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JAPAN
Jul 2, 2003

U.S. pressure places Iran-Japan oil deal in doubt

The government on Tuesday urged a state-backed consortium of Japanese firms to delay signing a contract on an Iranian oil development project, citing international suspicion that Tehran is developing nuclear weapons.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2003

Boxer dances for reunification of Koreas

Champion boxer Masamori Tokuyama says his dream is to use his status as a well-known Korean resident of Japan to contribute to the reunification of the Korean Peninsula.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2003

Fugitive Fujimori plots comeback

Alberto Fujimori peers into his computer quietly plotting a return to power half a world away -- all but oblivious to being a wanted man who can't leave the confines of Japan for fear of arrest.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2003

Mori takes turn at insulting women

Former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori is in hot water over remarks he reportedly made last week insinuating that women who grow old without having children deserve no state aid.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2003

New council to address food safety

The Cabinet Office launched a council Tuesday designed to address growing public concerns about food safety, and the agricultural ministry reorganized its structure.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2003

DPJ decides to oppose sending SDF to Iraq, citing concerns over security

The Democratic Party of Japan decided Tuesday to oppose any dispatch of the Self-Defense Forces to help reconstruct Iraq.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jul 2, 2003

Inaba, Muramatsu both hit for the cycle

Yakult outfielder Atsunori Inaba hit for the cycle to help the Swallows overcome a 5-0 deficit and beat the Yokohama BayStars 11-5 in a rain-shortened game on Tuesday night at Matsumoto Stadium.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2003

Is Baghdad safe enough for SDF? Depends on which party you ask

The ruling bloc and the opposition parties are presenting completely conflicting reports on their respective fact-finding missions to Iraq, with the opposition arguing the Self-Defense Forces should not be dispatched to the area due to deteriorating security.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2003

Bill would allow people with gender identity disorder to alter registry

The House of Councilors Judicial Affairs Committee voted unanimously Tuesday to submit a bill to the Diet that would allow people with gender identity disorder to change their officially registered gender in their family registries under certain conditions.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2003

35 prefectures eyeing taxes to fund forest conservation

Thirty-five prefectural governments have decided to introduce or are considering introducing an additional tax to promote forest conservation and regeneration, according to a Forest Agency report.
COMMENTARY
Jul 2, 2003

Drive for European unity gets a boost from Iraq war

PARIS -- Two months ago, the European Union seemed bound to be one of the major casualties of the trans-Atlantic rift generated by the Iraqi war. Now, however, the climate is improving.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Jul 2, 2003

Burnt Sugar: "The Rites"

"I had come up with the idea of adapting motifs from 'Le Sacre du Printemps' for a series of improvisations," says Burnt Sugar's Greg Tate. "Given how many sick bass lines there are in his writing, Stravinsky makes perfect sense for a band that loves to vamp as much as we do."
BUSINESS
Jul 2, 2003

Shiokawa seeks budget flexibility

The government plans to include funds for multiyear "model" projects in the fiscal 2004 budget, Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 2, 2003

Latest 'tankan' survey shows surprising rise in sentiment

Business sentiment at Japanese companies improved during the April-June period, a closely watched Bank of Japan survey showed Tuesday, surprising bears who had braced for a reality check on the markets.
COMMENTARY
Jul 2, 2003

Pyongyang: keep the gloves on for now

LONDON -- There is no question that the anachronistic communist regime in North Korea threatens the peace in Northeast Asia. In the absence of good intelligence, however, it is difficult to estimate the extent of the threat. American intelligence on Iraq was faulty, and it is doubtful whether the CIA...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Jul 2, 2003

Pat Metheny: "One Quiet Night"

Pat Metheny is one of the most widely imitated guitarists in modern jazz. A prodigy on guitar, he played in jazz clubs before he could even drive to the gigs and became one of the youngest teachers ever at the famed Berklee College of Music in Boston. Because of that early fame, he has had the freedom...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jul 2, 2003

Two European time-and-emotion studies

It's my pleasure to introduce two plays you really must see this month, if not today. Well, one today, and one tomorrow, perhaps, so as not to be too greedy.
BUSINESS
Jul 2, 2003

Japan needs foreign workers to achieve economic growth: METI

Japan should make efforts to introduce foreign workers to achieve economic growth in line with increasing globalization, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in an annual report released Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 2, 2003

Gas firms tie up on power generation

Tokyo Gas Co., Showa Shell Sekiyu K.K. and Shell Gas & Power Japan Ltd. said Tuesday they will establish a joint venture on Aug. 1, hoping to launch a power generation project by 2009.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 2, 2003

A chip off the old block

IWATE, Iwate Pref. -- The town of Iwate, population 17,302, is one of the last places you'd expect to find an international art event. But though the largely rural Iwate Prefecture put itself on the art map 18 months ago, with the opening of the Iwate Museum of Art (currently hosting a Frank Stella exhibition;...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 2, 2003

On a director's storyboard far, far away

Is there a person in the Western world -- or even globally, given Hollywood's cultural reach -- who is unaware of "Star Wars"? In a society increasingly described as amnesiac, in which pop culture seems to come with an expiry date, George Lucas' movie trilogy (now with two -- soon to be three -- "prequels")...
BUSINESS
Jul 2, 2003

Tobacco tax hike seen as wasted effort

The tobacco tax hike that took effect Tuesday will probably not boost government revenue because some smokers will kick the habit, Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 2, 2003

FSA accused of strong-arm tactics

The Financial Services Agency exerted improper pressure early last year on Tokio Marine & Fire Insurance Co. to consolidate with Asahi Mutual Life Insurance Co., a Democratic Party of Japan member said Tuesday.

Longform

Juzo Itami’s “Tampopo” was released Nov. 23, 1985, and though it wasn’t a hit at the time, it has gained a cult following in the years since.
Eat, slurp, love: 'Tampopo' turns 40