A senior US official says North Korea asked for lifting of all UN sanctions except those targeting weapons in return for closing part of its Nyongbyon nuclear complex.
US trade officials have announced they are postponing tariff on Chinese goods without setting a new deadline for negotiations.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in has called for building future-oriented ties with Japan, but also indirectly urged Japan to deal with contentious wartime issues that have strained ties.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20190301200000_english_1.mp3
Key words : senior US official
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190301_28/
A senior US official says North Korea asked for lifting of all UN sanctions except those targeting weapons in return for closing part of its Nyongbyon nuclear complex.
The State Department official spoke to reporters on Friday after the second US-North Korea summit was cut short without producing any agreement.
The official said North Korea made the demand when the US side asked it to specify the extent of sanctions it wants lifted. He said what the North asked for would amount to many billions of dollars in sanctions relief, which was unacceptable.
He also said the North proposed closing part of the Nyongbyon complex.
He said the North Koreans are unwilling to impose a complete freeze on their weapons of mass destruction programs. He added that giving huge amounts of money in sanctions relief would help North Korea develop those weapons.
But the official welcomed North Korea's showing, through state-run media, willingness to continue talks with the US. He suggested the US side is ready to resume talks when the North is ready.
US President Donald Trump had said on Thursday that North Korea asked for all sanctions to be lifted, but the US couldn't accept that.
North Korea's Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho told reporters in Hanoi early on Friday that the country asked for lifting of the articles of UN sanctions that hamper its economy and the livelihood of its people.
He said the North proposed dismantling all nuclear facilities at the Nyongbyon complex in return.
Key words : Kim paid a visit
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190301_34/
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has paid a visit to Vietnam's leader, after a summit with US President Donald Trump failed to produce an agreement.
Kim left his hotel in Hanoi on Friday afternoon to visit President Nguyen Phu Trong at the presidential office.
He had not been seen in public for more than a day after meeting with Trump.
The two leaders inspected the honor guard. Kim was seen smiling when he spoke with Vietnamese officials.
He thanked the president for making sincere efforts for the summit.
The North Korean leader is scheduled to meet Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and attend a banquet on Friday evening.
It is thought Kim will leave Vietnam on Saturday.
Key words : Russia host
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190301_31/
Russia says it will host three-day talks with North Korea next week to discuss cooperation in trade, economy, science and technology.
The Russian Embassy in Pyongyang said on Thursday that the talks will begin next Monday in Moscow. It says Russian Minister for the Development of the Far East Alexander Kozlov will meet North Korea's Minister for External Economic Affairs Kim Yong Jae.
Russia is seeking engagement with the North through plans to ship natural gas and build railways along routes that lead to South Korea, via North Korea .
Observers say Moscow aims to raise its presence through the upcoming talks, following the second summit between the United States and North Korea.
A spokesperson for the Russian presidential office, Dmitry Peskov, said on Thursday that a Russia-North Korea summit is not planned for now.
But Peskov said efforts are being made through diplomatic channels to arrange a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Key words : US trade official postpone
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190301_13/
US trade officials say they will postpone tariff increases they had planned for Chinese imports, without setting a new deadline. The two sides will continue trying to hammer out a trade deal.
Washington and Beijing have been holding talks to try and resolve the ongoing trade dispute.
US President Donald Trump said earlier this week the negotiations are bearing fruit so he would delay imposing additional tariffs.
Levies on 200 billion dollars' worth of Chinese goods had been scheduled to rise to 25 percent from March 2nd.
Key words : Moon future
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190301_27/
South Korean President Moon Jae-in has called for building future-oriented ties with Japan, but also indirectly urged Japan to deal with contentious wartime issues that have strained ties.
Moon delivered a speech on Friday to mark the 100th anniversary of the March 1 independence movement against Japanese colonial rule. The ceremony at a square in Seoul was attended by more than 10,000 people.
Moon stressed the need to wipe out what he called the vestiges of pro-Japanese collaborators. He said their continued influence is a factor behind problems faced by South Korean society today.
Moon said he intends to strengthen cooperation with Japan for the sake of peace on the Korean Peninsula.
But referring to wartime issues, he said "when the pain of victims is substantially healed through concerted efforts, Korea and Japan will become genuine friends."
Although his comments were not explicit, Moon urged Japan to deal with the issue of people referred to as comfort women, and wartime labor.
Ties have frayed over a series of South Korean court rulings awarding compensation to Koreans who say they were forced to work at Japanese firms during World War Two.
