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TOKYO
August 14, 2026
The Independent Voice in Asia
August 14, 2026
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Residents are seen walking beside rubble in the city of Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, in this undated photo taken soon after the end of World War II.
JAPAN / History
How U.S. bombing surveys helped city in Japan grasp civilian sentiments of WWII
By Tomoko Otake
Years of work by a late historian in Tochigi Prefecture¡¯s Utsunomiya has shed light on lesser-known impacts of the war on Japanese civilians.
Residents are seen walking beside rubble in the city of Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, in this undated photo taken soon after the end of World War II.
A pedestrian walks through a flooded street on Thursday night amid heavy rain in the city of Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture.
JAPAN
Authorities urge continued caution after heavy rain in Chiba leaves four dead
By Jessica Speed
Emergency warnings have been downgraded but unstable atmospheric conditions are forecast to persist across Kanto, Nagano and Yamanashi through early Saturday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) interacts with residents on Etorofu island on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Putin¡¯s visit to the Northern Territories: Why now?
By Michael MacArthur Bosack
The timing of the visit is unusual, as it comes weeks in advance of when Putin was widely expected to travel to Russia¡¯s Far East.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a Liberal Democratic Party meeting alongside LDP Secretary-General Shunichi Suzuki (left) and LDP Vice President Taro Aso in Tokyo earlier this month
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Takaichi needs Aso on her side to solidify position in LDP
By Eric Johnston
If the relationship between the LDP president and the vice president does not stabilize, her position within the party won¡¯t either.
Potential health care workers hoping to find work in Japan take Japanese language instruction in Jakarta. Not all applicants for permanent residency should be expected to reach this level of proficiency.
COMMENTARY / World
What Â鶹´«Ã½ language rules for permanent residency should look like
Midori Inagaki
The main question is how Japanese language ability will be assessed. Japan must avoid turning the Japanese Language Proficiency Test into a de facto national filter.
Potential health care workers hoping to find work in Japan take Japanese language instruction in Jakarta. Not all applicants for permanent residency should be expected to reach this level of proficiency.

JAPAN

A screenshot of a video posted by 83-year-old virtual YouTuber Kuniko Asai, who appears as Manshu bachan (Manchuria grandma), a bespectacled cat that explains the history of Manchuria and the experiences of people who returned to Japan from the region.
83-year-old VTuber posts wartime stories of Manchuria
Kuniko Asai, who was born in Manchuria during World War II and who now lives in Ishikawa Prefecture, relates the experiences of people who returned to Japan from the region.
The subsidy program by the infrastructure ministry aims to encourage companies to renovate vacant stores that blight local neighborhoods and put them back into use.
Japan considering subsidies for renovating vacant stores
In the new program, local governments?would designate companies engaging in community development and encourage them to enter vacant store revitalization business.
Brussels flower carpet pays homage to Hokusai¡¯s ¡®Great Wave¡¯
University head calls for shutdown of Futenma 22 years after U.S. chopper crash
Crown prince declines to discuss revised Imperial House Law
Japan sees 60% rise in passport applications in July

BUSINESS

Chieko Sugai at her home in Murakami, Niigata Prefecture
Â鶹´«Ã½ inflation paradox is creating winners and losers
By Yoshiaki Nohara and Sakura Murakami
The rising cost of living is challenging Takaichi¡¯s triumphant rhetoric about Â鶹´«Ã½ economy, as inflation causes pain for many, while also ushering in an era of renewed dynamism.
Japanese investors bought the most foreign assets in more than two years last week, taking advantage of the yen¡¯s brief rally after interventions late last month.
Carry traders exploit intervention to rebuild yen shorts
By Ruth Carson and John Cheng
Every intervention to prop up the yen also creates a fresh opportunity to sell it.
Â鶹´«Ã½ power futures get boost as utilities hedge price risk
By Yusuke Maekawa
Google opens first directly run store outside U.S. in Tokyo
Yen closes in on ?160 to the dollar as bears remain bold
By Kazuaki Nagata
Â鶹´«Ã½ beverage makers introduce smaller, easy-to-carry bottles

