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TOKYO
August 19, 2026
The Independent Voice in Asia
August 19, 2026
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U.S. soldiers move fuel cans at an army base near the Demilitarized Zone separating two Koreas, in Dongducheon, South Korea, on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
U.S. and South Korea to nearly halve joint military drills after Trump criticism
By Jesse Johnson
The move appears aimed at luring North Korean leader Kim Jong Un back to talks, years after denuclearization negotiations with Washington collapsed.

More coverage

U.S. allies call South Korea cooperation ¡®critical¡¯ after Trump orders exercise cut
U.S. soldiers move fuel cans at an army base near the Demilitarized Zone separating two Koreas, in Dongducheon, South Korea, on Tuesday.
Members of the Civil Protection team, wearing personal protective equipment (PPE), disinfect after handling the body of a man who died of Ebola, in Bunia, Ituri province, Congo, on July 10.
WORLD / Science & Health
Congo Ebola outbreak ¡®far from being under control¡¯: WHO chief
Congolese officials said on Monday that the outbreak had killed over 2,300 people out of nearly 5,000 cases, making it the deadliest in the country¡¯s history.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks during a news conference in Moscow on Monday.
JAPAN
Russia rebukes Japan ambassador over disputed islands row
Japanese Ambassador Akira Muto was told that ¡°Russia¡¯s sovereignty and jurisdiction¡± over the Northern Territories are ¡°unshakable.¡±
A child sits next to G1 humanoid robots produced by China's Unitree Robotics as he interacts with a Go2 robot, at a Unitree store in Beijing on Aug. 1.
WORLD
How U.S. military funding propelled China¡¯s robot dogs
By Michael Martina
The link underscores broader problems with the United States¡¯ ability to compete with China¡¯s state-directed manufacturing sector in high-tech strategic industries.
Motoaki Iijima, 36, owner of the Nikko Engei flower farm, harvests gerbera flowers inside an illuminated greenhouse at night in Nikko, Tochigi Prefecture.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Deadly heat pushes Â鶹´«Ã½ farmers to go nocturnal
By Mariko Katsumura, Tom Bateman and Issei Kato
Once-busy midday hours are now avoided by farmers as a mortal threat, replaced by after-dark work to protect crops, livestock and themselves.
Motoaki Iijima, 36, owner of the Nikko Engei flower farm, harvests gerbera flowers inside an illuminated greenhouse at night in Nikko, Tochigi Prefecture.

JAPAN

Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi reacts as he talks with Australian defense chief Richard Marles during a news conference at Parliament House in Canberra on Tuesday.
Japan and Australia tout progress on high-energy laser and missile range tests
By Jesse Johnson
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said the advances were a breakthrough for bilateral ties and Â鶹´«Ã½ own defense industry.
The No.1, No.2, No.3 and No.4 reactor buildings at the tsunami-crippled Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture
Tepco begins removal of radioactive spent fuel from Fukushima No. 2 reactor
Removed fuel assemblies are transferred to a safer common storage pool at the nuclear plant, which was heavily damaged in the March 2011 powerful earthquake and tsunami.
Trump¡¯s Korea move creates more headaches for Takaichi
By Michael MacArthur Bosack
Kumamoto earthquake insurance claims and inquiries top 40,000
International commission on Pacific bluefin tuna to raise catch quota by 25%
Minecraft workshops build understanding of cityscapes before atomic bombings

