News

Japan news from Japan Times

• Biden encouraged Kishida to increase defense spending during October talks

  Biden's remarks came in the wake of Kishida showing eagerness to beef up Japan's defense outlays

• New COVID-19 variant prompts Japan to tighten border controls on three more African nations

  Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia will be added to the list of countries subjected to tightened border controls following the discovery of the omicron variant.

• Japan to extend home renovation tax break system

  The decision to extend the program is aimed at promoting sales of used homes amid a spike in vacant homes across the country.

• COVID-19 tracker: Tokyo logs 16 new cases

  The Tokyo Metropolitan Government reported 16 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, unchanged from the figure logged a week ago, and no new deaths.The seven-day average ...

• Japan to make some exceptions to eight-month guideline for COVID-19 booster shots

  Elderly people in care homes and patients at hospitals hit by cluster infections could receive booster shots six months after their second doses.

• Kishida says enemy base strike capabilities are an option to boost defense

  In a speech at a Ground Self-Defense Force base, Kishida expressed concern about North Korea's rapid development of missile technology and China's military expansion.

• 30% of asymptomatic COVID-19 patients have lasting effects, Tokyo survey shows

  Doctors have warned the public over lasting symptoms, known as long-COVID, and young people and women have been shown to be particularly susceptible.

• CDP leadership candidates seek to increase number of women in politics

  In debates ahead of the CDP leadership election Tuesday, the four candidates said they will vigorously support female members in the Upper House election.

Asia/Pacific news from Japan Times

• China asserts nuclear influence before key Iran deal talks

  China is drawing a link between nuclear talks and a Western submarine pact in the Pacific, potentially adding another obstacle to the tortured process of ...

• The Solomon Islands riots: What’s behind the protests?

  Discontent has simmered for decades, but the archipelago's shifting affiliations with Taiwan and China may have helped turn up the heat.

• Solomon Islands prime minister blames ‘other powers’ for anti-China turmoil

  Divisions over the Pacific nation’s diplomatic recognition of China over Taiwan in 2019 was "the only issue” behind the conflict, leader says.

• JPMorgan Chase CEO joins Lithuania and WTA in testing China on free speech

  Jamie Dimon knew right away Beijing wouldn’t like his joke about the Communist Party’s downfall, noting immediately afterward: "I can’t say that in China.”

• Anti-government rioters torch buildings in Solomon Islands’ capital

  Most of the protesters in Honiara are reportedly from the neighboring island of Malaita, where people have long complained of neglect by central government.

• China’s birthrate plummets to lowest figure in decades

  Despite dropping its strict family planning regulations, the changes have failed to result in the hoped-for baby boom.

• Hong Kong jails activist for over three years in latest secession case

  The latest sentence will add to concerns that the security law imposed by Beijing in June 2020 is being used to crack down on political ...

• Peng Shuai case is the latest glimpse into the machinery of Beijing’s control

  The tennis star was not heard from publicly for nearly three weeks after alleging former vice premier Zhang Gaoli sexually assaulted her.

Culture news from Japan Times

• Taboo-breaking rapper Sya empowers women with debut single

  Malaysian hip-hop artist Sya tackles misogyny to break stereotypes of Muslim women in her new single, 'PrettyGirlBop.'

• Live-action ‘Cowboy Bebop’ shows the limitations of Netflix’s originality

  Netflix's adaptation of a beloved anime series has been met with groans, but the recent South Korean hit “Squid Game” demonstrates how anime can in ...

• Broadway legend Stephen Sondheim, whose work transformed musical theater, dead at 91

  Sondheim's quick-witted lyrics made audiences sit up and listen in the 1950s, while his ground-breaking shows in the 70s and 80s thrust the American musical ...

• A look behind the scenes with Godzilla, the ‘king of monsters’

  Norman England's new book, "Behind the Kaiju Curtain," gives an insider's take on Japan's kaijū craftsmanship and monster movie-making.

• ‘Spaghetti Code Love’: Disaffected Tokyoites don’t have much to say

  Takeshi Murayama’s stylish first feature about somewhat intertwining lives in Tokyo looks like a slick music video, but its characters are mostly two-dimensional.

• ‘Cowboy Bebop’: Live-action riff on beloved anime hits flat notes

  John Cho turns out to be one of the best things in Netflix’s good-looking but painfully square adaptation of the 1990s anime series about intergalactic ...

• The superheroes from House of Slay are here to stay

  How five fashion friends got a starring role fighting discrimination and hate in a new comic book series.

• Oscar-winning Japanese costume designer Emi Wada dies at 84

  A Kyoto native, Wada won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design in 1986 for her work on Akira Kurosawa's film "Ran."

Sports news from Japan Times

• Terunofuji beats Abi to wrap up Kyushu title with day to spare

  The Mongolian-born titan improved to an insurmountable 14-0 at Fukuoka Kokusai Center after being driven to the edge by challenger Abi.

• Tokushima Vortis down mourning Shonan Bellmare to take race to avoid relegation to last day

  Tokushima Vortis took the J. League first division's three-way battle to avoid relegation to the final day after a second-half goal secured a 1-0 win ...

• In IOC’s ‘quiet diplomacy,’ critics see whitewash of China’s actions

  For the its many critics, the guarded language the IOC used when referring to the Peng case was just the latest proof that it will ...

