The US ambassador to the United Nations has warned North Korea of consequences if Pyongyang does not stop provocative actions.
Japan's Environment Minister has indicated his country's support for building coal-fired power plants overseas should be reviewed.
Japan's top government spokesperson says the list of guests invited to a controversial annual party hosted by the prime minister has been destroyed and can not be restored.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20191212200000_english_1.mp3
Key words : US ambassador has warned consequence
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_25/
The US ambassador to the United Nations has warned North Korea of consequences if Pyongyang does not stop provocations.
Members of the UN Security Council held an open-door meeting on Wednesday at the request of the United States for the first time since September of last year.
Ambassador Kelly Craft chaired the meeting and noted that North Korea has launched more than two dozen ballistic missiles this year.
Craft said the ballistic missile tests, no matter their range, undermine regional security and stability and are a clear violation of UN Security Council resolutions.
She also said North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is referring to a "new path," suggesting that Pyongyang could test a launch of intercontinental ballistic missiles which are designed to attack the US mainland with nuclear weapons.
Craft added that the Security Council must all prepare to act accordingly if the North does not put an end to hostility and threats.
Japan's Ambassador to the UN Kimihiro Ishikane said at the meeting that it is important for North Korea to abandon its weapons of mass destruction.
He said it is the duty of all UN member nations to implement sanctions against the North. Ishikane said he believes that united efforts by the international community will support the diplomatic process between Washington and Pyongyang.
North Korea says Kim Jong Un, will decide his policy on denuclearization talks with the US by the end of this year.
Key words : china rejected framework
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_14/
China has rejected the idea of joining a framework to discuss nuclear arms control with the United States and Russia.
Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying spoke to reporters on Wednesday.
She referred to comments made by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo after his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Washington on Tuesday.
Pompeo and Lavrov discussed the New START bilateral nuclear arms reduction treaty, due to expire in February 2021. Pompeo said the United States believes other parties such as China need to be brought into a wider discussion on arms control.
The Chinese spokesperson said the country's position is clear. She said China reiterates that it has no intention of participating in trilateral arms control negotiations with the US and Russia.
She said the US constantly tries to shirk and shift responsibility to China when it comes to nuclear disarmament.
Another key US-Russia pact called the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty expired in August this year.
Key words : defense indicated
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_23/
Top US defense officials have indicated that the country will continue intermediate-range missile testing, stressing necessity to counter China's missile threat.
Secretary of Defense Mark Esper and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley spoke in a hearing at the House Armed Services Committee on Wednesday.
Esper suggested that the Asian country had been increasing its intermediate-range missile capabilities while not being tied to the obligation under the treaty.
He said "China has thousands of intermediate range missiles along the periphery, along the eastern coast".
His comment comes after the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty or INF expired in August.
Milley suggested that the country will soon conduct the testing, and analysts believe intermediate-range ballistic missiles will be used as the US already test-fired a surface-launched cruise missile in August.
The defense secretary did not mention where those missiles would be deployed.
Key words : Britain general election result
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_30/
People in Britain head to the polls on Thursday to vote in a general election. The result may determine if the country will end the deadlock over leaving the European Union.
In the last day on the campaign trail, the leaders of political parties made a final push. The prime minister attacked his main rival over Brexit .. the key battle line of the election.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said, "We're going to get Brexit done. He'd have another referendum on the EU, it is what he would do. And I don't know what you feel, but I think, whether you voted leave or Remain, I think it's time for this country to come together and move on."
Johnson hopes this election will give his Conservative Party a clear majority, allowing him to push through his divorce deal. The prime minister has pledged to leave the EU by end of January.
The Labour Party's leader Jeremy Corbyn has promised to renegotiate a new deal. He then plans to hold another referendum, giving voters a choice between his plan or remaining in the EU.
Corbyn said, "You break off any serious relationship with Europe or you go down the Labour way, which is the adult responsible way of negotiating a settlement that we all live by and I will make sure is carried out in the future relationship with Europe."
A total of 650 seats in the House of Commons are up for grabs. The Conservatives maintained a stable lead throughout the campaign.
But the gap has narrowed as polling day approaches. Many constituencies are expected to be close contests, and even a small swing in voting allegiance may affect the outcome.
Key words : environment minister coal-fire power plant
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_10/
Japan's Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi has indicated his country's support for building coal-fired power plants overseas should be reviewed.
Koizumi spoke to about 50 reporters from Japan and other nations in Spain, where the COP25 UN climate change conference is underway.
A reporter from a German newspaper asked him about Japan's concrete plans on its coal-fired power generation.
Koizumi responded that unlike other countries, Japan cannot immediately pledge to phase out coal or fossil fuels.
But he said he thinks the Japanese government will be able to take positive action regarding its support for building coal-fired power plants abroad.
A reporter of a US news agency asked if he means that he thinks Japan should stop exporting coal-fired power plants.
Koizumi responded he thought the government would be able to send a positive signal to change something, and that he coordinated with relevant ministries.
But he said he was not able to give a definite response before the COP25 conference. He said he wants to continue his talks with concerned ministries.
Key words : swedish teenager
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_22/
Swedish teenager and face of the youth climate movement Greta Thunberg has been named Time magazine's Person of the Year for 2019.
The magazine said on Wednesday that the 16-year-old is the youngest person to take the honor since the tradition started in 1927.
Time says Thunberg has become "the biggest voice on the biggest issue facing the planet," and "the avatar of a broader generational shift in our culture that is playing out everywhere."
