Japan's top government spokesman has declined to comment on a US newspaper report that Japan and North Korea met secretly in Vietnam last month.
US Defense Secretary James Mattis has suggested the United States may resume military exercises with South Korea.
US says it stands ready to engage with North Korea when its leader is ready to deliver on his commitments to completely denuclearize his country.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20180829200000_english_1.mp3
Key words : top government
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180829_21/
Japan's top government spokesman has declined to comment on a US newspaper report that Japan and North Korea met secretly in Vietnam last month.
The Washington Post reported in its electronic version on Tuesday that a top Japanese intelligence official, Shigeru Kitamura, met a senior North Korean official in charge of reunification, Kim Song Hye. They reportedly discussed the North's abductions of Japanese nationals.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters on Wednesday that he's aware of the report but will not comment on behalf of the government on such reports.
Suga said the government continues to do its utmost toward comprehensive resolution of pending issues with North Korea, including its abductions of Japanese nationals and nuclear and missile programs.
The Washington Post also says US President Donald Trump launched into a "blistering critique" of Japan's trade policies when he met Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the White House in June.
Trump reportedly told Abe that he remembers Pearl Harbor.
Suga said the remark was not made.
Key words : US defense suggested
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180829_11/
US Defense Secretary James Mattis has suggested the United States may resume military exercises with South Korea. The remark comes amid slow progress in diplomatic talks on North Korea's denuclearization.
Mattis spoke to reporters at the Defense Department on Tuesday. He said the US suspended several of the largest exercises as a good-faith measure coming out of the Singapore summit.
He was referring to the Department's decision to suspend 3 drills to support diplomatic negotiations after US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met in June.
One of the suspended programs was a drill with South Korea in August.
Mattis said the US has no plans to suspend any more exercises.
He added no decision had been made on when to resume the drills and further steps would be discussed with the State Department.
Skepticism is growing in the United States as to whether North Korea actually intends to give up its nuclear program.
On Friday, President Trump called off a trip by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to North Korea, saying sufficient progress was not being made with respect to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
Key words : south resuming
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180829_30/
South Korea's presidential office says resuming military drills with the United States is subject to discuss between the 2 countries.
Presidential office spokesperson Kim Eui-kyeom said on Wednesday that the issue should be discussed and decided during a review of progress in denuclearizing North Korea.
Kim added that South Korea had not received a request for such talks from the US side.
The remarks came after US Defense Secretary James Mattis said the US has no plans to suspend any more military exercises with the South.
The spokesperson also referred to a planned summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang next month.
He added that with North Korea and the US deadlocked over the issue of denuclearization, there is an even bigger need for an inter-Korean summit.
Key words : US ready to engage
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180829_12/
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says the United States stands ready to engage with North Korea when its leader is ready to deliver on his commitments to completely denuclearize his country.
President Donald Trump on Friday postponed Pompeo's visit to North Korea, citing a lack of progress on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert read out a statement from Pompeo during a briefing on Tuesday.
The statement says the US stands ready to engage when it is clear that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is ready to deliver on the commitments he made at the Singapore summit with Trump to completely denuclearize his country.
Several US media outlets are reporting that the Trump administration decided on the postponement in response to a letter from Vice Chairman of the North's ruling Workers' Party, Kim Yong Chol.
CNN television reported on Tuesday that the letter warns the US that denuclearization talks are "again at stake and may fall apart."
The State Department has not confirmed the report.
Key words : upcoming gubernatorial election
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180829_32/
Opposition lawmaker Denny Tamaki has declared his candidacy in the gubernatorial election in Okinawa Prefecture next month. The election is to choose the successor to Takeshi Onaga, who died after an illness in early this month.
Tamaki, who is a Lower House member and the Secretary General of the opposition Liberal Party, told a news conference on Wednesday that he will run as an independent.
He affirmed his intention to support Onaga's last wish. That is to oppose the central government's plan to relocate the US Marine Corps Futenma Air Station to the Henoko district of Nago City within the prefecture. Tamaki pledged to try to prevent the construction of a new base in Henoko.
