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July 12, 2026
 

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Antoni Slodkowski
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping talk as they leave after a bilateral meeting at Gimhae International Airport, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, in Busan, South Korea, last October.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 18, 2026
China steps up Iran diplomacy while seeking smooth summit with Trump
China is accelerating its efforts to end the Iran war, walking a diplomatic tightrope as it prepares for a summit next month with U.S. President Donald Trump while trying not to alienate Tehran.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during a campaign event at Maiko Park in Kobe on Thursday
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jan 31, 2026
Strong voter mandate could hand PM Takaichi new clout to counter China
A big win on Feb. 8 will help send a message to Beijing that its attacks have not damaged her domestically, a senior Japanese government official said.
President Donald Trump has taken a wrecking ball to the rules-based global order that the U.S. helped build from the ashes of World War II.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jan 13, 2026
Trump’s exercise of raw power upends world order, sending friends and foes reeling
Many are unsure of what he will do next and whether the latest changes will be long-lasting or can be undone by a more traditional future U.S. president.
Flames and thick smoke rise from multiple residential blocks at the Wang Fuk Court housing complex in Hong Kong on Nov. 26.
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Dec 6, 2025
Hong Kong fire came after contractor safety breaches and a residents’ revolt
The contractor had been penalized by the city’s safety regulator more than a dozen times in the years before it was hired to renovate the complex.
Smoke rises from buildings at a residential estate in Hong Kong on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Nov 28, 2025
Hong Kong fire poses test for China’s grip on the city
The fire struck as Hong Kong braces for the sentencing of media tycoon Jimmy Lai — the most prominent of hundreds of pro-democracy figures and activists facing lengthy jail terms.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping attends a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, in Beijing on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 6, 2025
With diplomatic tour de force, China’s Xi shows he’s ‘totally in charge’
The recent display of geopolitical ambition has helped quell concerns about the 72-year-old president’s vitality and so-far-unknown succession plans.
Rescue teams from China and Belarus coordinate at the site of a collapsed building in Mandalay, Myanmar, on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 3, 2025
With U.S. absent, China steps in for earthquake-hit Myanmar
The American absence shows how U.S. President Donald Trump’s moves to slash the size of the government has hobbled its ability to act during disasters.
Chinese President Xi Jinping shakes hands with Syrian President Bashar Assad in eastern Hangzhou city in September 2023.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Dec 10, 2024
Assad’s fall in Syria exposes limits of China’s Middle East diplomacy
Chinese experts and diplomats say Beijing will now bide its time before recognizing a new government in Damascus.
A sign shows people where to vote in the 2024 presidential election on Election Day in Dearborn, Michigan, on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Nov 6, 2024
China braces for more rivalry as close U.S. presidential race ends
Regardless of who wins, Beijing faces four more years of bitter superpower rivalry over anything from trade to Taiwan.
New recruits of the Bamar People's Liberation Army (BPLA) march during a training session at a camp in territory belonging to the Karen National Liberation Army, in Myanmar's Karen state, in March.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Oct 26, 2024
How an anxious China is backing Myanmar’s faltering junta in civil war
Beijing is increasingly alarmed at the rapid degeneration of the military, which it still sees as a guarantor of stability in its neighbor.
Actor Zhu Jian, 69, rehearses with other actors on the set of a micro movie during a filming session at a banquet hall in Zhengzhou, Henan province, China, on July 16.
BUSINESS
Sep 23, 2024
Micro dramas shake up China’s film industry, aim for Hollywood
The leader in the micro drama space is Kuaishou, an app that accounted for 60% of the top 50 Chinese micro dramas last year.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Dec 18, 2021
Japan business lobbyist backs Myanmar coup and urges investment
A Japanese former politician who campaigned to bring billions of dollars of investment from some of Japan’s top companies to Myanmar has urged Tokyo to endorse its military regime.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 23, 2021
Japan to focus on supply chain chokepoints in security push
Akira Amari, secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party, has in recent years driven a policy push for Japan’s economy to be less reliant on other countries.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 1, 2021
Suga to dissolve Diet mid-September and delay LDP race, report says
The PM decided to shunt back the LDP race as he has struggled to solidify support in the party and opponents were likely to gather votes in the coming weeks, the Mainichi reports.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 30, 2021
Suga’s ratings hit record lows as party leader race looms
A Mainichi newspaper poll showed public support for Suga slid below 30% for the first time, to stand at a dismal 26%, while the Nikkei daily put his rating at 34%.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Aug 8, 2021
Tokyo feared the Games would spread COVID-19. The numbers inside the ‘bubble’ suggest that didn’t happen.
Japan had feared that the Games might spread COVID-19, introduce new variants and overwhelm the medical system. But the numbers from inside the Olympic ‘bubble’ tell a different story.
JAPAN
Jul 30, 2021
A tale of two cities: In the ‘bubble’ and the Tokyo outside
While the athletes village and Olympic press center represent a huge, strict COVID-19 control zone, the residents of the capital are living life largely as normal.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 24, 2021
IOC’s Bach draws ire in Japan over long opening ceremony speech
Olympic boss Thomas Bach spoke for 13 minutes, about twice as long as his Japanese female host, Seiko Hashimoto, prompting a flood of criticism on social media.
JAPAN
Jun 11, 2021
JOC executive Kaori Yamaguchi says Tokyo Games should be held without spectators
Yamaguchi said the government was ‘confusing’ the public by asking them to stay at home and imposing curbs while putting on the global sports showpiece.
JAPAN
Oct 20, 2020
Ad behemoth faces claims of conflict of interest in Tokyo Olympic campaign
“Adult understanding” investigated as a potential conflict of interest for the Japanese advertising giant.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese scientists identify neural mechanism that may explain why we dislike people
The aggressive mouse (left) used in the experiment and a mouse defending itself
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

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

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The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
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