WORLD

Congolese medical workers carry children tested and cleared off from Ebola from Saint Nicholas orphanage, at the Centre Medical Evangelique in the town of Bunia, Ituri province, Congo, on June 9.
Ebola is driving up maternal deaths as pregnant women in Congo avoid hospitals
By Jason Gale
Medical staff and supplies are also being diverted to fight the virus.
The White House said that the top 100% rate of a new tariff will apply to drones of a certain size or those that possess national-security capabilities, while other imports face lower duties.
Trump imposes 100% tariffs on some drones, countering China
By Laura Curtis and Alicia Diaz
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick notes that the U.S. is ¡°too reliant¡± on foreign unmanned aircraft systems and their parts.
North Korea warns of new ¡®deterrent¡¯ ahead of U.S.-South drills
Hundreds still missing in Colombia as desperation grips earthquake rescue effort
By Nelson Bocanegra and Julia Symmes Cobb
Ukraine¡¯s farmers despair as Russia¡¯s Black Sea blockade traps their harvest
By Olena Harmash
Chinese state-linked observatory sought NZ site, spy agency says
By Lucy Craymer

Sports

The future Fujinokawa (third from left) and Ikarigata (right) compete against each other at ages 5 and 3, respectively.
Ikarigata closer to emulating older brother Fujinokawa than many think
By John Gunning
While many expect Ikarigata to reach juryo in the near future, there¡¯s less confidence in his ability to match his older brother¡¯s achievements, which could be a mistake.
Iga Swiatek cruises past Elena Rybakina to capture Canadian Open title
Bears will not change name if team relocates to new state
Japan coach Eddie Jones feels team on verge of ending drought against Australia
By Martin PARRY
Michael Carrick urges Manchester United to add more players to boost title bid

Opinion

A U.S. Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet prepares to launch from the flight deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln in support of Operation Epic Fury¡¯s attack on Iran from an undisclosed location on March 14.
Are we on the verge of World War III?
Brad Glosserman
Still, historians are quick to see parallels to the situation before 1914.
Ukraine¡¯s drone war has a lesson China cannot manufacture
By David Kim
New York will regret going into the grocery business
By Allison Schrager
Western allies are about to fail Ukraine, again
By Marc Champion
Why Takaichi can¡¯t be the next Shinzo Abe
By Yuichi Hosoya

ENVIRONMENT

An ice block floats in the sea waters near a cemetery in Nuuk, Greenland, on Jan. 29.
¡®Imposing ignorance¡¯: U.S. climate science under siege
By Issam AHMED
President Donald Trump¡¯s latest move against science documenting the impacts of climate change is causing concern among experts.
It¡¯s likely that 2026 will be the hottest year on record, experts say
By Eric Roston
Inventories and farming method gains bolster food system against ¡®super¡¯ El Nino
Italy¡¯s record-low Po River forces farmers to weigh crop switch
By Alberto Brambilla
Scientists turn to sharks to improve hurricane predictions
By Marta Serafinko

CULTURE

Naoki Shimizu, president of Creativeman Productions, has learned many lessons while overseeing the growth of Summer Sonic over the past 25 years.
The man behind 25 years of Summer Sonic
By Patrick St. Michel
Naoki Shimizu reflects on 25 years of Summer Sonic, from Green Day and broken AC to 300,000 fans.
Katseye seeks to show raw side in new ¡®Wild Hearts¡¯ film
By Danielle Broadway
Wagner Moura and Greta Lee fight for survival in new thriller ¡®The Last House¡¯
By Francesca Halliwell
How war shaped the manga of Tadao Tsuge
By Marta Fanasca
Too much music, not enough weekend: A guide to Summer Sonic 2026
By Patrick St. Michel

