at 20:00 (JST), February 09 AS

The second US North Korea summit will be held at the end of this month in Hanoi.

High-level trade talks between the United States and China will be held on Thursday and Friday next week.

Japan's national debt has reached a new high, despite government efforts to restore fiscal health.

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20190209200000_english_1.mp3


Key words : summit in Hanoi
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190209_18/

US President Donald Trump says he will meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the end of this month in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi.

The announcement follows a visit to Pyongyang this week by the US envoy for North Korea, where he met with his counterpart. Trump called the talks "very productive", adding he hopes the summit will "advance the cause of peace."

Vietnam was chosen as a relatively neutral location for both sides. The North has traditionally had close relations with the country, and the US formally restored diplomatic ties in 1995 -- after decades of tension following the Vietnam war.

US officials have told NHK that Pyongyang wanted the summit to take place in Hanoi while Washington preferred the central resort city of Danang.

Last year's US-North Korea summit ended with a vague pledge by the North to denuclearize... but talks have stalled. Pyongyang is calling for sanctions to be lifted in return for its efforts...while the US says it first wants to see concrete progress.

Key words : US envoy to
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190209_03/

The US envoy to North Korea has wrapped up talks in Pyongyang ahead of the second summit between the leaders of the two countries.

Stephen Biegun was back in Seoul on Friday -- two days after he departed for the North. He is due to meet South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and senior Japanese Foreign Ministry official Kenji Kanasugi on Saturday.

In North Korea, Biegun is believed to have met his counterpart Kim Hyok Chol to discuss concrete steps toward the country's denuclearization, and also the measures Pyongyang wants in return.

Kanasugi said before leaving Tokyo on Friday that he hopes to fully cooperate with the US and South Korea to ensure a successful second summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. They are due to meet in Vietnam on February 27 and 28.

The resort of Da Nang in central Vietnam is considered a leading candidate site. However, some say the US and North Korea are divided over the choice.

The Japanese government is trying arrange phone talks between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Trump ahead of the summit.

Japan hopes to reaffirm close cooperation with the US in working toward the complete denuclearization of North Korea, and settling the long-standing issue of its abductions of Japanese nationals.

Key words : Kim made a speech
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190209_15/

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made a speech on the anniversary marking the foundation of the Korean People's Army but made no reference to the country's nuclear and missile development.

North Korea's state media reported that Kim visited the Ministry of the People's Armed Forces on Friday, the anniversary of the KPA.

Kim said that this year will be a crucial one for the country's five-year strategy for national economic development, and the Korean People's Army should play an important role in it.

Last year, a military parade was held in central Pyongyang showing off the North's latest ballistic missiles. Kim delivered a speech that was notable for its confrontational tone toward the United States. He said North Koreans must vigorously defend their country against any threat from foreign forces.

This year, there was no military parade on the army's anniversary.

US President Donald Trump tweeted that he will be meeting with Kim in Vietnam's capital Hanoi on February 27 and 28.

Observers say Kim's speech apparently avoided provoking the United States ahead of the coming summit.

Key words : high-level
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190209_08/

High-level trade talks between the United States and China will be held on Thursday and Friday next week.

The White House released a statement on Friday that said US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will visit Beijing for the talks.

The meetings will be preceded by deputy-level negotiations from Monday. The US delegation will be led by Deputy Trade Representative Jeffrey Gerrish.

The US officials are expected to press hard for China to fundamentally alter its trade practices. The two sides remain wide apart over China's alleged violations of intellectual property rights and forced transfers of technologies to Chinese firms.

The United States is poised to raise tariffs on Chinese imports if they fail to reach a deal by March 1st.

With an agreement out of sight, President Donald Trump has reversed course and now says he has no plans to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping before the deadline.

Key words : national debt
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190209_04/

Japan's national debt has reached a new high, despite government efforts to restore fiscal health.

The Finance Ministry says at the end of last year, government debt topped 1,100 trillion yen -- about 10 trillion dollars -- for the first time.

The figure translates to about 79,000 dollars for each resident of Japan.

The bulk of the debt comes from government bonds, issued to cover ballooning social insurance costs due to the graying population. Loans and short-term securities also make up part of the debt.

More bonds are set to be issued in the fiscal year beginning April. The government's budget bill calls for about 296 billion dollars in bond issuance, aimed at covering a revenue shortfall.

Key words : Thai political party
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190209_22/

A Thai political party loyal to ousted ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra has canceled plans to nominate the king's sister as a prime ministerial candidate.

The party issued a statement after King Maha Vajiralongkorn criticized the candidacy of Princess Ubolratana on Friday night, calling it "highly inappropriate."

The statement said the party accepts the king's order.

Thailand will hold a general election on March 24th. The current military-led government took power following the 2014 coup that ousted Thaksin.

It had been widely believed that interim Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha would serve another term.

But media reports said the princess's nomination completely changed the nation's electoral landscape.

Key words : Carlos repay
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190209_02/

Former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn reportedly intends to repay Renault for the cost of holding a lavish wedding at the Palace of Versailles when he headed the French carmaker.

Renault said on Thursday that the cost of Ghosn's wedding party in October 2016 was covered by sponsorship fees the company paid to the palace.

The automaker said the wedding expenses worth 50,000 euros, or about 57,000 dollars, were improperly disbursed for the former chairman's personal benefit.

Ghosn's lawyer told French public radio on Friday that the facts were being misunderstood. He said staffers settled the bills for the wedding and that Ghosn was unaware of the process.

The lawyer said the problem can be settled if Renault sends an invoice and that Ghosn is ready to pay the costs.

Renault says it plans to continue an in-house probe and report its findings to French law enforcement authorities. This was the first time Renault has accused Ghosn of misconduct.

Ghosn resigned as chairman and CEO of the French automaker late last month. He remains in detention in Tokyo facing allegations of financial misconduct at Nissan.

Key words : demonstrator
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190209_20/

Demonstrators, including atomic bomb survivors, staged a sit-in on Saturday at the Nagasaki Peace Park. They protested plans by the United States and Russia to scrap a nuclear arms control pact.

The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty between the US and the former Soviet Union in 1987 helped shape nuclear disarmament talks.

But the US told Russia earlier this month it would pull out of the treaty. Since Russia has also expressed its intention to withdraw, the agreement is expected to expire in 6 months.

About 80 demonstrators gathered for an hour next to the Peace Statue in the drizzle.

Atomic bomb survivors said the world is once again vulnerable to the dangers of nuclear arms. They said they must not give up and continue to raise their voices in protest.

The participants said they have decided to send letters expressing their deep anger to the embassies of the two countries.

The protesters say they are driven by the hope of making Nagasaki the last city to suffer from an atomic bomb, and strongly urge the two countries to make efforts toward nuclear disarmament.

One of the demonstrators said that if the US thinks Russia is violating the treaty, it should resolve the issue through discussion rather than by abandoning the agreement itself.

Demonstrators gather at the Nagasaki Peace Park on the 9th of every month to remember the August 9th, 1945 bombing, and repeat their call for the abolition of nuclear weapons.