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Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 13, 2014

Barren rocks fuel South Korean passions in islet spat with Japan

Holding a notepad full of questions, 15-year-old Ko Yu-jeong rushes up to a South Korean diplomat after his speech, asking how she can better argue the case for her country's control of a set of islets also claimed by Japan.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 11, 2014

Threat from Putin's Russia

The threat that Russian President Vladimir Putin poses to peace in Europe underscore that NATO member countries have gone too far in running down their defense expenditures.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Aug 9, 2014

Ishikawa perseveres with Swallows

On a somewhat muggy Friday night in Yokohama, Masanori Ishikawa strode to the center of the diamond at Yokohama Stadium, bent down and bounced the rosin bag around in his hand a few times — seemingly every pitch later that night was accompanied by a puff of white — and proceeded to make his 20th...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 7, 2014

The robots return in 'Transformers: Age of Extinction'

Filmmaker Michael Bay thinks there's something interesting about Japanese samurai that sets them apart from English knights.
Japan Times
WORLD
Aug 7, 2014

Synthetics strike fear in the heart of world diamond industry

Diamonds are a girl's best friend — but only if they are natural.
WORLD
Aug 7, 2014

A third of Germans fear NATO-Russia war over Ukraine, poll finds

One in three Germans thinks a war could break out between Russia and NATO over the conflict in Ukraine, according to an opinion poll published on Wednesday, a finding that helps explain the country's cautious approach to the crisis.
Japan Times
WORLD
Aug 6, 2014

In Scotland, pro-independence leader flunks TV debate

The leader of Scotland's campaign for independence failed to turn a U.S.-style television debate into a victory for his cause on Tuesday, six weeks before Scots vote on whether to break up the United Kingdom.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Aug 6, 2014

After the romance of expat life fades, the dream lives on

Some foreign residents in Japan might be living a dream on paper, but many are plagued by the question of if and when to return home.
Japan Times
WORLD
Aug 6, 2014

Support for Scottish independence rises to 40% ahead of TV debate, poll finds

Support for Scotland to break away from the rest of the United Kingdom has risen to 40 percent, according to one opinion poll published on Tuesday, as nationalist leader Alex Salmond headed into a U.S.-style television debate on secession.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 4, 2014

Christian heritage of Japan

The government's announcement of its intention to make Christian sites in Nagasaki its official candidate for UNESCO World Heritage status in 2016 spotlights a side of Japanese history that many around the world have little awareness of.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Aug 4, 2014

The dark side of the Koshien dream

The majority of high-school baseball players end up neglected due to a dearth of coaching education and a win-at-all-costs mentality that favors the very talented few.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Aug 4, 2014

Obama seeks bigger Africa role for U.S.

Ask Maj.-Gen. Wayne W. Grigsby Jr., the top U.S. military officer in Africa, how he thinks U.S. and European-backed African troops are faring in their war on Islamist militants in Somalia, and his answer comes back smartly: "Pretty darn good!"
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Aug 3, 2014

Imam's killing in China may be aimed at making Muslim Uighurs choose sides

The murder of a state-backed imam in China's Xinjiang region underscores an escalation in 18 months of violence and could be part of a bid by extremists to persuade moderate Muslim Uighurs to turn against Beijing's controlled current of Islam.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 1, 2014

Deadly geopolitical games

The destabilization of Ukraine, Syria and Libya is a result of the geopolitical games that big powers continue to play when they target specific regimes. This destabilization in turn contributes to the rise of dangerous extremists and terrorists.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Aug 1, 2014

Putin may be past point of no return in Ukraine

Vladimir Putin risks becoming an international pariah over the Ukraine crisis but the Russian president is battening down the hatches for the gathering economic and political storm.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 1, 2014

DPJ chief Kaieda digs in, rebuffs calls for presidential election

Democratic Party of Japan President Banri Kaieda on Thursday confirmed that he still intends to lead the teetering party and spurned mounting calls to hold a leadership election before his term ends in September 2015.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Jul 30, 2014

Fukushima disaster colors A-bomb anniversaries

Over the past three years, the atomic bombing anniversaries in August have increasingly become a time to ask new questions.
EDITORIALS
Jul 29, 2014

Reflecting citizens' views on justice

Japan's Supreme Court decision to reduce the prison terms of a couple convicted of fatally abusing their daughter highlights the difficulty in balancing the need, on one hand, to have ordinary citizens' views reflected in criminal trials through their participation as lay judges and, on the other, to maintain consistency with judicial precedents.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 29, 2014

Russia will pay a steep price for Putin victories

Russians may not yet understand that they are going to have to pay for Vladimir Putin's confiscations and annexations, starting perhaps with the $50 billion that the Permanent Court of Arbitration has just ordered Russia to pay to shareholders of the dismantled oil company Yukos.
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Jul 27, 2014

JBA vacillates as clock ticks on possible FIBA suspension

It's nice to know there are people who will elucidate what's really happening with the Japan Basketball Association-led merger talks between the bj-league, NBL and NBDL.
LIFE / Language / THE BUZZ
Jul 26, 2014

OC desu

OC desu is a short-handed way of saying oishi, or 'it's delicious.'
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 26, 2014

Putin might have just killed Russia's brand

Has the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 put Russia on its way to taking on the Soviet Union's one-time status as an object of fear and hatred?
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 25, 2014

With poll numbers falling, Abe turns to suffering local economies

As his polling numbers dive, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe turns his attention and bluster to the nation's rural economies, vowing to work his 'Abenomics' magic outside Tokyo.
Reader Mail
Jul 23, 2014

Pressures to bear with cold beer

Regarding the June 27 article "Drink responsibly when you're out with friends this summer": In 2007 my hometown's temperature reached 40.9 degrees Celsius. It was the hottest place in Japan. At my age, a well-chilled beer is absolutely indispensable for overcoming such sweltering weather. I think a lot...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Jul 23, 2014

A democratically elected rep is every worker's legal right

The lack of a freely and fairly elected workers' rep could cost employees dearly in the long run.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Jul 22, 2014

Ronaldo expects extraordinary success for Real Madrid in upcoming season

Cristiano Ronaldo says his injury problems are behind him. Now the Portuguese superstar intends to get back to the business of winning everything in sight with soccer superpower Real Madrid.
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Jul 19, 2014

'Leaving the world' to gain freedom

A challenge: Scan Japanese history in search of freedom fighters. You won't find many. Not freedom but submission was the proud Japanese ideal.

Longform

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