Thunberg started a grassroots campaign by skipping school every Friday to demonstrate outside Sweden's parliament, calling for action on climate change.
That prompted young people around the world to organize a movement called "Fridays for Future."
More than 4 million people took to the streets in over 150 countries in September in the largest-ever climate demonstrations.
Thunberg has urged world leaders to fight climate change. She attended the UN Climate Action Summit in New York in September, as well as the COP25 conference in Madrid this month.
She reacted to the nomination on Twitter. She said, "This is unbelievable! I share this great honor with everyone in the Fridays for Future movement and climate activists everywhere."
Key words : Myanmar targeting
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_03/
Myanmar's leader has defended her country's military against accusations of genocide targeting the Rohingya Muslim minority.
Aung San Suu Kyi told the world's top human rights court that the situation in Rakhine state is "complex and not easy to fathom".
She said, " Regretfully, the Gambia has placed before the court an incomplete and misleading factual picture of the situation in Rakhine state in Myanmar."
The west African nation brought the case before the International Court of Justice in The Hague.
Myanmar has insisted the military operation in Rakhine state, where Rohingyas lived, was in response to terrorism.
But the Nobel Peace laureate acknowledged that there may have been failures to protect civilians.
Aung San Suu Kyi said, " It cannot be ruled out that disproportionate force was used by members of the defense services, in some cases in disregard of international humanitarian law."
She also said if soldiers had committed war crimes, they should be prosecuted in Myanmar.
More than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims fled to neighboring Bangladesh following the crackdown by Myanmar's security forces in 2017.
The UN says Myanmar carried out the measures "with genocidal intent" that included mass killings, rape and arson.
The Buddhist-majority country has denied committing human rights abuses against the Muslim minority.
Key words : top government spokesperson annual
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_33/
Japan's top government spokesperson says the Cabinet Secretariat's list of recommended guests for an annual state-funded cherry blossom-viewing party has already been disposed of along with the actual guest lists. He says it is not possible to restore the deleted backup data.
The Cabinet Office earlier said it had shredded the guest lists and deleted the digital records soon after the event in line with the regulation that they only need to be kept for less than a year. It also said the backup data had also been deleted after a while and cannot be restored.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters on Thursday that the secretariat's list of recommended guests, including people named by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, was also disposed of soon after the party.
He added that officials of the secretariat say they use the same system managed by the Cabinet Office, so restoring the digital data is impossible.
Key words : united nations expressed hope
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_07/
Japan's permanent mission to the United Nations has expressed hope that the achievements of a Japanese doctor who was killed in Afghanistan last week will set an example on the front line of international assistance.
Satoshi Ezoe, counsellor at the Japanese mission, gave a speech at the UN General Assembly in New York on Wednesday before the adoption of a resolution calling for efforts on health and hygiene issues.
In his speech, Ezoe referred to Tetsu Nakamura. Ezoe noted the late doctor dedicated more than 30 years of his life to Afghanistan, serving the needs of marginalized and vulnerable people there who had limited access to health care, clean water and nutritious food.
Ezoe said Nakamura's dedication "embodies the core concept of human security, which is to leave no one behind."
The counsellor added that Nakamura's legacy "will continue to inspire tireless efforts around the world."
The Japanese mission said Tokyo stands ready to accelerate its efforts toward the international goal of universal health coverage, to provide high-quality medical treatment to everyone.
Key words : US federal aviation
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_18/
The US Federal Aviation Administration has yet to set a date for resuming flights of the 737 MAX, despite Boeing's expectations.
FAA Administrator Steve Dickson testified before a House committee on Wednesday. "When the 737 Max is returned to service," Dickson said, "it will be because the safety issues have been addressed, and pilots have received all the training they need to safely operate the aircraft. This process is not guided by a calendar or schedule."
The FAA grounded the 737 MAX in March following two crashes within five months that left a total of 346 people dead.
Last month, Boeing officials said they were expecting approval to resume flights beginning in January of next year.
That now seems unlikely, and the aerospace company will have to deal with a further decline in earnings.
Key words : Boeing has shown
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_31/
US plane maker Boeing has shown its new Starliner spacecraft to the media ahead of a test flight later this month.
The cone-shaped capsule is about 4.5 meters in diameter and 5 meters high. It can carry up to seven crew members.
It has about 50 switches while the US space shuttle had at least one thousand.
The US space agency NASA has been using Russian Soyuz rockets to transport astronauts since the space shuttle fleet was retired in 2011. NASA signed contracts with two private companies in 2014 to develop two types of spacecraft.
NASA plans to carry out the first test flight of the Starliner on December 20 with no crew members on board. The agency says it hopes to launch a manned test flight as early as the first half of next year.
A NASA official expressed hope that increased choice for space flights will help to develop international cooperation.
The Crew Dragon, developed by US venture firm Space X, successfully completed an unmanned test flight in March. The company is planning a manned test flight next year or later.
Key words : Reiwa
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191212_35/
The first of the two kanji characters used in Japan's new imperial era name, "Reiwa," has been chosen as Kanji of the Year.
A Kyoto-based organization promoting the use of kanji announced on Thursday that the character "rei" was chosen for 2019.
The selection was made in a public contest entered by more than 216,000 people.
In a public display of the selection, the chief Buddhist priest at Kiyomizu Temple used a brush and ink to write the character on a large sheet of Japanese washi paper.
The event's organizer said "rei" reflects the Japanese people's desire for happiness and a brighter future in the new era, which started when Emperor Naruhito ascended the throne on May 1.
The annual Kanji of the Year event started in 1995.
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