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TOKYO
August 17, 2026
The Independent Voice in Asia
August 17, 2026
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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.
JAPAN / Politics / EXPLAINER
At Yasukuni, the politicians followed the script, but the shrine did not
By Michael MacArthur Bosack
For the first two decades after World War II, the head priest resisted the enshrinement of any documented war criminals. That changed after his death in 1978.
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.
U.S. soldiers participate in the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises at the Wollong Urban Area Operations training center in Paju, South Korea, in August 2023.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Trump orders ¡®inappropriate¡¯ U.S.-South Korean military drills scaled back
By Jesse Johnson
Citing his ties with North Korea¡¯s Kim Jong Un, as well as Seoul¡¯s decision not to join U.S.-led actions against Iran, Trump said he was ¡°not happy¡± with the current situation.
Yasuhiro Kawakatsu, project manager of the Mars Moons eXploration (MMX) mission, speaks to media in front of the MMX spacecraft at the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture on Thursday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Japan aims for the moons of Mars
By Kyoko Hasegawa
The unmanned MMX, set to blast off from Tanegashima Space Center in the coming months, could also lay the groundwork for humans visiting the red planet.
A first responder searches for victims amidst the rubble on the aftermath of an Israeli airstrike that targeted a house in the southern Lebanese village of Ansar on Saturday.
WORLD
Israel strikes Lebanon as U.S. prepares fresh Iran sanctions
Israel said that it killed a senior Hezbollah commander raising the strikes¡¯ death toll to 11 ¡ª the deadliest since the ceasefire began.
Premade, chilled "s¨­men" noodles and an umami-forward dipping sauce make for a great, cooling meal when temperatures soar.?
LIFE / Food & Drink
During Â鶹´«Ã½ cruel summer, chilled noodles are a survival strategy
By Elizabeth Andoh
Made in advance, cold ¡°s¨­men¡± noodles are a tried-and-true way to get through summer¡¯s peak without sacrificing flavor.
Premade, chilled "s¨­men" noodles and an umami-forward dipping sauce make for a great, cooling meal when temperatures soar.?

JAPAN

An underpass beneath the Keisei Matsudo Line was flooded, submerging a vehicle in Kamagaya, Chiba Prefecture, on Friday.
Chiba downpour death toll rises to 9 with nearly 500 evacuated
At least two of the victims were found in vehicles that were submerged in water.
Incumbent Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki, who has vehemently opposed the planned Futenma base relocation, is shifting his campaign focus to medical care and social welfare policies.
With one month until Okinawa poll, both key contenders lack trump card
The election will effectively be a one-on-one battle between incumbent Gov. Denny Tamaki, 66, who is gunning for a third term, and Genta Koja, 42, former deputy mayor of Naha.
Fatalities due to record Chiba rainfall rise to 10 with one person still missing
Hiroshima¡¯s shrinking community keeps ties alive through festivals and newsletters
Former nurse passes on lessons from experience in aftermath of JAL crash
Man who lost brother in WWII urges people to remember 3.1 million Japanese lives lost

BUSINESS

A screenshot shows ODD No.'s game app Link! Like! Lovelive! The company has filed for bankruptcy with ?10.7 billion in liabilities.
Idol game app firm collapses as data shows bankruptcies up 7% on year
By Sota Suzuki
Even as share indexes reach record highs on the back of corporate profits, bankruptcies have also been on the rise amid higher material costs and labor shortages.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks to reporters at the White House in Washington last October.
What Bessent¡¯s economic isolation of Iran could look like
By Magdalena Del Valle
While the Trump administration hasn¡¯t said what it¡¯s planning to do, there are still pressure points that the U.S. Treasury Department could hit.
New shinkansen model delivered to Taiwan
China¡¯s 32,000-kilometer solar trade route that battled U.S. tariffs
Bessent asked to justify yen intervention in letter from top Democrat
U.S. to tell partners they must pick sides in AI race with China?
By Michael Martina

