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Russian President Vladimir Putin is welcomed by India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi ahead of their meeting at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on Oct. 5, 2018.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 5, 2024

India's Modi heads to Moscow for first visit since Ukraine invasion

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday makes his first visit to Russia since the invasion of Ukraine, walking a fine line between maintaining a longstanding Moscow alliance while courting closer Western security ties.
Power lines in the Yanqing district of Beijing in 2021
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 5, 2024

China, struggling to exploit an energy storage boom, calls for more

The drive boosts home-grown battery giants but some experts say more must be done to address low utilization and losses for operators.
Labour leader Keir Starmer reacts as he speaks at a reception to celebrate his win in the election, at Tate Modern in London on Friday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 5, 2024

Keir Starmer set to be U.K. PM as Labour trounces Tories in election

Analysts largely expect continuity in Downing Street's foreign policy with the Indo-Pacific despite there being no mention of the region in Labour's election manifesto.
A monitor displaying the Topix share average, 225-issue Nikkei average and the yen exchange rate against the U.S. dollar, outside a brokerage in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 5, 2024

Japan’s stock records lack punch of yen’s fall

When the yen collapsed to a 38-year low just days before the stock-index record was achieved, the event was seen as significant and greatly concerning.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is struggling to stay in office amid low public approval ratings and discontent from within his party. However, it is extremely rare for a sitting LDP president running for reelection to be dethroned.
EDITORIALS
Jul 5, 2024

Kishida fights for his political life

Despite low public approval ratings and discontent in the LDP, all is not lost for Prime Minister Kishida if the summer is kind to him and he plays his cards right.
Starting from September, foreign employees on a work visa must abide by a new points-based system to keep working in Singapore.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 5, 2024

Singapore is making life tougher for global talent

The city-state could lose its position as a global business hub if it keeps tightening the rules for overseas employees in a political bid to appease local residents.
Baseballs fans wear jerseys of the South Korean-born San Diego Padres player Kim Ha-Seong and the Los Angeles Dodgers player Shohei Ohtani in Seoul. Many South Koreans have embraced Ohtani, who is Japanese, despite the countries' historic rivalry.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 5, 2024

How long do the memories of a generation last?

The dominant culture of an era can be passed on to the next generation, but struggles to reach the one after that. This has implications for Japan-South Korea relations.
Although air travel in Asia has picked up since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is still below 2019 levels, with many passengers preferring to travel shorter distances.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 5, 2024

Asian airlines face a cold summer

Despite seemingly positive results, air travel in Asia hasn't returned to pre-pandemic levels, with many of the continent's travelers preferring to stay closer to home.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida delivers a speech during the closing ceremony of the Asia Business Summit in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 6, 2024

Kishida keen to leverage diplomacy to buoy his administration

Diplomacy is one of Kishida's strengths, but it remains unclear if his strategy will pay off.
New British Prime Minister Keir Starmer addresses the nation on Friday in London.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Jul 5, 2024

U.K.’s election is a rare win against anti-climate campaigns

Keir Starmer’s Labour has a manifesto that puts climate and clean energy front and center, unlike some parties in Europe and the U.S.
London's financial district in August 2023
BUSINESS
Jul 5, 2024

Labour win brings few hopes — or fears — to London's financial district

The Labour Party has assiduously courted the City of London, mindful that their plans for boosting economic growth will need a big dose of private capital.
Japan has finally scrapped every regulation requiring the use of floppy disks for administrative purposes.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 2024

Japan finally phases out floppy disks

One of the world’s most technologically advanced nations has held on to some of the most outmoded devices.
A Ukrainian national flag is pictured in front of the NATO emblem, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in central Kyiv, in July last year.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 6, 2024

NATO allies at summit to unveil Ukraine 'bridge to membership'

A senior U.S. official described the plan as quite substantial, saying that it will include training coordination, logistics and force development.
An unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile is launched during an operational test at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California in August 2017. Surging costs for the U.S. Air Force's new Sentinel ICBM may further embolden arms control advocacy groups who argue that the Sentinel should be scrapped in favor of extending the life of Minuteman III missiles.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 6, 2024

Cost of U.S. Sentinel ICBM swells again to $214 million per missile

The program is now expected to cost taxpayers $141 billion, or 81% more than forecast four years ago.
Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at the Historic Greenbrier Farms in Chesapeake, Virginia, on June 28.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 6, 2024

Trump distances bid from second-term agenda pushed by allies

Project 2025 is an effort proposing a sweeping shake-up of government and a slew of conservative policies if Trump defeats President Joe Biden in the November election.
Visitors walk past an Amazon exhibition booth during the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai on Friday.
BUSINESS / Tech / FOCUS
Jul 6, 2024

Is AI a major drain on the world's energy supply?

