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As Donald Trump begins his second term, the U.S. holds a strong position in the Indo-Pacific. However, missteps, economic policies and shifting alliances could undermine the Biden administration's progress in strengthening partnerships and countering China.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 21, 2025

Will Trump sustain or squander Biden's Indo-Pacific gains?

The legacy of the Joe Biden administration could prove fleeting, however, the result of missteps by Washington or developments in allied states.
Then-U.S. President-elect Donald Trump addresses the America First Policy Institute gala at Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, in November. REUTERS
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 23, 2025

'America First' didn't just return — it has always been there

The Trump administration is no different from previous administrations and remains as inherently "America First" as ever.
Supporters of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol protest in Seoul on Tuesday. The previous leaders of the U.S. and Japan, along with Yoon, focused on strengthening alliances and regional stability through cooperation whereas newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump’s approach to foreign policy may prioritize transactional relationships.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 24, 2025

Japan and South Korea were stable U.S. allies. Not anymore.

Political paralysis in the U.S., Japan and South Korea has left a leadership vacuum in the Indo-Pacific.
The Middle East is at a pivotal moment and U.S. President Donald Trump has the chance to reshape the region, with potential solutions for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Lebanon's civil war, Syria's restoration and Iran's nuclear ambitions.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 23, 2025

U.S. President Trump, you can remake the Middle East if you dare

U.S. policy must be to ensure that all three stages of this ceasefire agreement are carried out and followed by a real diplomatic process for a wider settlement.
Mayor Masanori Yamamoto of Kibichuo, Okayama Prefecture, announces the results of PFAS blood concentration tests on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jan 28, 2025

PFAS blood test results in Okayama Prefecture town exceed U.S. standards

The Kibichuo town government announced the results of its first blood tests after PFAS were detected at a water purification plant in the town.
Economic coercion has become a prominent tool in global geopolitics, with both China and the U.S. relying on it to pursue their policy goals, and more so with Donald Trump now in office.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 28, 2025

When big countries wave their big economic sticks

There is no agreed definition of economic coercion under international law; like pornography, we know it when we see it.
Donald Trump’s rapid use of tariffs, disregard for conventional diplomacy and fixation on strength risk undermining the global economic order, isolating the U.S. and triggering widespread economic harm.
EDITORIALS
Jan 31, 2025

The Trump test begins: Tariffs, power plays and economic risk

The speed with which the U.S. president reached for this tariff tool — against an ally no less — is proof that his threats are not empty words.
Government officials and energy executives from countries such as India, Kuwait and Japan have been holding talks about procuring more U.S. gas, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 1, 2025

From India to Japan, specter of Trump tariffs spurs interest in U.S. gas

Trump’s tactics, however, are pushing away some other buyers, like those in China, the world’s top importer.
Vehicles parked at a General Motors complex in Silao, Guanajuato state, Mexico
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 3, 2025

Car prices face $3,000 increase in U.S. as tariffs hit auto sector

The tariffs are set to take effect at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, giving manufacturers less than 48 hours to figure out what to do.
The current government under Prime Minister Keir Starmer has resisted calls for a national inquiry focused on the grooming gangs in Rotherham, and says it will conduct a series of local probes.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Feb 4, 2025

'Life's ruined' in U.K. town broken by grooming gangs

Rotherham, once a producer of some of the world's finest steel, is now the epicenter of a major U.K. scandal that has left the town angry, ashamed and needing answers.
U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 5, 2025

Trump says U.S. should control Gaza, sparking rebukes and ridicule

The proposal, at odds with Mideast reality and America’s fraught history in the region, quickly drew sharp opposition from Saudi Arabia.
Elon Musk has in two weeks created a new center of power in Washington as he executes U.S. President Donald Trump's cost-cutting initiative to reduce the size of the U.S. government.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 6, 2025

Musk creates new power base in Washington with takeover of U.S. agencies

Elon Musk has in two weeks created a new center of power in Washington as he executes Donald Trump's cost-cutting initiative to reduce the size of the U.S. government.
Kuaishou Technology has attracted tens of millions of younger viewers who habitually scroll screens for new stories and trending videos.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 6, 2025

Mini dramas have supplanted movies in China. Is the U.S. next?

Professionally produced series for the web, mini dramas have clear storylines and big cliffhangers, with episodes running just 60 to 90 seconds each.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 8, 2025

Trump targets U.S. trade deficit in first meeting with Ishiba

The two leaders pledged to pursue a "new golden age" of U.S.-Japan relations — though Ishiba did get an earful about America's trade deficit with its ally.
The Supreme Court could be called upon in the coming weeks or months to act in a challenge to U.S. President Donald Trump's policies, depending on how quickly appeals move through the lower courts.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Feb 8, 2025

As U.S. Supreme Court girds for Trump cases, can it be an 'effective firewall'?

