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The primary motivation for potentially adding Japan to the Five Eyes alliance is the considerable intelligence contributions the country could make concerning China, North Korea, Eastern Russia and East and Southeast Asia.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 30, 2024

If ever invited, should Japan make it 'Six Eyes'?

The primary motivation for potentially adding Japan to the alliance is the considerable intelligence contributions the country could make.
Members of the German Navy operate a submarine drone onboard German mine hunter FGS Weilheim during a NATO exercise led by the Finnish Navy, in the Baltic Sea in Turku, Finland, on Nov. 20
WORLD / Politics
Dec 3, 2024

As sabotage allegations swirl, NATO struggles to secure the Baltic Sea

The defense alliance conducted one of northern Europe's largest naval exercises on Nov. 18 to step up its protection of critical infrastructure.
Anti-government fighters move past abandoned Syrian army military equipment and vehicles southeast of Aleppo on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 4, 2024

Syria rebels 'at gates' of central city Hama

The advance on Syria's fourth-largest city is buoyed by the group's lightning capture of swaths of the north in an offensive that ended four years of relative calm.
Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson reviews an honor guard during a ceremony with his Japanese counterpart, Gen Nakatani, ahead of a bilateral meeting at the  Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 4, 2024

Sweden aims to deepen defense cooperation with Indo-Pacific partners

Stockholm plans to boost cooperation in defense policy dialogue and technology exchanges while boosting its military presence.
Mir, a 12-year-old male Siberian cat gifted by Russian President Vladimir Putin to Akita Prefecture, died from an illness Tuesday.
JAPAN
Dec 4, 2024

Cat that Putin gifted to Japan's Akita Prefecture dies at age 12

The prefecture gave a dog to Vladimir Putin to thank Russia for its help after the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, and Putin gave the male cat in return.
The departure of Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger opens the possibility of fresh deal talks.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 4, 2024

Intel’s CEO departure opens door to new deal discussions

The CEO's departure is also an opportunity for suitors to take another look at acquiring some or all of Intel.
The Cultural Affairs Agency in the city of Kyoto
JAPAN
Dec 4, 2024

Japan to use AI to tackle online manga and anime piracy

The Cultural Affairs Agency's plan will have AI scour the web for sites pirating manga books and anime, using an image and text detection system.
A line of police officers stand guard as protesters gather at the edge of Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul on Wednesday after President Yoon Suk Yeol formally lifted martial law earlier, six hours after having declared it.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Dec 4, 2024

Yoon fights for political life as martial law repercussions reverberate

A coalition of lawmakers from six opposition parties on Wednesday submitted a motion to impeach the South Korean president, with a vote set for Friday or Saturday.
Shun Ikeda holds the trophy after winning his second consecutive amateur yokozuna title on Sunday at Tokyo’s Ryogoku Kokugikan.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Dec 4, 2024

Lightning strikes twice for Shun Ikeda at All Japan Championships

Ikeda, now a corporate worker, has completed the rare feat of winning back-to-back amateur "yokozuna" titles.
People walk past a board displaying currency exchange rates of the U.S. dollar and Euro against Russian ruble in Moscow on Nov. 27.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 4, 2024

Why the euro is closing in on parity with the U.S. dollar again

Hitting parity is psychologically significant for investors and policymakers and could spur a period of volatility for the euro.
“A Big Home” offers a sincere portrait of the vulnerable youth who live in more than 600 group homes across Japan.
CULTURE / Film
Dec 5, 2024

Vulnerable youth look for sense of belonging in ‘A Big Home’

Ryo Takebayashi’s documentary profiles the residents of a group home, but shies away from making emphatic statements about the circumstances that brought them there.
Protesters call for the resignation of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol during a demonstration in Seoul on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 5, 2024

South Korean ruling party opposes Yoon impeachment as defense minister quits

The opposition Democratic Party planned to put up a vote in parliament to impeach Yoon at around 7 p.m. on Saturday, a party spokesperson said.
A navy serviceman is reflected on a radar screen aboard the BRP Tarlac landing ship off the shore of Calayan Island, the Philippines, on June 30, 2023. Japan is providing another tranche of military aid to the Philippines that will include a grant for additional coastal surveillance radar systems, boats and other equipment.
JAPAN
Dec 5, 2024

Manila to get more radars and boats from Tokyo under new military aid tranche

The grant is intended to help strengthen the capabilities of the Philippines' navy and air force, the Foreign Ministry says.
South Korea’s currency recovered while its stocks fell Wednesday as investors braced for prolonged political uncertainties following a brief decree of martial law by President Yoon Suk Yeol.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 5, 2024

Capitalism is the unsung hero of South Korean democracy

Capitalism, with its economic pressures and global integration, has been crucial in fostering democracy in South Korea.
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, during an interview at the National Assembly in Seoul on Thursday
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 5, 2024

