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Taiwan's roughly three decades of democracy have fostered a growing sense of self-identity, according to a long-running study by National Chengchi University.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 24, 2024

Taiwan’s China-backing party faces crisis after election defeat

Many voters are distrustful of the KMT's commitment to eventual unification with China, a goal shared by just a minority in the island.
Terunofuji (back) knows what it’s like to overcome setbacks, having won two of his eight titles after middling starts to a tournament.
SUMO
Jan 24, 2024

Big names set up thrilling finale for January sumo meet

Terunofuji would appear to be the favorite as sumo's first tournament of 2024 reaches the homestretch, but a host of contenders means it could come down to the final day.
A man prays on July 19, 2019, outside the Kyoto Animation building where 36 people died in a fire caused by Shinji Aoba the previous day.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 24, 2024

Possible death penalty looms for Kyoto Animation arson suspect

The trial shed light on his upbringing, the emergence of his grudge against the studio and how he went ahead with his plan of attack despite some hesitation.
Police officers hold a traffic safety lesson for e-scooter users in December 2022 in Tokyo's Meguro Ward.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 24, 2024

E-scooter traffic violations rise fourfold in Japan

Reports of traffic violations totaled 1,879 in the month of December, a significant increase from the 405 cases reported in July of last year.
South Africa has accused Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians amid the war in Gaza.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 24, 2024

Should Japan support the ICJ genocide case against Israel?

South Africa has accused Israel of genocide in the International Court of Justice. The case can't be ignored, or impunity and the global order's collapse will be the price.
A Russian military transport plane crashes near Yablonovo, Belgorod Region, Russia on Wednesday in a screen grab from a social media video.
WORLD
Jan 24, 2024

Russia says plane carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners has crashed

The IL-76 aircraft came down while transporting the prisoners for an exchange with Ukraine, the Defense Ministry in Moscow said Wednesday, according to Tass.
Carmaker Daihatsu recalled more than 320,000 vehicles and extended a factory shutdown on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 24, 2024

Daihatsu recalls 320,000 cars and extends factory halt

The Toyota-owned firm notified the transport ministry that it would recall a total of 322,700 vehicles of two models due to a door defect.
South Korea's President Yoon Suk-yeol and his wife Kim Keon-hee have been plunged into controversy after hidden camera footage emerged appearing to show Kim accepting a Dior bag as a gift.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 24, 2024

'Dior bag scandal' mars South Korean ruling party before election

The controversy over the apparent acceptance of a gift by his wife may threaten Yoon Suk-yeol's bid to reclaim a parliamentary majority in April's election.
China Southern Airlines and Xiamen Airlines Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft at Boeing facilities in 2019. Between 2018 and 2022, Chinese customers booked only 25 Boeing planes, with sales dominated by cargo aircraft, according to Boeing data.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 25, 2024

Boeing delivers 737 Max jet to China in vote of confidence

It's unclear whether the event represents a real reset of the planemaker's relationship with Beijing or a temporary political concession.
A church service was held on Wednesday for the 74 people killed in the Russian IL-76 military transport plane crash in the Belgorod region that borders Ukraine.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 25, 2024

Military plane crashes in Russia, killing all on board, Moscow says

Russia accused Ukrainian forces of launching missiles from the nearby Kharkiv region of Ukraine that struck the aircraft, but the claims could not be verified.
Masato Kanda, vice finance minister for international affairs, is closely watching how an expected end to negative interest rates in Japan affect markets.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 25, 2024

Top forex diplomat vigilant over market impact from BOJ stimulus exit

As vice finance minister for international affairs, Masato Kanda oversees currency policy.
Masakazu Tokura (center), chairman of Keidanren, meets with Chinese Premier Li Qiang (right) in Beijing on Thursday along with members of a Japanese business delegation.
BUSINESS
Jan 25, 2024

China vows to improve business conditions, Japan top lobby says

Beijing has embarked on a push in recent months to attract foreign investment back, with the government pledging more "heartwarming” steps.
NATO, which celebrates its 75th birthday this year, has been successful at keeping the peace — but American underpinning can’t be guaranteed in perpetuity, especially with the possible reelection of Donald Trump. 
COMMENTARY
Jan 25, 2024

Europe should arm against the barbarians at its gates

Donald Trump told Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, that "NATO is dead." It would be prudent to take him at his word.
The average price of a new apartment for sale in Tokyo and surrounding areas surged 29% to a fresh high of ¥81 million in 2023.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 25, 2024

Tokyo apartment prices reach record high for third straight year

Prices are expected to keep climbing in 2024 even as the economy slows and the Bank of Japan looks to abandon its negative interest-rate policy.
People walk past a television screen showing a broadcast with file footage of South Korean lawmaker Bae Hyun-jin, at a railway station in Seoul on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jan 26, 2024

