Asia

Top U.S. Diplomat Outlines Complicated Issues Facing U.S., China

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Daniel R. Russel, assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs. He's off to Beijing to prepare for the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue starting on Monday.

Top U.S. Diplomat Outlines Complicated Issues Facing U.S., China
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Authorities Find 40 Dead Tiger Cubs In Freezer At Thai Buddhist Temple

Authorities are removing the last of more than 100 live tigers from a temple west of Bangkok. The day before, they made a grisly discovery of 40 tiger cub carcasses in a freezer there.

Authorities Find 40 Dead Tiger Cubs In Freezer At Thai Buddhist Temple
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An Afghan commando stands on the tarmac, wearing night vision gear. The elite commandos are about to fly into an area controlled by Taliban fighters. Their mission: to sweep a village for Taliban fighters.

An Afghan commando stands on the tarmac, wearing night vision gear. The elite commandos are about to fly into an area controlled by Taliban fighters. Their mission: to sweep a village for Taliban fighters. David Gilkey/NPR hide caption

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Parallels

Under U.S. Air Cover, Afghan Commandos Chase The Elusive Taliban

Afghan commandos, supported by U.S. special operations forces, launched a raid into a village contested by the Taliban. The raid permitted an aid convoy to make progress after nearly a month.

Under U.S. Air Cover, Afghan Commandos Chase The Elusive Taliban
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Officers with Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation observe the carcasses of 40 tiger cubs and a binturong (also known as a bearcat) found at the "Tiger Temple" on Wednesday.

Officers with Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation observe the carcasses of 40 tiger cubs and a binturong (also known as a bearcat) found at the "Tiger Temple" on Wednesday. Dario Pignatelli/Getty Images hide caption

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The Two-Way

40 Dead Tiger Cubs Found In Freezer At Thai Buddhist Temple

Thai authorities raided the temple, which operated as a zoo, after it was accused of illegal wildlife trafficking. Parks officials have been moving the temple's adult tigers to shelters elsewhere.

Police officers search for a 7-year-old boy in the mountains of Hokkaido, where he went missing after his parents said they left him alone temporarily as a punishment.

Police officers search for a 7-year-old boy in the mountains of Hokkaido, where he went missing after his parents said they left him alone temporarily as a punishment. The Asahi Shimbun via Getty Images hide caption

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The Two-Way

Search Continues For 7-Year-Old Left In Japanese Forest As Punishment

A boy has been missing in bear-inhabited woods in Hokkaido, Japan, since Saturday. His parents first said he disappeared as they were foraging, but later admitted leaving him alone intentionally.

Protests, Suspicion In Vietnam Over Government's Response To Fish Kill

While visiting Vietnam last week, President Obama urged the government to ease its crackdown on dissent. But police have used force to break up recent environmental protests.

Protests, Suspicion In Vietnam Over Government's Response To Fish Kill
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Obama Makes Historic Visit To Hiroshima

President Obama is the first sitting U.S. president to visit the city since American warplanes bombed it in WWII. The president did not apologize, but some Japanese still found solace in his remarks.

Obama Makes Historic Visit To Hiroshima
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Survivors of the first atomic bomb ever used in warfare are seen as they await emergency medical treatment in Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945.

Survivors of the first atomic bomb ever used in warfare are seen as they await emergency medical treatment in Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945. AP hide caption

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Simon Says

After Hiroshima Bombing, Survivors Sorted Through The Horror

NPR's Scott Simon remembers the work of John Hersey, who visited with people who lived through the bombing of Hiroshima. His reporting filled an entire issue of the New Yorker magazine in 1946.

After Hiroshima Bombing, Survivors Sorted Through The Horror
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Americans React To Obama's Speech In Hiroshima, Japan

In a speech at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial in Japan on Friday, President Obama said the world had "a shared responsibility to look directly into the eye of history," and pursue a world without nuclear weapons. Across the U.S., Americans reacted to the president's speech.

