partnership with the International Herald Tribune led to the publication of an English-language newspaper, the International Herald Tribune/Asahi Shimbun. It continued from April 2001 until February 2011. It replaced Asahi's previous English-language daily, the Asahi Evening News. In 2010, this partnership was dissolved due to unprofitability and the Asahi Shimbun now operates the Asia & Japan Watch online portal for English readers. The Tribune (now known as The International New York Times) cooperates with Asahi on Aera English, a glossy magazine for English learners. Political stance The Asahi Shimbun is considered left-leaning and has been called "the intellectual flagship of Japan's political left," with a long tradition of reporting on big political scandals more often than its conservative counterparts. The paper is considered a newspaper of record in Japan. The Asahi Shimbun is critical of right-wing Japanese nationalism and shows progressive tendencies in cultural and diplomatic issues, but has a neoliberal tendency economically. The latter contrasts with Mainichi Shimbun'''s relatively Keynesian economic viewpoint. However, in general evaluation, the Asahi Shimbun seems to have a tone representing Japanese social-liberals (left-liberals). The Asahi has called for upholding of Japan's postwar Constitution and particularly Article 9, which bars the use of war to resolve disputes. The newspaper has also opposed changes in interpretation of the anti-war provision, including one made in 2014 that allowed the Japan Self-Defense Forces to come to the aid of an ally under attack—the so-called right of collective self-defense. While the Asahi retracted articles based on the discredited testimony of Seiji Yoshida, its editorial position still recognizes the existence of the comfort women as Korean and other women from Japan's conquered territories during World War II who were coerced into prostitution to serve the Japanese military. Controversies Comfort women In August 2014, the newspaper retracted the discredited testimonies of Seiji Yoshida about the forcible recruitment of comfort women that were cited in several articles published by the Asahi and other major Japanese newspapers in the 1980s and 1990s. The paper drew ire from conservative media who, along with Abe's government, criticized it for damaging Japan's reputation abroad,Asahi ‘must reflect on consequences’ of errors Japan News some leveraging on this episode to imply that sexual slavery itself was a fabrication. The Asahi newspaper reaffirmed in its retracting article that "the fact that women were coerced into being sexual partners for Japanese soldiers cannot be erased" but also confirmed "No official