BUSINESS

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg arrives to testify in a tech addiction trial in Los Angeles on Feb. 18. Meta is again defending itself in court over claims it caused young people to become addicted to social media, this time in the first bellwether federal trial, brought by states seeking roughly $200 billion in damages.
Meta hooked children and misled public: prosecutors
A coalition of states is asking Meta be hit with $200 billion in penalties for making products addictive to children, in what many have called social media¡¯s ¡°big tobacco moment.¡±
U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney as he welcomes Carney at the White House in Washington on Oct. 7, 2025.
Carney and Trump speak again as tariff deadline looms
It was the second time this week the two leaders have spoken, with little clarity on the status of talks after weeks of intense negotiations.
Singapore casino¡¯s winning streak puts pressure on losing rival
By Bernadette Toh and Shirley Zhao
Mizuho markets head expects BOJ to raise rates soon, more often
By Taiga Uranaka and Hideki Suzuki
Â鶹´«Ã½ earnings surprise analysts to fuel bets for broad rally
By Hideyuki Sano
Price hikes to likely weigh on Japan households from summer onward

WORLD

Oil tankers and cargo vessels anchored off the coast of Oman in June
Trump takes Iran hard line as Hormuz tensions mark new normal
By Jennifer A. Dlouhy and Patrick Sykes
His insistence that the U.S. has total control over the strait is directly at odds with the stance of Iranian officials.
U.S. President Donald Trump insisted on Monday that the U.S. had leverage over Iran, citing the naval blockade of Iranian ports.
U.S.-Iran peace prospects dim as Trump rejects truce extension
By Courtney Subramanian and Catherine Lucey
The truce was meant to give Washington and Tehran a 60-day window to reach a more lasting peace.
Israeli settler confronts Palestinian American at his besieged West Bank home
Israeli airstrikes hit Syrian airbase, drawing Turkish condemnation
China¡¯s top envoy to visit Seoul as Trump shakes U.S.-South Korea ties
Trump defends ballroom to Supreme Court as military complex
By Greg Stohr

Sports

A man walks past an advertisement for the 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya, Aichi prefecture.
All aboard as Asian Games preparations enter ¡®final stages¡¯
By Andrew MCKIRDY
About 15,000 competitors and officials are expected at the event, which takes place in Nagoya and the wider Aichi area from Sept. 19 to Oct. 4.
Asian soccer rift deepens as AFC president responds to criticism from Qatar
Rodri eager to ¡®feel that excitement again¡¯ after move to Barcelona
Bryson DeChambeau among players making contingency plans amid LIV Golf uncertainty
Racist abuse spurred Suzuki as Japan goalkeeper set for Premier League
By Andrew MCKIRDY

Opinion

The British frigate HMS Argyll (front), Japanese destroyer Inazuma (center) and Japanese helicopter carrier Kaga take part in a joint naval drill in the Indian Ocean in September 2018. The Iran crisis has exposed new vulnerabilities in the global maritime order.
Why the Strait of Hormuz is a warning for Japan
Yuki Goto
The maritime order has two aspects: a vertical order based on hegemony and command of the sea and a horizontal order based on norms and rules agreed upon among nations.
Â鶹´«Ã½ migrant children: The hidden challenges of belonging
By Kay Ann A. Ramos
Central banks need to speak, even when they are wrong
By Jonathan Levin
A U.S. Indo-Pacific priority? Not so fast
By Brad Glosserman
Africa¡¯s energy curse is a political choice
By Rabah Arezki

ENVIRONMENT

Motoaki Iijima, 36, owner of the Nikko Engei flower farm, harvests gerbera flowers inside an illuminated greenhouse at night in Nikko, Tochigi Prefecture.
Deadly heat pushes Â鶹´«Ã½ farmers to go nocturnal
By Mariko Katsumura, Tom Bateman and Issei Kato
Once-busy midday hours are now avoided by farmers as a mortal threat, replaced by after-dark work to protect crops, livestock and themselves.
Record-early champagne harvest highlights climate change impact on French vineyards
By Elissa Darwish
Elderly far more at risk from rising heat than thought: study
Faced with historic drought, the Dutch rethink water management
AI-generated wildlife images are endangering animals and people, experts warn

