Anthony Kuhn

With the Summer Olympics set to begin in just over six weeks, organizers say they have protective coronavirus measures in place. But many experts and Japanese citizens remain skeptical.

South Korea's population is shrinking and aging. Foreign workers help fill shortages on farms and in factories, but it's very hard for them to become citizens. Some say that will soon have to change.

The the first international athletes have arrived in Japan ahead of the Olympics that start on July 23. The country has also started vaccinating its own athletes.

South Korea faces a choice: allow immigration or suffer demographic decline. The country has many migrants toiling on its farms and fisheries, but it remains difficult for them to become citizens.

Even though polls show the great majority of Japanese want to cancel the Tokyo Summer Olympics because of the risk of COVID-19 infections, Japan's prime minister insists the games will go on.

The U.S. has issued a do-not-travel advisory to Japan due to concerns with the pandemic. The Olympics are scheduled to take place in Tokyo in less than 60 days. U.S. athletes are expected to attend.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in will meet with President Biden on Friday. He sees this year as representing "the last opportunity to move from an incomplete peace toward one that is irreversible."

On Friday, South Korea's President Moon Jae-in and President Biden will meet to discuss their alliances, mutual interests and dealing with China and North Korea.

Tokyo-area hospitals "have their hands full," the Tokyo Medical Practitioners Association says in an open letter to Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga. The group represents some 6,000 primary care doctors.

The Japanese government remains adamant that the games will proceed as planned, even as local governments and protesters express rising concern about hosting the event during the pandemic.

There is growing anger in Japan that the government is pressing ahead with this summer's Olympic games — as COVID-19 cases continue to rise there.

Combining elements of animism, ancestor worship and folk religion, shamanism remains popular on both sides of the border. But it's illegal in the North, and some who practice it have been executed.

As the world watches India battle a crushing COVID-19 surge, many countries fear they could be next. Most of the world is struggling to get even a small percentage of their population vaccinated.

Shamanism is a shared aspect of Korean culture which predates other imported faiths, and – improbably – still survives in the two starkly different Korean states, North and South.

President Joe Biden met with Japanese prime minister Yoshihide Suga yesterday to talk about security in East Asia.

As the U.S. tries to enlist allies to help meet the challenges posed by China, perhaps no nation is more central than Japan. Suga is the first foreign leader to meet face-to-face with President Biden.

In a sign of U.S. intent to put Asian allies at the core of its foreign policy, Japan's prime minister will be the first foreign head of state to meet face-to-face with President Biden.

Despite Tokyo's assurances that it will not pose a threat to people or the environment, the decision has been criticized by the local fishing community, environmental groups and Japan's neighbors.

With less than four months until the start of the Tokyo Olympics, some hesitancy and a slow approval process for imported shots are contributing to a sluggish rollout for COVID-19 vaccines in Japan.

The torch relay shows the organizers' determination to proceed with the Games, despite public skepticism. It is set to crisscross the country and arrive at the opening ceremony in Tokyo on July 23.