Moon's speech was centered on settling the rift between conservatives and progressives in South Korea, and on the significance of achieving reconciliation with North Korea.
Observers say Moon avoided criticizing Japan directly, apparently to prevent the centennial of the independence movement from causing a further chill in the relationship.
Japan's Foreign Minister Taro Kono told reporters on Friday that he believes President Moon's speech will not affect ties.
He said that as Japan has said on numerous occasions, it wants the South Korean government to take proper action to prevent Japanese firms from being treated unfairly.
Key words : Abe met following
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190301_26/
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has met the governor of Okinawa following a local referendum in which a majority voted "no" to landfill work for relocating a US military base within the southern prefecture.
Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki visited Abe at the prime minister's office on Friday to report the outcome of the February 24 referendum.
With voter turnout a little over 50 percent, more than 70 percent of the voters rejected the reclamation work in Henoko for replacing the US Marines Corps Futenma Air Station, which is located in a densely populated area of the prefecture.
A local ordinance requires the Okinawa governor to report the result to the prime minister and the US president if a quarter of all eligible voters chose one of the options in the referendum.
Tamaki said the result is extremely significant because it made clear for the first time that the people of Okinawa want the relocation project to be scrapped.
Tamaki asked the central government to squarely respond to the calls by the people of Okinawa and stop the construction work.
He also asked for a three-way meeting of Okinawa and the central governments of the US and Japan to discuss the issue of bases.
Abe said his government takes the referendum result sincerely and will work to produce results in easing the burden of the US bases in Okinawa one by one.
He said the Futenma airfield has been described as the most dangerous base in the world and there must be no delay in resolving the situation. Abe said he will continue his efforts to seek the understanding of the people of Okinawa.
Key words : employee expected to continue
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190301_21/
Japanese employees and companies are expected to continue shouldering a relatively high ratio of taxes to income. Officials say that on average, 42.8 percent of income will go to taxes and social welfare premiums in fiscal 2019.
The Finance Ministry says the national burden ratio will likely remain the same as the previous year. It's expected to exceed 40 percent for the 6th year.
Officials predict that the tax burden will increase with the consumption tax hike in October. But they believe it will be offset by gains in individual and corporate incomes on the back of a gradual economic recovery.
The national burden ratio is a gauge to compare public burdens with other countries. Data from 2016 has shown that France's ratio was at 67.2 percent and Sweden at 58.8. The United States was at 33.1 percent.
Key words : group of peace museum
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Key words : olympic ban smoking
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190301_02/
The organizing committee for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics has decided to ban all smoking at competition venues.
The committee made the decision on Thursday after coordinating with relevant organizations.
The committee took into account the International Olympic Committee's policy of promoting a tobacco-free Games, as well as recent domestic trends against passive smoking.
It's believed that the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics will be the first Summer Games to prohibit smoking at competition venues.
The Japanese committee says spectators and others were allowed to use smoking areas within competition venues during the 2012 London and 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games.
Similar arrangements were made for staff at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games.
Many Japanese local governments have already banned smoking in areas around the Games' competition venues.
The committee will work with those local authorities to study measures to have staff, spectators, and others abide by the smoking ban. Possible steps include guiding people to smoking areas.
Key words : business full swing
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190301_35/
Businesses and local governments in Japan are in full swing preparing for a national era name change taking place with the upcoming imperial succession.
The name replacing the current "Heisei" is to be officially announced by the government on April 1, and take effect on May 1, when Crown Prince Naruhito ascends the throne. Emperor Akihito is to abdicate the day before.
Era names are used practically everywhere in Japan, along with the Gregorian calendar. The switch is expected to be an enormous task.
Tokyo IT firm Webrage has developed software that can scan digital files and automatically find where changes are needed. It has provided the service for its clients since last November.
The firm says corporate websites and online catalogs use "Heisei" hundreds of times. It says clients are worried about whether they can make all the necessary changes.
Webrage official Masayuki Kitano says the firm plans to support clients ahead of time, as human error is bound to occur. The firm expects more requests for help after the new name is announced.
A rubber stamp vendor is offering help in a more analog way. Nihon Horei has been accepting orders for stamps to correct the era name since around mid-2018.
The firm says inquiries about the stamps began increasing in February, and nearly 40 orders were placed on Friday morning alone. It says it expects more orders after April 1.
Nihon Horei official Yoshihisa Iida says he heard that the firm was busy with a flood of orders for several months 30 years ago, the last time the era name changed.
He says workers are preparing early to avoid a hassle this time.
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