• Terunofuji stays perfect, Abi stuns Takakeisho on Day 13

  In his first top division battle since a 2020 suspension for breaking COVID-19 protocol, Abi continued to impress.

• Breeding and racing enjoy a long history in Japan

  Horse racing is considered a sport of bloodlines. The people who breed horses or the places where they are bred may change, but their bloodlines ...

• Calm and cool Adam Jones came up big when the Orix Buffaloes needed him most

  Orix manager Satoshi Nakajima praised Jones as a player who can change the mood of a dugout with one swing after Game 5.

• International horses set to challenge Japan’s best

  The Group 1 Japan Cup enters its fifth decade this year, and the autumn showpiece will once again be run Sunday at Tokyo Racecourse in ...

• Hitomi Miyashita’s long road to 1,000 wins in horse racing

  Juggling being a mother and a jockey isn't easy, but at 44 years old, Miyashita soldiers on.

Tech news from Japan Times

• Beef bowl in hand, developer Toshihiro Nagoshi has left Sega

  In a blow for the game maker, the long-time developer and force behind the Yakuza franchise has stepped away from his position following a series ...

• Tokyo Game Show returns with hybrid, scaled-down event

  This year, with the event not even taking up half of a convention hall at Makuhari Messe in Chiba Prefecture, the whole in-person experience could ...

• Ikea takes step into gaming realm at Tokyo Game Show

  All the usual suspects were at the Tokyo Game Show this year: Sega, Konami, Koei Tecmo, SNK. Surprisingly, so was Ikea.

• Will Final Fantasy XVI be worth the wait? Only time will tell.

  Square Enix seems eager to change the perception that its development period takes too long with this upcoming title on the PlayStation 5.

• Xbox Cloud Gaming launches in Japan as Microsoft continues to woo Japanese gamers

  Microsoft used its platform at the Tokyo Game Show to talk about cloud gaming and double-down on its efforts to make inroads in the Japanese ...

• BitSummit returns to Kyoto with hybrid event

  The annual indie games festival goes back to holding a physical event after an online-only edition last year, but the shadow of the pandemic still ...

• Hikakin, the ‘older brother’ of YouTube, hits a milestone

  The internet isn’t short of stories of influencers behaving badly. Japan’s most successful YouTuber proves that you can make a name for yourself by keeping ...

• Need a vacation from reality? Slash your way through 13th-century Japan

  Let the newly released Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut whisk you away to a nobler time of scenic isles, marauding samurai and petting foxes.

American and world news from CNN

• A year later, Mary Johnson's disappearance remains a mystery

  Mary Johnson was on her way to a friend's home in Oso, Washington, the day before Thanksgiving, but she never made it. A year later, her disappearance remains a mystery.

• 1 person shot at Tacoma Mall in Washington

  • 3 dead and 4 injured in shooting inside a Nashville apartment • How US gun culture stacks up with the world

• One dead in shooting at entrance to Marine Recruit Depot in San Diego

  One person was shot and killed at the entrance of the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego Friday, authorities have confirmed to CNN.

• Waukesha parade victims who need wheelchairs are getting ramps thanks to a local contractor

  After a driver rammed an SUV through a Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin, Brock Held knew he had to do something to help those in his community who were still hospitalized.

• Biden administration calls for hike in federal drilling fees in report that largely sidesteps climate issues

  The Department of the Interior on Friday released a long-awaited review of oil and gas drilling on federal lands and oceans that recommends an increase in leasing fees and consideration of environmental concerns in leasing decisions. But the report largely sidesteps climate change issues, and does not recommend a halt to new oil and gas leasing -- a promise President Joe Biden campaigned on.

• Marjorie Taylor Greene lays out demands for GOP House speaker vote if Republicans retake majority

  Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, one of Donald Trump's staunchest allies in Congress, on Thursday laid out demands for a GOP leader to earn her vote for House Speaker if Republicans are able to retake the majority after the 2022 elections and cast doubt on House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy being elected to the position.

• Biden had benign, potentially precancerous lesion removed during colonoscopy

  President Joe Biden had a single 3-millimeter polyp removed during his routine colonoscopy last week at Walter Reed medical center.

• GOP candidates in Pennsylvania Senate race could include Dr. Oz and former Bush official

  Senate candidate Sean Parnell's abrupt end to his campaign in Pennsylvania has shaken up the Republican primary field in a crucial race as the party seeks to win a majority next fall.

Singapore news from Today:

• Beekeeper petitioning for bees to be protected by law, but some say suggestion may not be practical

• Down with Covid-19 or flu? When you don't feel well, good nutrition is more important than ever

• Company leaders should go beyond initiating mental health initiatives and speak up about own struggles: TODAY webinar panellists

• Covid-19: 1,090 new cases and 3 more deaths in Singapore; weekly infection growth rate at 0.74

• Explainer: What do we know about the new Omicron Covid-19 variant, and should Singapore be concerned?

• Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew continues fairytale run, qualifies for Indonesia Open semi-finals

• New and improved animal quarantine centre near Chua Chu Kang to better monitor imported pets’ health

• Covid-19: 19 more hawker centres to have entry checks in place by Nov 29, ready for dine-in groups of up to 5