Americans React To Obama's Speech In Hiroshima, Japan
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Technology

North Korea Linked To Cyber Attacks On Asian Banks

Cybersecurity researchers are linking a recent spate of attacks against Asian banks to North Korea. The digital security firm Symantec says the recent breaches in Asia have identical lines of malicious software deployed in the high profile attack against Sony Pictures in 2014. The FBI has tied North Korea to the Sony attack.

North Korea Linked To Cyber Attacks On Asian Banks
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Obama Advances Vision Of Nuclear-Free Future At Hiroshima Peace Memorial

NPR looks at the significance of President Obama's visit to Hiroshima at the conclusion of his last trip to Japan as president. It was the first visit by a sitting U.S. president since an American warplane bombed the city during World War II.

Obama Advances Vision Of Nuclear-Free Future At Hiroshima Peace Memorial
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Thai Military Leadership Moves To Guarantee Permanent Political Role

Once upon a time, democracy in Thailand was the envy of its Southeast Asian neighbors. But since a coup in 2014, critics say the regime is digging in with a new constitution that will guarantee the military a permanent role in Thai politics.

Thai Military Leadership Moves To Guarantee Permanent Political Role
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Kikue Takagi, left, narrowly survived the Hiroshima atomic bombing as a schoolgirl. She's now 83. Her second cousin is U.S. Rep. Mark Takano, a Democrat from southern California. His grandparents and parents were all placed in U.S. internment camps in World War II. In this photo from last year, they are at a restaurant in Hiroshima, where he visited her.

Kikue Takagi, left, narrowly survived the Hiroshima atomic bombing as a schoolgirl. She's now 83. Her second cousin is U.S. Rep. Mark Takano, a Democrat from southern California. His grandparents and parents were all placed in U.S. internment camps in World War II. In this photo from last year, they are at a restaurant in Hiroshima, where he visited her. Courtesy of Mark Takano hide caption

toggle caption Courtesy of Mark Takano

Parallels

A Survivor's Tale: How Hiroshima Shaped A Japanese-American Family

Kikue Takagi narrowly survived the atomic bomb that killed her classmates. Soon after she moved to California, where she worked for many years at Disneyland. Now in her 80s, she's back in Hiroshima.

National Security

Examining Obama's Nuclear Legacy

In Hiroshima, Obama plans to update his vision for ridding the world of nuclear weapons. Nuclear doves say they're underwhelmed with Obama's record on reducing the size of the U.S. nuclear stockpile.

Examining Obama's Nuclear Legacy
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A First By A Sitting U.S. President: Obama Goes to Hiroshima

Hiroshima was destroyed in the first atomic bomb attack. Morning Edition talks to NPR's Scott Horsley and Elise Hu and Sheila Smith, expert in Japanese politics with the Council on Foreign Relations.

A First By A Sitting U.S. President: Obama Goes to Hiroshima
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Obama Visits Hiroshima, Which Symbolizes Atomic Age Horrors

Morning Edition talks to NPR's Scott Horsley and Elise Hu, Sheila Smith of the Council on Foreign Relations, Rep. Mark Takano of California and Kikue Takagi who survived the attack on Hiroshima.

Obama Visits Hiroshima, Which Symbolizes Atomic Age Horrors
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President Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lay wreaths at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima on Friday.

President Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lay wreaths at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima on Friday. Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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The Two-Way

Obama Makes Historic Visit To Hiroshima Memorial Peace Park

Obama is the first sitting U.S. president to visit the city destroyed by an American atomic bomb in the closing days of World War II.

President Obama's Full Remarks At Hiroshima
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Obama Walks Tricky Line In Visit To Hiroshima, Japan

The White House says President Obama will not apologize for the U.S. nuclear bombing of Hiroshima when he visits the Japanese city on Friday. NPR looks at the political significance of the visit and the tricky line Obama will have to walk.

Obama Walks Tricky Line In Visit To Hiroshima, Japan
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