony at the Pentagon in Washington on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 13, 2024

U.S.-Japan-Philippines trilateral deal to change dynamic in South China Sea, Marcos says

Still, the Philippine president sought to assure China it was not a target, saying the summit was "not against any country."
People applying for My Number cards are likely to be able to present digital IDs as valid identification documents when receiving the card starting next month.
JAPAN
Apr 15, 2024

Government plans to allow digital IDs to receive My Number cards

The move is aimed at broadening the scope of acceptable ID methods to encourage students and workers to sign up for the cards.
Iowa guard Caitlin Clark is widely expected to be the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft on Monday.
BASKETBALL
Apr 15, 2024

Caitlin Clark leads way as top star in intriguing WNBA Draft

The Indiana Fever will — barring an unfathomable change of direction — select Iowa superstar Caitlin Clark with the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft.
Coral reefs bleach in the Great Barrier Reef as scientists conduct in-water monitoring during marine heat in Moore Reef, Australia, on Feb. 27.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Apr 16, 2024

Coral reefs suffer fourth global bleaching event, NOAA says

At least 54 countries and territories have experienced mass bleaching among their reefs since February 2023.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, arrives to a state dinner in honor of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden at the White House in Washington on April 10.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 16, 2024

U.S. envoy visits Korean border after Russian veto dents sanctions enforcement

Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield's trip is the highest-profile visit by a U.S. official since Vice President Kamala Harris went there in 2022.
From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
PODCAST / deep dive
Apr 16, 2024

[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

We discuss everything from accessibility in Tokyo to dealing with trains and the country’s shifting attitudes.
People listen to a campaign speech in Tokyo's Koto Ward on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 16, 2024

Unpacking the chaotic by-election in a scandal-hit Tokyo district

The residents of Tokyo's No. 15 district — which corresponds to the city’s southeastern Koto Ward — will head to the polls for the third time in a year.
Entrepreneurs Yusaku Maezawa (second from right) and Takafumi Horie (third from right) attend a study session on fake social media ads and investment scams at the Liberal Democratic Party headquarters in Tokyo on April 10.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 17, 2024

Police warn against investment scams on social media

Scammers are posing as prominent businesspeople to increase credibility and to lure victims into "get rich quick” schemes.
Efforts by Russia and China to shape U.S. politics through propaganda and cyberattacks have been less pronounced during this year’s election cycle than they were in 2016 and 2020, Microsoft said on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 18, 2024

Microsoft sees slowing in Russian and Chinese efforts to sway U.S. vote

Researchers concluded that there have been few signs of people being broadly swayed by sophisticated deepfake videos made with AI by the nation-states.
Machida supporters wave giant flags during the team's game against Vissel Kobe at National Stadium in Tokyo on Sunday.
SOCCER / J. League
Apr 18, 2024

Upstart Zelvia shows that, in the J. League, it’s anyone’s game

The fast start by Go Kuroda’s men has highlighted the remarkable parity in the Japanese game when compared with top competitions in Europe.

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