LIFE

A woman takes advantage of a public mist machine to deal with a heat wave in Tokyo last month.
Cruel summer: Searching for an escape from Â鶹´«Ã½ extreme heat
By Eric Margolis
From extreme heat and tropical nights to mountain escapes, a look at the Japanese vocabulary of summer.
Spotify asks creators to label songs when they¡¯re AI-generated
By Ashley Carman
Â鶹´«Ã½ brewers experiment with a secret ingredient: music
By Gabrielle Doman
?6,000 for shaved ice: Is luxury ¡®kakig¨­ri¡¯ worth it?
By Weiwen Lin
Locked up in luxury at the new Hoshinoya Nara Prison hotel
By Owen Ziegler

COMMUNITY

Volunteer Vicky Parthasarathy (right) believes that people from various cultures can understand each other better through food.
This children¡¯s cafeteria in Shikoku serves up free meals and global perspectives
By Jacob Meyer
As immigration becomes an increasingly contentious issue in Japan, a children¡¯s cafeteria in Shikoku is bridging cultural gaps, one hot meal at a time.
This pup has a new take on life
How foreign workers became an essential part of Â鶹´«Ã½ ubiquitous konbini
By Yumi Wijers-Hasegawa
The 180-day locals: Life on Â鶹´«Ã½ digital nomad visa
By Mai Yoshikawa
A friendly ¡®peaches-and-cream¡¯ fellow

Editors' Picks

JAPAN
Forty-five meters down, a diver races to record a fleeting moment of WWII history
By Mai Yoshikawa
Kingo Wakasa photographs the kamikaze plane wing section he discovered at the USS Emmons wreck site.
SUMO
Ikarigata closer to emulating older brother Fujinokawa than many think
By John Gunning
The future Fujinokawa (third from left) and Ikarigata (right) compete against each other at ages 5 and 3, respectively.
COMMUNITY
Where do foreign residents in Japan want to die?
By Yumi Wijers-Hasegawa
The Yokohama Foreign General Cemetery is one of the few cemeteries in Japan that allows burials, albeit with conditions for the deceased, including foreign nationality and permanent residency in Kanagawa Prefecture.
COMMUNITY
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
By Jessica Speed
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
ENVIRONMENT
As Â鶹´«Ã½ concrete jungles sizzle, urban forestry offers an all-natural fix
By Tomoko Otake
People and birds find relief from the sun in Tokyo's Nakano Ward earlier this month. While experts agree that urban greening is crucial to mitigating the impact of climate change, trees are becoming even more scarce in Japanese cities.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Â鶹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness
By Alex K.T. Martin

JT Directory Service

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COMFACTS

Regenesome Marks Second Anniversary with ¡°Regenesome Tech Forum 2026,¡± Reporting Two Years of Research and Its Priorities for Year Three
Regenesome Marks Second Anniversary with ¡°Regenesome Tech Forum 2026,¡± Reporting Two Years of Research and Its Priorities for Year Three
SPACE SEED HOLDINGS CO., LTD.

WHAT¡¯S TRENDING

JAPAN
Forty-five meters down, a diver races to record a fleeting moment of WWII history
By Mai Yoshikawa
Kingo Wakasa photographs the kamikaze plane wing section he discovered at the USS Emmons wreck site.
BUSINESS
New ¡®Katsu Curry Index¡¯ aims to show how weak the yen really is
A CoCo Ichibanya curry house in Tokyo.
JAPAN
Mexican man arrested over attempt to smuggle some 200 lizards into Japan
Mexican alligator lizards seized by Tokyo Customs from a Mexican man who attempted to smuggle them into Japan on Saturday through Haneda Airport
JAPAN
Gut bacteria may be behind many of Â鶹´«Ã½ colorectal cancer cases
A Japanese research team found that a toxin produced by certain E. coli strains, colibactin, caused genetic mutations in nearly half of colorectal cancer cases studied
BUSINESS
She is Russia¡¯s richest woman. Her business empire is going up in flames.
By Paul Sonne, Alina Lobzina and Oleg Matsnev
Tatyana Kim, the head and co-founder of Wildberries, speaks about Ukrainian drone attacks on the company's warehouses in the course of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, at an unidentified location, in this still image from a handout video released on July 31.