Search - world

 
 
Surfers hold banners as they gather during a demonstration in Guethary, France, against the construction of a tower at the Olympic surfing venue in Polynesia.
OLYMPICS
Dec 21, 2023

Surfing tower will be built, Paris Games chief says

Tony Estanguet explained the option offered by the surfing body had been studied but was deemed insufficient.
Police officers stand guard outside the Liberal Democratic Party headquarters in Tokyo on Dec. 14. The ruling party is currently trying to contain a funding scandal that threatens the future of the Kishida administration. 
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 20, 2023

'Strategic Communication' is a missing link in Japan's crisis management

From gaffes to governance, lessons in "strategic communications" for Japanese politicians.
Fans praised Nintendo for following up one of the best open-world games ever made with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, a worthy sequel that introduced enough new mechanics to keep the experience fresh for players new and old alike.
CULTURE / 2023 in Review
Dec 22, 2023

Zelda was a gem among many in a crowning year for gaming

Japanese studios’ hits included: Street Fighter 6, remakes of Metroid Prime and Resident Evil 4, and Super Mario Bros. Wonder, to name a few.
Real Madrid's Luka Modric battles for the ball with FC Barcelona's Ilkay Gundogan during a match in October. Plans for a European Super League bringing together elite soccer clubs such as the two Spanish outfits won a surprise boost on Thursday.
SOCCER
Dec 22, 2023

Teams shun European Super League despite shock court victory

UEFA and FIFA are "abusing a dominant position” by applying arbitrary rules on approval, control and sanctions, the top EU court said.
A U.S. Steel coke works in Clairton, Pennsylvania
EDITORIALS
Dec 22, 2023

A steel deal that’s good for Japan and the U.S.

Nippon Steel’s announcement that it plans to purchase U.S. Steel has triggered an uproar in the United States.
In writing "Climate Capitalism: Winning the Global Race to Zero Emissions," journalist Akshat Rathi said his goal was to try and determine where climate solutions are being built and uncover the challenges that they face.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Dec 24, 2023

Finding crucial solutions in a time of climate crisis

Journalist Akshat Rathi explores the economic side of the emergency in his book ‘Climate Capitalism.'
Workers plow a field at the site of an economic land concession outside Praeus K'ak village in Cambodia's Preah Vihear province on Dec. 6.
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 24, 2023

'Doom for forests': Fears over new Cambodia land grants

Thousands are affected by economic land concessions (ELCs) — land grants to businesses that experts say have driven deforestation and dispossession.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida meets with Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in July.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 24, 2023

Japan is critical to linking the Indo-Pacific and the Middle East

As Japan enters the Year of the Dragon, it has an opportunity to link the Indo-Pacific and the Middle East in a way that benefits everyone.
Ineos chairman Jim Ratcliffe
SOCCER
Dec 25, 2023

Billionaire Ratcliffe agrees deal to buy 25% of Manchester United

United also said that Ratcliffe's INEOS company would take control of football operations after years of under-achievement under the Glazer family.
The iconic structure with its shell-shaped roof at Bennelong Point in Sydney is a source of immense pride for many Australians.
CULTURE / Art
Dec 27, 2023

Yuzo Mikami: The unsung hero behind the Sydney Opera House

On the building's 50th anniversary, those with memories and knowledge of the Japanese architect say recognition of his achievements is long-overdue.
A Ukrainian soldier looks out from a tank as he holds his position near to the town of Bakhmut, in Ukraine's Donetsk region, on Dec. 13.
COMMENTARY / The Year Ahead
Dec 28, 2023

The battles Ukraine has already won

Many of the nation's key victories began long before Russia’s latest assault.
The Dvorak Dreams project leveraged AI to retrieve, synthesize and extend the legacy of an earlier cultural pioneer.
COMMENTARY / The Year Ahead
Dec 28, 2023

The AI question we should be asking

Artists working with AI can map out a path for the technology’s role across society more broadly.
When Chinese President Xi Jinping came to power, he inherited a China that was enjoying prosperity, but also succumbing to gilded-age excesses.
COMMENTARY / The Year Ahead
Dec 29, 2023

The moral of the China story

Even if China is no longer “winning,” it would be short-sighted to dismiss its recent experience as irrelevant.
Toyota's global production jumped 11% in November to a record level, bouncing back from last year's supply chain disruptions and benefiting from robust demand both in Japan and overseas.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 27, 2023

Toyota saw record November sales on demand from U.S. and Europe

Global sales — including that of subsidiaries Hino and Daihatsu — rose 12% from a year earlier to 986,262 units.
As Japan’s borders opened back up and tourists eager to document their long-awaited trips to the country streamed back in, 2023 saw a handful of prominent content creators stir up trouble with local residents to grab attention online.
LIFE / Digital / 2023 in Review
Dec 29, 2023

Social media binged on bad behavior in 2023

Mischief makers like Johnny Somali and "sushi terrorism" instigators gained attention online amid a deluge of Japan-related content this year.
Fighters of the Wagner private mercenary group, many of whom were recruited from prisons, are deployed in June near the city of Rostov-on-Don, Russia.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 28, 2023

