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WORLD
Mar 3, 2019

Saudi Cabinet gives green light for electronic tourism visas for foreign travelers

Saudi Arabia's Cabinet has approved electronic visas for foreign visitors to attend sporting events and concerts, local media reported, as the world's top oil exporter tries to diversify its economy and open up its society.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Mar 2, 2019

Rakuten's Hiroshi Mikitani set to be big winner in Lyft's impending initial public offering

A Japanese retail billionaire, rather than a Silicon Valley wunderkind, is the biggest beneficiary of Lyft Inc.'s impending initial public offering.
EDITORIALS
Mar 2, 2019

Revamping the law school system

The government is reviewing the education system for the legal profession. It needs to do a better job this time around then it did a couple of decades ago.
BUSINESS
Mar 1, 2019

U.S. wins WTO ruling on Chinese grain price support in ruling also seen affecting India

The United States won a World Trade Organization ruling on China's price support for grains, successfully challenging a calculation methodology that is also used by India.
Japan Times
Rugby / ADDING THE EXTRAS
Feb 28, 2019

With ban lifted, Christian Loamanu hopes for return to Top League

Former Brave Blossoms wing Christian Loamanu is hoping for a shot at redemption and the opportunity to finish his rugby career in Japan. But he will have to get past some longstanding animosity and overcome some new challenges if his wish is to come true.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 28, 2019

Gang of Four's fluctuating degrees of animosity, 40 years on

British post-punk pioneers Gang of Four didn't come to Japan until 2005, nearly 30 years after the band formed. If guitarist Andy Gill had his way, it would have happened a lot sooner. "I clearly remember a conversation in the '80s about going to Japan," Gill says, sitting among an array of equipment...
Japan Times
Feb 28, 2019

UCDI Obtains Patent on World’s First Method of Producing
Bio-Jet Fuel from CO2 Using Hydrogen Bacteria (UCDI strain)

Tokyo, Japan, February 27, 2019—The Utilization of Carbon Dioxide Institute Co., Ltd. (UCDI; Head Office: Minato, Tokyo / CEO: Dr. Hideaki Yukawa), a venture of The University of Tokyo, today announced that it obtained a patent on December 21, 2018 for its invention of the world’s first method of...
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Feb 28, 2019

Focus on North Korea's nuclear arsenal obscures threat posed by chemical and biological weapons

As U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un held their summit in Vietnam, the narrow focus on nuclear weapons obscured a major danger: Kim holds the whip in a three-ring circus of weapons of mass destruction. The other two rings, adjacent and in many ways more frightening, feature...
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 28, 2019

Scientists warn global warming could decimate fish supplies and fuel migration

Millions of people could lose their livelihoods, food source, and be forced from their homes if the world does not meet the Paris goal to curb global warming which is endangering fish numbers, Canadian researchers said on Wednesday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 28, 2019

Huawei wages charm offensive in the battle for hearts and minds amid U.S. pressure

Huawei Technologies Co. has turned to a blend of wit, sarcasm and defiance to publicly fight allegations that the world's largest maker of telecommunications equipment is spying for China. It's a remarkable shift for a giant whose founder, Ren Zhengfei, spurned the media and avoided overt displays of...
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 28, 2019

Russia's military parades hardware seized in Syria

A train packed with war trophies from Syria including a tank and carriages of weapons arrived to loud fanfare at a southern Russian city on Wednesday, part of a nationwide tour organized by the military to whip up patriotic sentiment.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 27, 2019

Half of North Korean defectors suffered violence, but rights is not a top summit issue

About half of 451 North Korean defectors questioned in a survey endured physical violence at the hands of North Korean authorities, a rights group has said as leader Kim Jong Un prepared to meet U.S. President Donald Trump for a summit.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Feb 27, 2019

U.K. actress Helena Bonham Carter joins rally protesting violence against women

British actress Helena Bonham Carter called on Tuesday for women globally to unite against sexual harassment, the latest in a group of U.K. celebrities and campaigners to join a rally pushing for a global law to end abuse in the workplace.
EDITORIALS
Feb 26, 2019

Cuts to usage of single-use plastics gain urgency

On a per-capita basis Japan is second only to the U.S. in the annual output of plastic waste.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 26, 2019

The accidental Atlanticist

Europeans must heed Mike Pence's dark warnings to achieve Joe Biden's bright vision
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 26, 2019

How a Trump 'victory' became a Kim win

With a single tweet, the U.S. president scuttled years of American efforts to isolate North Korea and force Kim to denuclearize.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / MLB
Feb 26, 2019

Dodgers reportedly back in pursuit of free agent Harper

Bryce Harper reportedly met with representatives of the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday in Las Vegas as the drawn-out pursuit of baseball's top free agent extends deep into spring training.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 25, 2019

With Ghosn still under lock and key in Tokyo, foreign execs are getting spooked about taking jobs in Japan

The stunning arrest, indictments and long incarceration of former Nissan Motor Co. Chief Executive Officer Carlos Ghosn have given pause to foreign executives considering taking on senior jobs at Japanese companies.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Feb 25, 2019

Observers report dozens killed in Nigeria election violence

As many as 39 people were killed in election violence so far in Nigeria, civil society groups said on Sunday, as the country awaits the results of voting in what is forecast to be its tightest election since the end of military rule in 1999.
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 24, 2019

Yemen's Houthis to quit two ports Monday under peace deal: sources

Iranian-aligned Houthi forces have agreed to draw back from two Yemeni ports on Monday while withdrawal from the main Hodeidah port will occur later alongside a retreat by coalition-backed forces massed outside the city, U.N. and Yemeni sources said.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Beyond Tokyo
Feb 24, 2019

As the world drowns in plastic, Kameoka in Kyoto and other cities across Japan fight back

Plastic pollution in the ocean has become one of the world's most urgent environmental problems. Footage of vast fields of floating plastic debris between California and Hawaii — now commonly known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch — have driven home the gravity of the problem, with scientists and...
Japan Times
Special Supplements / The Emperor’s 30-year Anniversary
Feb 22, 2019

Exercising goodwill in symbolic role

Emperor Akihito marked the 30th year of his reign on Jan. 7, and the government will be holding a ceremony on Sunday to celebrate this milestone. On April 30, after three decades on the throne, the Emperor will be the first living Japanese monarch in about 200 years to step down.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Feb 22, 2019

Family ties thwart Cambodia's efforts to tackle bride trafficking to China

Although a rising number of Cambodian women are being sold as brides in China, complaints and convictions are on the decline, with many victims refusing to speak out because their families are colluding with trafficking rings, a regional police chief says.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / FOCUS
Feb 21, 2019

Crown Prince Naruhito likely to stay close to the people upon becoming Japan's first emperor born after the war

In June 2011, three months after savage tsunami devastated Japan's northeast coastline, Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako were visiting Miyagi — one of the three hardest-hit prefectures — to get a firsthand look at the gut-wrenching aftermath of the disaster and commiserate with evacuees...

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