Since taking office on Jan. 20, Trump's views of presidential authority appear far less restrained than those of his White House predecessors.
Trucks cross the Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, in Canada in the early morning hours of Feb. 1.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 10, 2025

Betrayed: How Trump’s tariff threats tore the U.S.-Canada bond

Donald Trump’s menacing rhetoric seems to have fractured the fraternal trust that has been the core of the relationship between the U.S. and Canada.
Southeast Asian economies, once seen as beneficiaries of the U.S.-China trade war, now face challenges as escalating tariffs and trade tensions threaten their growth and regional stability.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 5, 2025

Winners of the first trade war may not be so victorious

Stuck between the U.S. and China, Southeast Asia’s challenges this time around are much greater.
The U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson conducts routine operations in the South China Sea last August. The vessel, along with survey ship USNS Bowditch, carried out a “routine” transit through the Taiwan Strait from Monday to Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 12, 2025

U.S. warship sails through Taiwan Strait for first time since Trump inauguration

China's military said the move had "sent the wrong signals" and "increased security risks” in the strategic waterway.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio (left) is pictured during his meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 17, 2025

Israel and U.S. vow to counter Iran's nuclear ambitions in Jerusalem talks

Speaking after meeting U.S. Secretary of State Rubio in Jerusalem, Prime Minister Netanyahu said they discussed a number of issues, "none more important than Iran."
Canada faces a tough decision on how to respond to U.S. President Donald Trump's economic threats, particularly regarding energy exports, with options ranging from strategic energy cuts to export taxes.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 18, 2025

Weaponizing Canadian oil would rattle Trump

Reducing crude output has the potential to inflict real pain on U.S. refiners and consumers.
A Ukrainian serviceman in Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Nov. 29
WORLD / Politics
Feb 19, 2025

European forces would struggle to guarantee Ukraine peace without U.S.

Deterrence in the form of U.S. medium-range missiles and ultimately nuclear weapons will remain crucial, experts say.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio (front right), Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (second left) and other officials and advisers attend talks in Riyadh on Tuesday where they met to discuss ways on ending the Ukraine war.
EDITORIALS
Feb 21, 2025

America's allies get a rude awakening

U.S. allies are understandably confused and dismayed by the Trump administration’s statements and behavior.
U.S. Marines during training in Okinawa last month.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 22, 2025

U.S. Marines start to leave Japan, decades behind schedule

The U.S. base on Okinawa has relocated 105 Marines. But an agreement to move 9,000 in total is colliding with the perceived threat from a rising China.
Amid rising global defense spending, U.S. President Donald Trump's push for 5% of GDP on military budgets poses a challenge for American allies, including Japan, which is already struggling to meet its 2% target.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 25, 2025

U.S. defense spending demands could transform global security

The level of spending the U.S. is demanding could spark an arms race as adversaries try to match NATO and America's Asian allies.
U.S. President Donald Trump, flanked by Secretary of State Marco Rubio (left) and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, attends a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 27, 2025

Trump declines to say if U.S. would protect Taiwan from Chinese invasion

Trump's refusal to comment stood in stark contrast to his predecessor, Joe Biden, who repeatedly hinted that Washington would come to Taipei’s aid.
Disaster was the word European officials used as Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s long-sought meeting with Donald Trump descended into a livestream of raised voices and angry bickering.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 1, 2025

Zelenskyy-Trump blowup leaves U.S. allies facing disaster

Kyiv’s European allies, who’ve spent weeks trying to talk Trump out of rushing into a quick deal to end the war on Putin’s terms, were aghast.
Ukrainian servicemen play with dogs at their position on a front line in the nation's Zaporizhzhia region on Feb. 21.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 2, 2025

Europe's nightmare is here: They have to fight Putin without the U.S.

The European Union is aiming to follow up with an emergency package of €20 billion ($21 billion) in military aid for Ukraine at an emergency summit in Brussels.
Japan and South Korea are in their most fragile political states in decades just as their ally, the United States, enters the second administration of President Donald Trump.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 5, 2025

Japan and South Korea in the age of ‘America first’

Japan and South Korea are at their most fragile political states in decades just as their ally, the United States, has begun the second administration of Donald Trump.
President Donald Trump delivers an address to a joint session of Congress in Washington on Tuesday. Some critics are questioning if the U.S. is shifting away from global leadership under his stewardship.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 6, 2025

Trump's speech was more campaign rhetoric than leadership

Trump's speech to Congress, like the one eight years ago, was little more than domestic political propaganda.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio (left) and national security adviser Mike Waltz speak with the media following meetings with a Ukrainian delegation on Ukraine-Russia peace talks, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 12, 2025

Ukraine-U.S. ceasefire proposal puts onus on Putin

The Russian president may attach his own set of conditions for ending the war with Ukraine that would be difficult for Kyiv and its European allies to accept.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.