Vladimir Putin’s killer patriotism

Pardoning violent convicts to get more soldiers onto the battlefield is not desirable, but for Putin, the alternative would be even worse.
U.S. President Joe Biden with IBM’s System One quantum computer during a tour of a facility in Poughkeepsie, New York in 2022. Chinese spies are challenging the C.I.A. by deploying artificial intelligence and other advanced technology as the two nations try to pilfer each other’s trade secrets.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 28, 2023

Chinese spy agency rising to challenge the CIA

In recent years, China's Ministry of State Security has sharpened itself through better training, a bigger budget and the use of advanced technologies.
Hideki Kuriyama, who guided Samurai Japan to the World Baseball Classic title in March, rings a bell during a ceremony marking the end of trading in 2023 at the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Friday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 29, 2023

Japanese stocks post best yearly gain since Abenomics jolt

The benchmark Topix posted an annual return of 25%, and the 225-issue Nikkei average rallied 28%. That’s the best performance for both gauges since 2013.
A wafer is pictured at Semicon Taiwan in Taipei
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 30, 2023

This startup shows it won't be easy to contain China's chip industry

The story of Seida illustrates the challenges the West faces in thwarting Chinese development of advanced microchip technology.
Al-Ittihad's Karim Benzema during a match against Al-Nassr in Jeddah on Tuesday.
SOCCER
Dec 31, 2023

Tiger or pussycat? Knives out as Benzema slumps with Al-Ittihad

A series of missed chances, including a botched penalty at the Club World Cup, has the 35-year-old Frenchman facing the wrath of the Jeddah club's fans.
Workers walk past an underconstruction area with completed office towers in the background in Shenzhen's Qianhai new district on Aug. 25, 2023.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 1, 2024

China's strained economy casts shadow over 2024

Last year, the economy was roiled by a real estate crisis, falling consumer confidence, deflation and the disappearance of foreign investment.
Though ChatGPT debuted in late 2022, it was really in 2023 that we started to get a sense of what large language models could do, including diagnosing complex medical issues.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 31, 2023

The 10 most intriguing science breakthroughs over the past year

As 2023 has drawn to a close, let’s look back on some of the astounding breakthroughs we’ve seen in the last 12 months.
Wrestlers with the Shikoroyama stable after a training session in Tokyo late last month.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Jan 3, 2024

Opportunities abound for sumo's governing body as centenary nears

Much progress has been made in Japan’s national sport in recent years, but there's still work to be done to better cater to foreign fans.
Laurel Hubbard of New Zealand, the first openly transgender female Olympian, competes at the Tokyo Games in August 2021.
SPORTS
Jan 4, 2024

Pendulum swings toward tighter measures against transgender athletes

There has been a seismic shift recently in the sporting landscape for trans athletes, with tighter measures coming into force on a divisive issue.
Portugal's Joao Monteiro drives his South Racing CAN-AM ahead of the Dakar RAlly in Al-Ula, Saudi Arabia, on Wednesday.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Jan 4, 2024

Sharp-shooting Nasser Al-Attiyah takes aim at sixth Dakar title

A 425-strong colorful caravan made up of cars, bikes, quads and trucks sets out from Al-Ula on a treacherous 4,900-mile (7,886 kilometer) odyssey around Saudi Arabia.
A Ukrainian artillery unit operating a Swedish-made Archer self-propelled howitzer fires on Russian positions in the country's Donetsk region on Dec. 16.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 4, 2024

Russian revanchism must be defeated in Ukraine

The fact that Putin has violated numerous treaties would cast substantial doubt on the credibility of any deal.
Supporters of India's regional Samajwadi Party take part in a campaign rally in Varanasi, India, in March 2022.
COMMENTARY
Jan 5, 2024

Democracy in Asia will get a reckoning this year

Asia’s liberal credentials are under significant pressure, with only a tiny minority of people living in high-performing democracies.
Kotaro Seki, CEO of Ellange, in front of the truck that he uses to collect nets from fisheries
JAPAN / Society / OUR PLANET
Jan 7, 2024

Trash into treasure: Can fishing net waste be the future of fashion?

A pair of Japanese startups are looking to solve a problem for the nation's fisheries: What to do with old fishing nets.
China is the world’s second-largest investor in research and development, having spent $410 billion in this area in 2022, 10% more than the previous year.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 7, 2024

China is lowering transaction costs for greater innovation

With projects such as a cooperation zone between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, China is championing small- and medium-sized firms as the engine of innovation.
Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan hits a return during the women's singles final against Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on Sunday.
TENNIS
Jan 8, 2024

Ruthless Rybakina and Dimitrov take Brisbane titles

World number two Aryna Sabalenka was completely outplayed by former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina.

Longform

It's back to the classroom for some residents as municipal governments across the country conduct lessons to learn how to use new technologies.
Can aging Japan go digital without leaving anyone behind?