WORLD

Vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, on Aug. 10.
Covert Mideast oil flows are keeping global prices in check
The trade of ferrying oil through the Strait of Hormuz undetected to tankers in the Gulf of Oman is running at full tilt, despite recent attacks on vessels.
Men participate in the recovery of bodies from the rubble of a building that collapsed during the June 24 earthquake in La Guaira, Venezuela, on Aug. 6.
A tale of two buildings: How quake rescue efforts differed in Colombia and Venezuela
By Julia Symmes Cobb and Sarah Morland
Recent earthquakes in both countries have exposed sharply different government capacities to respond to disaster.
Second Ceuta border push falls flat with security forces ready
By Souhail Karam
Brazil¡¯s Lula launches reelection bid, aims to win back workers to his Workers Party
Lala leaves one dead in Hawaii with heavy rain, wind to come
South Korea fires warning shots after North Korean soldiers crossed DMZ

Sports

The Lakers and Jazz play at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles in November 2025.
Lakers sale highlights sports gold rush among billionaires in North America
By Amy Tennery
The Lakers deal is the latest in a series of team sales at record or near-record prices across ?North America.
Sebastian Coe says LA 28 organizers have to find right balance with U.S. government
By Luke Phillips
Formula E aiming to have female drivers within two to three years
By Alan Baldwin
Dodgers optimistic about Shohei Ohtani¡¯s return to mound
Ben Shelton wins All-American final to claim second straight Canadian Open crown

Opinion

Princess Aiko attends the autumn garden party at the Akasaka Palace Imperial Garden in Tokyo in October 2024. She stands at the center of an imperial succession debate that turns on the male line.
Two debates, one household: The politics of family in Japan
Waka Ikeda
In the traditionalist reading, all 126 emperors descend from the first through fathers only, an unbroken mythical chain reaching back more than 2,600 years.
Putin can¡¯t break down NATO¡¯s door. He¡¯s trying the window
By James Stavridis
The turf wars between politicians and bureaucrats in Tokyo
By Kuni Miyake
South Korea bets on industrial policy again
By Lee Jong-wha
Zhu Rongji, China¡¯s misunderstood reformer, dies

ENVIRONMENT

Pedestrians hold parasols to cope with the heat wave in Tokyo last month.
AC vests and UV parasols: East Asia deploys heat-fighting gadgets
By Max Kim
East Asia¡¯s summers are becoming hotter and longer, and such ¡°personal cooling¡± has become a ubiquitous part of daily life.
Tidal flat in Nagoya hit by plastic waste pollution
It¡¯s likely that 2026 will be the hottest year on record, experts say
By Eric Roston
¡®Imposing ignorance¡¯: U.S. climate science under siege
By Issam AHMED
Inventories and farming method gains bolster food system against ¡®super¡¯ El Nino

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.¡±
Aespa channels summer cheer in Japanese minialbum
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
Katseye seeks to show raw side in new ¡®Wild Hearts¡¯ film
By Danielle Broadway

LIFE

Premade, chilled "s¨­men" noodles and an umami-forward dipping sauce make for a great, cooling meal when temperatures soar.?
During Â鶹´«Ã½ cruel summer, chilled noodles are a survival strategy
By Elizabeth Andoh
Made in advance, cold ¡°s¨­men¡± noodles are a tried-and-true way to get through summer¡¯s peak without sacrificing flavor.
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
Cruel summer: Searching for an escape from Â鶹´«Ã½ extreme heat
By Eric Margolis

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 pup has a new take on life
This children¡¯s cafeteria in Shikoku serves up free meals and global perspectives
By Jacob Meyer

Editors' Picks

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.
JAPAN
How U.S. bombing survey in Japan shed light on civilian sentiments of WWII
By Tomoko Otake
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
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.
JAPAN
Takaichi needs Aso on her side to solidify position in LDP
By Eric Johnston
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
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.

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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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
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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.
LIFE
Slowly but surely, Tokyo is becoming a hot spot for chicken rice
By Weiwen Lin
One of Singapore's most iconic dishes, the humble chicken rice is given an upscale treatment at a new Marunouchi cafe.
JAPAN
Takaichi drops ¡®remorse¡¯ in her first war memorial address
By Kenji Yoshida
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks onstage during a memorial service ceremony marking the 81st anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II, at Budokan Hall in Tokyo on Saturday.
BUSINESS
U.S. to tell partners they must pick sides in AI race with China?
By Michael Martina
People march as they protest against Pax Silica, a U.S.-led initiative, in Manila on Thursday.
BUSINESS
New shinkansen model delivered to Taiwan
A new Taiwan High Speed Rail train car is unloaded from a cargo ship at a port in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on Saturday.