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Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2023

Japan battles to persuade big brands to help with military expansion

A key part of Tokyo's strategy hinges on persuading commercial firms that for decades have quietly armed the SDF to ramp up production.
JAPAN
Mar 24, 2023

Japan releases nation’s first guidelines for refugee status eligibility

The new document aims to organize criteria relating to how refugee status in Japan is determined, with the intention of increasing transparency and promoting confidence in the system.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 24, 2023

China and Russia take steps to deepen their alignment

China and Russia have no choice but to deepen their ties as neither can afford a divorce amid their conflict with the West.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 24, 2023

Should the government get to spend your pension savings?

There’s a feeling in the U.K. that it isn’t right for pension money to sit around when there are socially meaningful things it could be doing instead.
Japan Times
Figure Skating
Mar 24, 2023

'Rikuryu' coach Bruno Marcotte has Olympic hopes after Grand Slam

As they aim for Olympic success, Marcotte hopes that Miura and Kihara’s success will encourage more Japanese skaters and coaches to get involved in the discipline.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / Q&A
Mar 23, 2023

To 'stand on Taiwanese soil': An interview with Taiwan's top diplomat

Joseph Wu shares his thoughts on Tokyo-Taipei cooperation, TSMC semiconductors, Japan's new defense posture and the future of relations with Beijing.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 23, 2023

WBC baseball victory is a triumph for Japan’s soft power

The nation’s lost decades don’t extend to sports. That will help drive Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s narrative as he prepares to host the Group of Seven in Hiroshima.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Mar 23, 2023

China determined not to be slowed by U.S. chip controls

Sanctions instigated by Washington in October have made it virtually impossible to transfer advanced chip and supercomputer technology to China.
JAPAN
Mar 22, 2023

Japan sets date for launch of new children's agency

Beginning operations on April 1, the Children and Families Agency will adopt an integrated approach to tackling issues such as the falling birthrate, child abuse and bullying.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 22, 2023

Don't make the same mistake as SVB with your 401(k)

Treasuries aren’t always the safest asset in your portfolio. Your risk depends on the type of bond and what you need the money for.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 22, 2023

What do America’s spies really think about China?

While U.S. spy agencies focus on China’s military, economic and technological capabilities, they omit too much when it comes to the country’s domestic political challenges.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 22, 2023

We may never get the truth about Nord Stream or a COVID lab leak

War and plague are ideal breeding grounds for unsolvable mysteries and conspiracy theories such as the Nord Stream bombing or a COVID-19 lab leak.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Mar 22, 2023

Some new faces but old divisions to haunt Thailand's May election

The confrontation between the military-royalist establishment and popular opposition parties has shaped a tumultuous two decades of street protests, judicial intervention and coups.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Mar 21, 2023

With renewed push, Kishida looks to put his own stamp on Japan's Indo-Pacific strategy

Kishida's newly unveiled plan to assist developing nations was widely seen as a bid to counter Beijing’s attempts to expand its influence among those countries.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 21, 2023

Trump sweats an arrest. We should sweat a second term.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to mobilize his mob show how important it is to ensure he never occupies the White House again.
Japan Times
WORLD
Mar 20, 2023

Lab leak or not? How politics shaped the battle over COVID-19’s origin

In the U.S., Democrat-Republican political divisions mean that the evidence for competing theories on the origin of the virus is often filtered through partisan political lenses.
Japan Times
Rugby
Mar 19, 2023

After Grand Slam triumph, Johnny Sexton dreams of World Cup glory

Ireland have never gotten past the World Cup quarterfinals but are the world's No. 1-ranked team and among the favorites.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 19, 2023

The cherry blossoms are back, but is Tokyo?

Japan’s famous petals are blooming, and for the first time in four years so are the associated parties. But not everything COVID-19 took away will return.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 17, 2023

Where will startups turn to now that SVB is gone?

Silicon Valley Bank played an important role in financial innovation tied to the world’s tech hub. Its demise could be profound.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 16, 2023

Splitting up social media may be its only hope

Keeping different groups away from each other could be the best way to prevent a total meltdown of digital society.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 16, 2023

Somewhere in the multiverse, SVB could be the BOJ

Just like Silicon Valley, Japan is dependent on easy money. That makes SVB’s collapse a cautionary tale for those who think the central bank should be tightening.
Japan Times
Rugby
Mar 16, 2023

Northern Irish rugby players find their voice with 'Ireland's Call'

'The great thing about the Irish team is it reflects all types of Irishness across the island.'
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 15, 2023

Will the Catholic Church rethink contraception?

A break with a view of sex and procreation rooted in medieval ideas of natural law is long overdue for the Catholic Church.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Mar 15, 2023

Kishida and Yoon look to jump-start ties with first official summit

After half a decade of chilly relations, momentum is growing for a significant thaw in the relationship on several fronts, including diplomacy, security and economic cooperation.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 15, 2023

Georgia is a new front in Russia’s hybrid war

Vladimir Putin wants Georgia, a once staunch U.S. and European ally, firmly in his club of authoritarian states.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Mar 14, 2023

'Wasted money': Rwanda splurges on sports despite criticism

President Paul Kagame has spent a small fortune on sports investments that he says will burnish the international image and diversify the economy of the tiny central African country.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 13, 2023

Ukraine must rewrite Russia’s narrative in the Global South

Ukraine has won the West’s support in the war against Russia. But to ensure victory, it will need the developing world’s, too.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 11, 2023

Japan considers inviting South Korea's Yoon to Hiroshima G7 summit

G7 host nations often invite countries outside their framework to related meetings. But even if Kishida decides to invite Yoon, the decision may not be announced immediately.

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.