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Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
Nov 21, 2022

Japanese carmakers face continuing risks in the Russian market

From county-based issues to reputational risks at home, automakers have had to tread carefully in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Oct 19, 2022

Japan rushes to rearm with eye on 2027 — and China's Taiwan ambitions

By pointing to 2027 as the moment when East Asia's power balance may tip in China's favor, Japan's government can rally support for greater defense spending, experts say.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
Oct 11, 2022

Japan has much to learn from Taiwan's countering of China’s sharp power

A reserved manner and avoiding knee-jerk reactions has helped Taipei weather the latest storm regarding hostility from Beijing.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 30, 2022

Here’s who really needs the new COVID-19 booster

Instead of pushing everyone to get another COVID-19 vaccine, the CDC should be prioritizing older and unboosted people.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 25, 2022

Can the Japanese learn to love nuclear power again?

The Japanese government is backing the construction of new reactors for the first time since Fukushima. It will have to convince a skeptical public first.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 22, 2022

The prince of Wales and his discontents

Queen Elizabeth II has kept the monarchy popular — and the country united around it — by keeping her opinions to herself. Charles should master the discipline
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 24, 2022

Understanding the extent of Chinese public support for Russia

The Chinese public is purported to overwhelmingly be on Russia's side amid the invasion of Ukraine, but there is little appetite for China to play an active role.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
May 19, 2022

Climate-conscious independents could determine Australian election

Enraged by the lack of government action on climate change, the candidates are campaigning hard on environmental issues in the hope of appealing to moderate voters.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
May 4, 2022

Biden pledges to try to enshrine Roe into law if court strikes down landmark ruling

The Court's chief justice, John Roberts, said he had ordered the marshal of the court to investigate the source of the leak.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
May 3, 2022

What would the end of Roe v. Wade mean? Key questions and answers.

A leaked U.S. Supreme Court draft opinion that would overturn the Roe v. Wade legal precedent describes a United States not seen in half a century.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 8, 2022

Tokyo’s tough stand against Moscow comes at a cost

Tokyo's recent decision to line up with the West on sanctioning Russia is a serious shift for Japan, and one with the obvious cost of alienating Moscow in the Northern Territories dispute.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 7, 2022

The other threat to democracy

In recent years, we have watched authoritarian leaders come to power democratically, only to erode constitutional norms and institutions once in office.
Emperor Naruhito at Meiji Shrine in Tokyo on Tuesday
JAPAN
Apr 11, 2024

Japan to launch full-scale talks over shrinking imperial family

Japan's ruling and opposition parties are set to start talks on measures to address the shrinking number of imperial family members.
The world is waiting to see if tit-for-tat missile and drone strikes by Israel and Iran will end after one exchange or escalate into a wider war that threatens the region. 
EDITORIALS
Apr 19, 2024

Stop the slide toward catastrophe in the Middle East

Tensions mount as Israel and Iran trade strikes, threatening regional stability.
TikTok raised eyebrows last month when it mobilized users to petition against a potential ban, demonstrating its influence on Americans.
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 30, 2024

TikTok and Tesla just the start of U.S.-China clash over Big Data

Data security is again taking center stage in the intensifying rivalry between the U.S. and China.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks during a news conference after a two-day monetary policy meeting at the BOJ headquarters in Tokyo on April 26.
BUSINESS
May 9, 2024

Many BOJ board members saw need for steady rate hikes in April, records show

Some saw the chance of a faster-than-expected pace of interest rate hikes on prospects of inflation durably staying or exceeding the bank's 2% target.
Over 70% of respondents in a survey do not support Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's handling of the high-profile slush fund scandal involving factions of his ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
JAPAN / Politics
May 16, 2024

Kishida Cabinet's support rate edges up, poll shows

The poll found that 72.9% of respondents do not support Kishida's handling of a high-profile slush fund scandal.
The Bank of Japan debated the chance of a near-term interest rate hike during its policy meeting in June.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 24, 2024

BOJ debated need for timely rate hike at June meeting, summary shows

One Bank of Japan policymaker called for an increase without delay to address risks of inflation overshooting expectations.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump shake hands during a bilateral meeting at the Group of 20 leaders summit in Osaka in June 2019.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 10, 2024

U.S. intelligence official indicates Russia prefers Trump as election victor

The U.S. has not seen Russia shift on its preference from previous U.S. presidential elections on who it prefers to win this year.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Washington in April. Both leaders face an uphill battle to stay at the helm of their respective parties and countries.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 10, 2024

Japan too is wrestling with a flawed leader

Questions about election prospects plague Biden in the U.S. and Kishida in Japan, with both trying to hang on to their commanding positions despite growing discontent.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris arrives aboard Air Force Two in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts, traveling to a campaign fundraiser, on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 21, 2024

Trump campaign prepares attack plan for Harris in case Biden withdraws

The effort assumes that the U.S. vice president would be the most likely candidate to replace the president at the top of the Democratic ticket.
Considering there is another full year left before the current term of the Lower House expires, Fumio Kishida’s announcement he is standing down as the Liberal Democratic Party's leader has many wondering why.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 15, 2024

With Kishida’s sudden departure, who will lead Japan?

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s unexpected decision to not seek reelection has prompted a leadership race within Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
U.S. Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris shakes hands with former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump during a debate at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 11, 2024

Harris rattles Trump in combative U.S. presidential debate

The Democratic vice president put her Republican rival on the defensive with a stream of attacks on abortion limits, his fitness for office and his myriad legal woes.
The government is preparing to set Japan’s new Nationally Determined Contribution, an emissions reduction commitment made by members of the United Nations climate framework's Paris Agreement.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Dec 10, 2024

As Japan nears new climate goal, criticism of policy process ramps up

Critics say the process is not intended to facilitate genuine debate, and that those who support the energy status quo are overrepresented on policy panels.
Hanna Shelest outside her apartment building in Odesa, Ukraine, on Jan. 20
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 27, 2025

I spent Trump’s inauguration in Ukraine. This is what I saw.

In nearly three years since Russia’s invasion, Odesa has moved from shock and fear to denial and, finally, adaptation.
Defending the rights of transgender and nonbinary people isn’t only about waging legal battles. It’s about more persuasive arguments.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 29, 2025

Trump can’t erase trans people with the stroke of his marker

There hasn’t been as much outrage as I had anticipated, but it makes sense. Most Americans, polls show, don’t personally know anyone who identifies as transgender.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 3, 2025

BOJ discussed worries about price upward deviation in January

One member referred to "a growing possibility that underlying CPI (consumer price index) inflation will rise steadily toward achieving the price stability target of 2%."
Supporters of the impeached South Korean president, Yoon Suk Yeol, protesting in Seoul on Saturday.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 25, 2025

South Korea’s political drama is far from over

The potential for violence in the days ahead is still great. Still, that shouldn’t take away from the urgent and necessary reform of the political system.

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone. 
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan