China announced it will increase its military spending by 11.2% this year, further establishing its position as a growing regional power. The figure, which was announced ahead of the start of this year’s National People’s …
Japan
Fukushima Report: Japan Urged Calm While It Mulled Tokyo Evacuation
Systemic inattentiveness. Distrust and meddling. Confusion and friction. These turns of phrase would be bad news on anyone’s job review. But when the job that’s under review is how a government handled the worst nuclear …
U.S. Agency in Daze After Fukushima Disaster, Transcripts Show
Transcripts released this week by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) reveal an atmosphere of confusion in the U.S. agency in the first days after the nuclear disaster at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi power station last year. …
Must-Reads from Around the World: February 23, 2012
Emperor Akihito’s Heart Surgery a Success, but Concerns for Monarchy Linger
Japan’s 78-year-old Emperor Akihito underwent successful heart bypass surgery yesterday at the University of Tokyo Hospital. The procedure, which lasted less than six hours, was not an emergency; the Emperor’s team of doctors …
Kim Jong Un Gets Thumbs-Up from North Koreans in Japan
When Kim Jong Un was declared heir apparent of North Korea in December, Choe Kwan Ik was probably one of the few people in Tokyo who knew who the kid was. As Bill Powell writes in this week’s story “Meet Kim Jong Un,” (available …
Must-Reads from Around the World
Paradise Lost – Minivan News, an independent news source for the Maldives, has the latest on riots by supporters of former president Mohamed Nasheed, who resigned Tuesday in what increasingly looks like a military coup. The …
Why Okinawa Won’t Be Celebrating if 4,700 U.S. Marines Move to Guam
If you’re into planes, the hilltop park overlooking the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma is not a bad place to be. You can watch cargo planes make wide circles over the green hills of Okinawa all day, swooping down to the …
Must Reads from Around the World: Feb. 3, 2012
Al Shabaab Splintering – Foreign Affairs investigates the splintering of the al-Qaeda-linked militant group, al Shabaab, in Somalia and its potential fallout for the West. “In a sense, with the gains made in recent months, there …
New Sony CEO Faces Historic Losses and Global Challenges
Sony Corp. announced grim projections for the fiscal year on Thursday in Tokyo, reporting $1.2 billion in operating losses for the third quarter and a projected $2.9 billion loss for the year. The bleak figures highlight the …
An Atomic Shadow: Life Inside a Japanese Nuclear Village
Earlier this week, I was on Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost island. Hokkaido is home to some of the best dairy you will find anywhere in the world. It’s home to the capital’s eponymous beer, Sapporo, to world-famous …
Reads from Around the World: Tibet, Tsunamis and TV Talk
Tibetan Turmoil – The South China Morning Post reports another Tibetan has been shot dead in escalating protests in the western part of China’s Sichuan province. The death follows similar unrest Monday that left at least one …
“If there is going to be a big new lift to global democratic prospects in this decade, the region from which it will emanate is most likely to be East Asia.”