South Korean lawmaker treated for cuts to head following attack

Bae Hyun-jin, of the ruling party, was struck several times by the assailant who was wearing a dark coat and had his face covered.
International calls for a cease-fire to spare civilians have been unsuccessful, with Israel vowing to continue until Hamas has been destroyed and all hostages have been freed.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 26, 2024

U.S. sets up channel with Israel seeking answers on civilian casualties

The channel has been set up following concerns about the "constant" reports of Israeli strikes that have resulted in large numbers of civilian deaths.
Iranian sources said Beijing had made it clear it would be very disappointed with Tehran if any vessels linked to China were hit, or the country's interests were affected in any way.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 26, 2024

China presses Iran to rein in Houthi attacks in Red Sea, sources say

But amid regional alliances and priorities, it is uncertain whether Tehran will take action following the discussions with Beijing.
Core inflation in Tokyo slowed below the central bank's 2% target to hit the lowest level in nearly two years.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 26, 2024

Tokyo’s sharp cooling of inflation complicates BOJ’s policy outlook

Tokyo consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 1.6% in January, compared with 2.1% growth in December.
Australian Tayler Paulsen and her Kiwi husband Neil managed to purchase a fully-equipped lodge in Myoko, Niigata Prefecture, for only AU$110,000 (about ¥10 million).
COMMUNITY / The Foreign Element
Jan 29, 2024

In Niigata, a winter (and real estate) wonderland

For Australians and New Zealanders facing expensive prices back home, Japan’s snow country is a hotbed for cheap real estate.
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson scores against the Texans during the fourth quarter of their playoff game in Baltimore, Maryland, on Jan. 20.
MORE SPORTS / Football
Jan 26, 2024

Ravens' Lamar Jackson ready for 'heavyweight fight' in AFC title game

The AFC championship showdown will determine which team advances to next month's Super Bowl in Las Vegas.
Vietnamese people take Japanese lessons in Hanoi in June 2023 before heading to Japan to work.
JAPAN
Jan 26, 2024

Number of foreign workers in Japan surpasses 2 million for first time

Tokyo has the largest population of foreign workers, followed by Aichi and Osaka prefectures.
Some 5 million people globally die of causes related to air pollution from fossil fuels each year and climate change has a huge impact on people's health and psychological well-being.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 24, 2024

We’re finally recognizing climate change’s mental health toll

Climate change's impact on health, including psychological well-being, is overwhelming. COP28 took stock of this and put youth at the center of discussions like never before.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Liberal Democratic Party Vice President Taro Aso and LDP Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi attend a party meeting in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 26, 2024

LDP faction shake-up damages prospects of Kishida rivals

Numerous LDP lawmakers have announced they will leave their factions, weakening faction leaders who had been seen as possible Kishida successors.
Taylor Swift attends the 81st Annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California, on Jan. 7.
CULTURE / Music
Jan 27, 2024

Outrage over deepfake porn images of Taylor Swift

One image of the U.S. megastar was seen 47 million times on X, the former Twitter, before it was removed Thursday.
Fans and deltas formed by water and sediment are seen in the Jezero Crater on Mars in this false color image taken by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and published in May 2019.
WORLD / Science & Health
Jan 27, 2024

Rover data confirms ancient lake sediments on Mars

The findings substantiate previous orbital imagery and other data leading scientists to theorize that portions of Mars may have harbored microbial life.
Workers assemble electric vehicles at the Lucid Motors plant in Casa Grande, Arizona, in September 2021.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 28, 2024

Riyadh's multi-billion EV dream risks crashing into reality

Riyadh has spent billions to try to turn itself into a hub for electric vehicles and overcome obstacles including a lack of infrastructure and talent.
Aissam Dam, 11, the first person to receive gene therapy in the U.S. for congenital deafness, signs to an interpreter during an interview at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia on Jan. 16.
WORLD / Science & Health
Jan 28, 2024

'Game changer': Gene therapy offers hope for children born deaf

The treatment focuses on a rare genetic mutation that affects only a small number of the 26 million people with congenital deafness globally.
A Ukrainian serviceman prepares shells to fire a howitzer toward Russian troops, at a position near Bakhmut in Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Jan 25.
WORLD
Jan 29, 2024

Ukraine says it found mass fraud in weapons procurement

Ukraine's Defense Minister was previously dismissed over corruption cases in the military.
Evergrande, the world's most indebted developer with more than $300 billion of total liabilities, sent a struggling property sector into a tailspin when it defaulted on its debt in 2021.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 29, 2024

Embattled China Evergrande ordered to liquidate by Hong Kong court

A liquidation ruling of the developer which has $240 billion of assets will likely jolt already fragile Chinese capital and property markets.
Ilia Malinin performs his free skate during the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Columbus, Ohio, on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS / Figure skating
Jan 29, 2024

'Quad God' Ilia Malinin captures men's title at U.S. Figure Skating Championships

The 19-year-old dubbed the "Quad God" took a nearly 19-point lead into Sunday's decisive free skate in Columbus.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?