In the election, former Ginowan City mayor Atsushi Sakima has already announced his intention to run at the request of the Liberal Democratic Party, which is the largest party in the ruling national coalition. The LDP was at odds with the late governor. A partner in the ruling national coalition, the Komeito party, also backs Sakima. Another party Nippon Ishin, or Japan Innovation Party, is expected to follow suit.
Tamaki has received the support of the opposition Japanese Communist Party, the Social Democratic Party and others, who also backed Onaga.
Three other people have declared their candidacy, but the upcoming election is likely to be a virtual 2-way battle between Tamaki and Sakima.
The election campaign period will begin on September 13th and the voting will be held on the 30th.
Key words : Insight significance of peace messanger
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Key words : chinese authorities
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180829_26/
Chinese authorities say they will cooperate with their Japanese counterparts to crack down on smugglers of potentially dangerous sleeping pills.
China's Public Security Ministry on Wednesday expressed alarm that drugs such as the Japanese sleeping pill flunitrazepam are being smuggled into China through use of social networking sites.
In Japan, flunitrazepam is prescribed by medical institutions. It can cause hyperactivity and hallucinations if mixed with alcohol.
Giving or selling the drug to others without permission is banned in Japan and China. But 24 people have reportedly been implicated in smuggling the drug in China this year.
The deputy director of the ministry's narcotics control bureau, Deng Ming, said there have been incidents linked to drug abuse at entertainment facilities.
He expressed hope of sharing information with Japanese authorities for a speedy crackdown.
Illegal drugs are rampant in China. Since Japanese sleeping pills are easier to obtain than stimulant drugs, Chinese authorities are concerned they could spread among the country's youth.
Key words : camera market
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180829_20/
Japan's digital camera market has been sluggish due to the popularity of camera-equipped smartphones, but is now showing signs of a turnaround.
Competition among camera makers is intensifying as new models are being launched to attract young users. This market segment tends to take pictures that look good on social media sites.
Camera maker Nikon has announced new mirrorless digital camera models for the first time in 3 years. They are interchangeable-lens cameras that are smaller and lighter than single-lens reflex ones.
The new models are high-end cameras equipped with large image sensors, providing high imaging quality equivalent to that of single-lens reflex cameras.
Nikon will put the new models on sale at around 4,000 dollars next month.
In the mirrorless camera market, Sony has been leading in high-end models. Canon plans to introduce its new model by the end of the year.
Fujifilm has decided to raise production of interchangeable lenses for mirrorless cameras to 1.7 times the current level.
Nikon Senior Vice President Nobuyoshi Gokyu expressed his hope of attracting people who know the joy of taking pictures with smartphones and want to upgrade to mirrorless cameras. Gokyu says he wants Nikon to have the top share in the mirrorless camera market.
The Camera and Imaging Products Association says shipments of mirrorless cameras in Japan increased last year for the first time in 4 years. Domestic shipments from January to June this year showed a 9 percent increase year-on-year.
By contrast, shipments of single-lens reflex cameras have been declining every year since 2014. Their shipments over the past 6 months fell 24 percent from the same period last year.
Single-lens reflex cameras are known for their high-quality pictures. But they are heavy and difficult to use.
Officials of the association note that single-lens reflex cameras are priced higher than mirrorless ones.
They say these factors have contributed to the drop in shipments.
Key words : east Japan
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180829_25/
East Japan Railway Company held the first media preview on Wednesday of its new station being built in central Tokyo.
JR East plans to open the station in the spring of 2020, in time for the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games that summer. It will stand between Shinagawa and Tamachi stations, and the Yamanote and Keihin Tohoku commuter lines will stop there.
The company says about 70 percent of the planned work has been completed.
The station building has 3 stories above ground and one below. It was designed by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, who also designed the new national stadium for the 2020 Games.
The building features white roofs and big glass walls. The railway tracks are already in place.
Kuma said he believes that railway stations will play a bigger role in people's lives. He added that he hopes the new station will fit in well with the surrounding streets.
A JR East official expressed hope that the station will give visitors to the 2020 Games a fresh impression of Japan.
The new station's name will be chosen from proposals submitted by the public. The winning entry will be announced by winter.
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