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July 02, 2026
 

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Michael Martina
People stand near the newly launched N9 electric vehicle under BYD's premium brand, Denza, displayed at a launch event in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, China, on May 18. The U.S. has added BYD to a list of companies it believes are aiding China's military.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 9, 2026
U.S. says BYD, Baidu, Alibaba and other tech giants are aiding China’s military
The move could inflame tensions between both countries, coming less than a month after a summit between their leaders.
People cross a street past a billboard on the facade of a building depicting the Strait of Hormuz with a caption in Persian reading "Forever in Iran's Hand," in Tehran on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
May 26, 2026
Iran’s top envoys discussing potential peace deal with Qatar PM, official says
The talks focused primarily on the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, as well as frozen Iranian funds.
A cargo ship is docked at the foreign trade container terminal of Qingdao Port in China's eastern Shandong province on March 25.
BUSINESS
Apr 21, 2026
With tariffs stalled, Trump’s China policy drifts
Washington’s China policy appears adrift, causing confusion among officials and driving contradictory decisions.
An honor guard from the Chinese People’s Liberation Army shouts during a welcoming ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in November 2025.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 13, 2026
CIA makes new push to recruit Chinese military officers as informants
The spy agency rolled out ‌a video depicting a disillusioned mid-level Chinese military officer, part of a U.S. campaign to ramp up human intelligence gathering on Beijing.
Captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is escorted toward the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse in Manhattan for an initial appearance to face U.S. federal charges including narco-terrorism, conspiracy, drug trafficking, money laundering and others, at Downtown Manhattan Heliport, in New York on Jan. 5.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Jan 12, 2026
With Venezuela raid, U.S. tells China to keep away from the Americas
China’s progress in Latin America — from satellite tracking stations in Argentina to a port in Peru — has been an irritant for U.S. leaders.
A U.S. Marine Corps helicopter flies over the tarmac at Mercedita International Airport in Ponce amid ongoing military movements in Puerto Rico on Thursday. The U.S. president ordering a blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela has raised questions under international law about whether it amounts to an act of war.
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Dec 19, 2025
How Trump’s Venezuela embargo could put Taiwan at risk
Beijing could exploit a U.S. blockade of Venezuela to undercut any American efforts to drum up international diplomatic opposition to such a move in the Taiwan Strait, experts say.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping talk as they leave after a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, in Busan, South Korea, on Oct. 30.
WORLD / Politics
Nov 6, 2025
Trump pressed China’s Xi to release jailed Hong Kong media tycoon, sources say
Trump appealed directly to China’s Xi Jinping to free jailed Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai when the two leaders met in South Korea last week.
U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2019.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 23, 2025
Hopes for Xi-Trump summit dampened by tough Beijing moves and rising tension
Even if the talks get back on track, experts say a narrow deal on a few issues is the most likely outcome.
Chinese tech startup DeepSeek is helping Beijing with military and intelligence operations, according to U.S. officials.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jun 24, 2025
DeepSeek aids China’s military and evaded export controls, U.S. official says
The U.S. conclusions reflect a growing conviction in Washington that the capabilities behind the rapid rise of one of China’s flagship AI enterprises may have been exaggerated.
A woman walks with a sign depicting Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as people gather for a protest against Israel's wave of strikes on Iran in central Tehran on Friday.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jun 14, 2025
Israel’s attacks on Iran hint at a bigger goal: regime change
The moves appear aimed at diminishing Iran’s credibility both at home and among its allies in the region — factors that could destabilize the Iranian leadership, experts said.
The Fordow uranium enrichment facility, south of the Iranian capital of Tehran, is seen in a satellite image from February. Iranian authorities have said that the nuclear sites at Fordow and Isfahan have not been hit in Israel strikes, according to the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
WORLD / FOCUS
Jun 14, 2025
Damage to Iranian nuclear sites so far appears limited, experts say
Satellite imagery seen Friday did not yet show significant damage to nuclear infrastructure, several experts said.
The Bayan Obo mine containing rare earth minerals, in Inner Mongolia, China.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 31, 2025
Carmakers warn China’s rare-earth curbs could halt production
Auto executives are sounding the alarm on an impending shortage of rare-earth magnets from China that could force the closure of factories within weeks.
The Taiwanese military conducts its first High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) live-fire test launch at the Jiupeng base in Pingtung, Taiwan, on May 12.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 30, 2025
Trump aims to exceed first term’s weapons sales to Taiwan, officials say
If U.S. arms sales to Taiwan do accelerate, it could ease worries about the extent of Trump’s commitment to the island.
The Harvard University shield "VERITAS" sits above a campus entrance gate at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, last month.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society / FOCUS
May 24, 2025
Long advantageous, Harvard’s China ties become a political liability
The ties have yielded major financial gifts, influence in international affairs and global prestige for the school.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Osaka in 2019. With his global tariffs announcement, Trump may have undercut his own China strategy.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 4, 2025
Trump’s global trade war may defeat U.S. strategic goals on China
Tariffs could cause an economic moat to form around the U.S. that ultimately undermines Washington’s strategic goals on Beijing, analysts warn.
Balloons with protest slogans are seen outside the Legislative Council building during the anniversary of Hong Kong's handover to China in Hong Kong on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 1, 2025
U.S. sanctions six Chinese and Hong Kong officials for rights abuses
The move is the Trump administration’s first major move to punish Beijing over its crackdown on the city.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth walks to the West Wing of the White House on March 21. Hegseth disclosed war plans in an encrypted chat group that included a journalist two hours before U.S. troops launched attacks against the Houthi militia in Yemen, the White House said on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 25, 2025
White House mistakenly shares Yemen war plans with journalist
The plans were shared in a Signal messaging group that included a journalist from The Atlantic just before the U.S. attacked Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 15, 2025
U.S. hits Thai officials with visa sanctions over deportation of Uyghurs to China
The move appeared intended to discourage Thailand — a U.S. ally — and other countries from such deportations.
A ship sails through the Panama Canal after Hong Kong's CK Hutchison agreed to sell its interests in a key Panama Canal port operator to a BlackRock-backed consortium on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 5, 2025
BlackRock to buy Hong Kong firm’s Panama Canal port stake amid pressure
The $22.8 billion deal, coming amid pressure from the White House, will give the BlackRock-backed group control of ports along the strategic waterway and dozens of others.
Elon Musk speaks next to U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Feb. 11.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 26, 2025
U.S. lawmakers warn that China could use Musk to influence Trump
Lawmakers fear the CCP will try to use business leaders who have commercial interests in China, to advance its goals in talks with Washington.
Japan triples departure tax in push to combat overtourism
Tourists in Yanaka Ginza, Tokyo, on Wednesday. Japan tripled its International Tourist Tax (departure tax) to ¥3,000 from ¥1,000 on Wednesday for all travelers leaving Japan, regardless of nationality.
More facilities in Japan placing sanitary bins in men’s restrooms
A sanitary bin with an awareness sticker placed in a men's restroom in the Nagasaki Municipal Government building
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Six of the best: rikishi of note in each sumo division
Kazuma (right) faces off against future <i>yokozuna</i> Onosato during the All Japan Amateur Sumo Championships at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo in December 2020.
Some startups see opportunity in an aging Japan
Yasmin Baba, CTO of Amilis, wins the Grand Prize at the Pitch2Tokyo Grand Final on Feb. 19.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

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