CULTURE

From Edogawa Ranpo to Uketsu, Japanese writers have long put their own twists on the conventions of crime, horror and mystery, creating a literary tradition that can be as unsettling as it is inventive.
Â鶹´«Ã½ macabre literati go global
By Mike Fu
Japanese crime, mystery and horror have hit their stride with English readers, offering a complement and counterpoint to ¡°healing fiction.¡±
Madonna tops Taylor Swift in nominations for MTV¡¯s Video Music Awards
By Lisa Richwine
Aespa delivers summer rhythms on ¡®Kiss n Tell¡¯
By Adam Davidson
The disturbing dream world of ¡®Cattle Muti-Leiko¡¯
By Mark Schilling
An unsolved murder leads to despair and salvation in ¡®The Brightest Sun¡¯
By James Hadfield

LIFE

Nilufar, founded by Milan curator Nina Yashar, was among the exhibitors at Salone Raritas. Yashar calls collectible design ¡°a free, authorial language¡± that goes beyond function.
The new world of collectible design
By Danielle Demetriou
As mass-produced objects fill our homes, a growing appetite for individuality is changing how we shop for design.
During Â鶹´«Ã½ cruel summer, chilled noodles are a survival strategy
By Elizabeth Andoh
Slowly but surely, Tokyo is becoming a hot spot for chicken rice
By Weiwen Lin
At Â鶹´«Ã½ all-women powerlifting contest, strength is beautiful
By Farrah Hasnain
A day in the life of an Asakusa rickshaw driver
By Aden Max Juarez

COMMUNITY

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.
Where do foreign residents in Japan want to die?
By Yumi Wijers-Hasegawa
The question can be a difficult one for many, particularly those with religious beliefs that might not conform with how death is traditionally handled in Japan.
Ajisai is ready to win your heart
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
By Jessica Speed
This children¡¯s cafeteria in Shikoku serves up free meals and global perspectives
By Jacob Meyer
How foreign workers became an essential part of Â鶹´«Ã½ ubiquitous konbini
By Yumi Wijers-Hasegawa

Editors' Picks

ENVIRONMENT
Â鶹´«Ã½ Summer Koshien baseball tradition comes face-to-face with new climate reality
By Joel Tansey
Ariake High School players greet their cheering section after winning their first game on Aug. 7.
LIFE
The new world of collectible design
By Danielle Demetriou
Nilufar, founded by Milan curator Nina Yashar, was among the exhibitors at Salone Raritas. Yashar calls collectible design ¡°a free, authorial language¡± that goes beyond function.
JAPAN
Young Japanese anxious as Australia slows working holiday visa processing time
By Elizabeth Beattie
Commuters disembark a tram in Melbourne in March.
JAPAN
At Yasukuni, the politicians followed the script, but the shrine did not
By Michael MacArthur Bosack
People crowd in front of Yasukuni Shrine to pay tribute to the war dead on the 81st anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II, in Tokyo on Saturday.
COMMUNITY
Unrelenting Russian anti-war protesters in Japan fight through inescapable doubt
By Aleksandra Priimak
Anti-war Russians protest Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward in February.

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
60% in Japan give up activities due to sweat, survey finds
The summer heat hits Tokyo's Ginza District on July 23.
BUSINESS
JAL and ANA to coordinate flight schedules for first time
An All Nippon Airways airplane flies past an oil refinery as it approaches to land at Tokyo's Haneda Airport.
JAPAN
Young Japanese anxious as Australia slows working holiday visa processing time
By Elizabeth Beattie
Commuters disembark a tram in Melbourne in March.
JAPAN
Takaichi¡¯s punishing workload draws renewed scrutiny after 6?-hour checkup at hospital
By Kenji Yoshida
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi at the Prime Minister's Official Residence in Tokyo on Thursday
BUSINESS
China¡¯s Unitree unveils ¡®Superman¡¯ robot as fervor builds ahead of Shanghai debut
A Unitree Robotics R1 humanoid robot on display at the company's booth during the Embodied Intelligent Robot Industry Exhibition in Shanghai on Aug. 12