South Korea opposition chief says ousting Yoon will be difficult

Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung said the situation remains in a "state of flux” ahead of a parliamentary vote on launching impeachment proceedings against Yoon.
Koichi Katsumata is the first chef to receive a Michelin star in Japan for an 'assiette dessert' (dessert course) restaurant
LIFE / Food & Drink
Dec 8, 2024

Welcome to Yama, Japan’s first Michelin-starred dessert restaurant

“We don’t just serve food — we serve memories, stories and a sense of place,” says chef Koichi Katsumata.
About $105 trillion is projected to be passed down from older generations over the next quarter century, according to research firm Cerulli Associates, an amount roughly equal to global gross domestic product in 2023.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 6, 2024

A $105 trillion inheritance windfall is on the way for U.S. heirs

The latest inheritance projection by Cerulli is 45% higher than the 25-year forecast the firm made only three years ago.
People walk around an outlet mall in Gotemba, Shizuoka Prefecture. At stores across Japan, clerks use a form of polite language called "manyuaru keigo," literally, “manual honorifics,” named for the service manuals they study it from.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 6, 2024

Japan's honorific language can be challenging for native speakers, too

According to surveys, more than half of those in their teens, 20s and 30s, believe they cannot use "keigo," or honorific language, appropriately.
The Topix and the yen have been largely moving independently over the past two months, shifting away from Japanese stocks’ past tendency to rise on a weaker yen.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 6, 2024

Cheap yen boost for Japan’s stocks shrinks to nil on hawkish BOJ

The Topix and the yen have been largely moving independently over the past two months.
Critics have said that drivers who were speeding well over the speed limit or those who were extremely drunk were not indicted for dangerous driving because of its vague definition.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / EXPLAINER
Dec 6, 2024

What constitutes fatal dangerous driving in Japan?

Critics say its vague definition has often led prosecutors to indict offenders with less-serious charges of fatal negligent driving instead.
Choi Sang-mok, South Korea's finance minister, during an interview in Seoul on Thursday
BUSINESS / Markets / ANALYSIS
Dec 6, 2024

In South Korea's crisis playbook, currency stability is paramount

In the four decades since South Korea was last under martial law, the nation has significantly evolved its systems to focus on ensuring economic stability.
An NBA logo on the facade of its flagship store in Beijing in 2019.
BASKETBALL
Dec 6, 2024

NBA to return to China for first time since 2019 fallout

No NBA games have been held in China since 2019 after a tweet from then-Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey in support of the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.
Protesters condemn South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's failed martial law declaration and call for his resignation during a rally in Seoul on Thursday.
EDITORIALS
Dec 6, 2024

Yoon’s incoherent, incompetent coup defies logic and reason

Yoon’s lack of political acumen must not be allowed to tar all his policies.
Starbucks Coffee Japan will replace paper straws with plant-based biomass plastic straws from next month.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 6, 2024

Starbucks in Japan to ditch paper straws for plant-based biomass plastic in 2025

The coffee company says the new straws are fully biodegradable in seawater and soil, and will not soften like paper ones.
“Shogun,” created by American channel FX and made by a joint American-Japanese team, utilized the strengths of both Japan and Hollywood to create a bona fide smash that critics adored. 
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / 2024 in Review
Dec 7, 2024

2024 was the year Japanese TV found its prestige

The triumph of “Shogun” at the Emmys served as an exclamation point for an industry taking big swings and opening up to trans-Pacific partnerships.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks in parliament on Thursday.
JAPAN
Dec 6, 2024

Ishiba raised most funds among Japanese party leaders in 2023

An LDP chief has topped the rankings list for 10 years in a row.
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te speaks during a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday for a new government facility in Palau that Taipei helped fund.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 6, 2024

Taiwan's Lai says he is 'confident' of deeper cooperation with Trump

Trump caused jitters during his campaign by suggesting Taiwan should pay the United States for its defense.
People stand near a damaged vehicle, after rebels have sought to capitalize on their swift takeover of Aleppo in the north and Hama in west-central Syria by pressing onward to Homs, in Hama, Syria, on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 7, 2024

Syrian rebel assault widens as Assad races to defend Homs and Damascus

With the fall of Daraa, Assad's forces have surrendered four important centers to the insurgents in a week.
A Ukrainian serviceman wipes a mirror at an outdoor washbasin near the Kharkiv region in November.
WORLD
Dec 7, 2024

In Ukraine, more and more exhausted soldiers abandon their posts

Since 2022, Ukraine opened nearly 96,000 criminal cases against servicemen who abandoned their positions since Russia’s invasion.
Germany's Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin perform during the pairs competition at the Grand Prix Final in Grenoble, France, on Friday.
MORE SPORTS
Dec 7, 2024

German skaters Hase and Volodin defend Grand Prix Final gold

Former world champions Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara of Japan took silver with 206.71.

Longform

Yasuyuki Yoshida stirs a brew in a fermentation tank at his brewery in Hakusan.
The quake that shook Noto's sake brewing tradition