The spread of data centers across the globe is throwing a spotlight on the amount of energy the technology uses as well as its impact on the environment.
"Shogun" features Hiroyuki Sanada as the warlord Toranaga. The series is generating major buzz ahead of the announcement of Emmy nominations on July 17.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Jul 6, 2024

All hail the era of Japan-themed prestige TV

With shows like "Shogun" and "Tokyo Vice" vying for Emmy nominations this month, it's safe to say the streamers are having a bit of a "Japan moment."
Britain's Emma Raducanu celebrates after winning her third-round match against Greece's Maria Sakkari on Friday.
TENNIS
Jul 6, 2024

Alcaraz survives as Raducanu roars on at Wimbledon

The 21-year-old Alcaraz, bidding for his fourth major, ran into inspired American Frances Tiafoe in a repeat of their thrilling semifinal at the 2022 U.S. Open.
Several support networks have launched to help startup founders in Japan whose native language isn't Japanese.
BUSINESS / Companies / Longform
Jul 8, 2024

As Japan's startup ecosystem grows, so does a supportive community of entrepreneurs

Interest in startups is outpacing ecosystem capabilities, which has led more founders to turn to each other for guidance and support.
Yoshihiro Uchida inside the San Jose State University building that was renamed after him in 1997, in San Jose, California, in 2012.
MORE SPORTS / Judo
Jul 7, 2024

Yoshihiro Uchida, peerless American judo coach, dies at 104

The son of Japanese immigrants, Uchida began coaching judo at San Jose State in the 1940s, while he was still a student there.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event in Madison, Wisconsin, on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 7, 2024

As Biden digs in, more supporters look to push him out

Interviews with dozens of Democrats illustrated an imminent clash between a defiant president and those who question his ability to win.
A gyrotron, which is used to heat plasma for nuclear fusion reactions, developed by Kyoto Fusioneering
ENVIRONMENT / Energy / OUR PLANET
Jul 7, 2024

Kyoto Fusioneering looks toward a 'Made in Japan' approach for nuclear fusion

Although it recognizes that international collaboration is key, the startup sees the country playing an integral role in the fusion ecosystem.
Outgoing NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg addresses a meeting in Brussels last month.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 7, 2024

NATO turns 75 with Ukraine and future on line

Leaders will meet in Washington in the shadow of setbacks in Ukraine and electoral headwinds on both sides of the Atlantic.
One analyst argues that the billions of dollars flowing from Japan to the likes of Apple, Amazon and Microsoft might be more a positive than a negative in that more companies and individuals are using digital services.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 7, 2024

Japan’s digital deficit might be a good thing

The digital deficit indicates that digitalization has accelerated in the country, says Mitsubishi Research Institute researcher Kengo Wataya.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer
WORLD / Politics
Jul 7, 2024

Untested Starmer is suddenly the West’s last man standing tall

Keir Starmer — who’s spent the last six weeks campaigning under the one-word banner of ‘change’ — is about to discover how in politics, it can come at you fast.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and other key Labour figures with working-class backgrounds will have to work with elites in the civil service, business world and beyond who do not share their class origins.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 8, 2024

No class war from the U.K.’s most working-class government

This is the most working-class government the U.K. has had in recent years. Not only is Keir Starmer from a humble background, but so are many of his Cabinet members.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin attend a meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on Sept. 16, 2022. This was the two leaders’ last meeting.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 8, 2024

Putin to host Modi after hailing ‘best in history’ ties with China

Diplomats say the Indian prime minister’s visit is meant to send a signal that both sides remain close despite Moscow’s deepening embrace of New Delhi’s rival, Beijing.
The Chinese Communist Party's Central Committee typically meets seven times in its five-year tenure, with the third of these plenums being particularly important as it represents the first chance for the new leadership to properly introduce its broad thinking on economic and political issues.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 8, 2024

Why China’s third plenum matters for global investors

The typically once-in-five-years conclave of top officials usually deals with major economic and political policy changes.
A sprawling, secretive influence operation is attempting to vilify Qatar, the Gulf state mediating between Israel and Hamas.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 8, 2024

Shadow campaign: Global influence op targets Qatar in wartime

The campaign against Qatar shows the ease with which a person or an entire country can be tarnished in the age of disinformation while masking the ultimate perpetrators.
Joel Embiid, who has French citizenship, will suit up for the U.S. at the 2024 Paris Games.
OLYMPICS / Basketball
Jul 8, 2024

U.S. star Joel Embiid ready to hear boos from French crowd during Olympics

Embiid received his French passport in 2022 and many thought he would play for France or his native Cameroon in his first Olympics.

Longform

Passengers that were on a morning train attacked by members of the Aum Shinrikyo group wait for medical assistance outside Kasumigaseki Station on March 20,1995.
The day a religious cult brought terror to Tokyo