Japan's Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi has reiterated Japan's position that South Korea should rectify its breach of international law over a wartime labor issue.
The US special representative for North Korea says Washington does not have a deadline for talks with Pyongyang.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met with Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam and called for more efforts in cracking down on violent protests.
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Lam has been in Beijing since Saturday for a regular report on the territory's situation.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20191216200000_english_1.mp3
Key words : Motegi reiterated
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_13/
Japan's Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi has reiterated Japan's position that South Korea should rectify its breach of international law over a wartime labor issue.
Motegi made the comment during a brief meeting with his South Korean counterpart Kang Kyung-wha in Madrid where they were attending the ASEM meeting of Asian and European foreign ministers.
During the 10-minute talk on Sunday, Motegi also stressed the importance of bilateral relations as well as relations among Japan, the US and South Korea to deal with North Korea's ballistic missiles launches.
The two ministers agreed to closely cooperate to lay the groundwork for a planned meeting between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and South Korean President Moon Jae-in in the Chinese city of Chengdu next week.
Motegi said the deterioration of relations between the two countries stems from the issue of wartime labor.
South Korea's Supreme Court last year ordered Japanese firms to pay damages to plaintiffs who said their relatives or themselves were forced to work for the Japanese firms during World War Two.
Japan maintains that a 1965 bilateral agreement settled all wartime compensation issues.
Meanwhile, the South Korean Foreign Ministry said Kang told Motegi that Seoul welcomes a meeting of senior officials of the two countries in Tokyo on Monday to discuss Japan's export controls on some high-tech materials to South Korea.
The Foreign Ministry said Kang called on Japan to promptly retract the controls, which the South Korean government says are a retaliatory measure over the labor issue.
Key words : US special says washington
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_16/
The US special representative for North Korea says Washington does not have a deadline for talks with Pyongyang.
Stephen Biegun spoke to reporters in Seoul on Monday. He was joined by South Korea's Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs, Lee Do-hoon.
Biegun said the United States does not have a deadline, but it wants to fulfill the commitments made by President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at last year's historic summit meeting.
He urged North Korea to return to the negotiating table, saying, "It's time for us to do our jobs. Let's get this done. We are here, and you know how to reach us."
Biegun expressed displeasure at the recent statements by senior North Korean officials who criticized the US and other parties. He said they were "regrettable, hostile, and unnecessary."
North Korea has unilaterally declared an end-of-the-year deadline for the United States to make concessions to break the impasse in the denuclearization talks.
Biegun is scheduled to leave South Korea on Tuesday.
Attention is focused on whether he will meet with the North Korean side in the truce village of Panmunjom or another location.
Key words : Japan closely monitor
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_21/
Japan says it will continue to closely monitor further developments in the US-China trade dispute, including the possible impact of the Phase One trade deal between the two major economies.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga spoke to reporters on Monday, three days after China announced the agreement.
Suga said the Japanese government views the deal in a positive light and hopes that Washington and Beijing will continue to constructively settle their trade dispute through dialogue.
Key words : Chinese premier
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_28/
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met with Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Monday and called for more efforts in cracking down on violent protests.
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Lam has been in Beijing since Saturday for a regular report on the territory's situation.
In the meeting, Li said the turmoil caused by anti-government protests is affecting Hong Kong society on all fronts.
He also said the Chinese government would continue to support Lam and her administration as it seeks to protect the territory's long-term prosperity and stability.
The premier said the Hong Kong government should continue its efforts to end the violence, stop the chaos and restore order..
Lam was scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping later in the day.
Protests have continued in Hong Kong for more than six months. Its government has yet to accept citizens' demands even after a landslide victory by pro-democracy candidates in district council elections last month.
Key words : Motegi has called on
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_04/
Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi has called on the foreign policy chief of the European Union to ensure a smooth exit for Britain.
Motegi held talks in Madrid on Sunday with Josep Borrell, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs.
Their talks followed the UK Conservative Party's overwhelming victory in the general election on Thursday, which paved the way for the country's departure from the EU by the end of January.
Motegi said the Japanese government is closely watching developments following the election. He added that he hopes Britain's exit will not cause complications.
Borrell replied that EU officials are ready to discuss the matter thoroughly with their British counterparts.
The two officials agreed to strengthen cooperation between Japan and the EU, based on a strategic partnership agreement signed last year. Motegi said he wants to study specific measures in security and other areas to increase cooperation.
They also agreed to work closely to have North Korea completely denuclearized. Motegi asked Borrell to support Japan's efforts to get abductees back home as soon as possible.
The Japanese government says North Korean agents abducted at least 17 Japanese citizens in the 1970s and '80s. Five returned to Japan in 2002, but the rest remain unaccounted for.
Key words : UN cop25
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_03/
The UN COP25 climate change conference in Madrid has concluded, urging countries to do more to tackle global warming.
On Sunday, representatives from more than 190 parties unanimously endorsed a summary of the results.
The conference was extended for 40 hours, due to divisions over the wording on raising emission reduction targets and rules to implement the Paris Agreement that will become operational next year.
All parties are urged to set higher targets in accordance with their own circumstances and to present the most ambitious goals possible.
They are also encouraged to use the opportunity in 2020 to reflect the highest possible ambition in response to the urgency of addressing climate change.
The wording reflects disagreements between the delegates. Some wanted the document to clearly call for higher targets for cutting emissions, while others argued that countries should be able to make their own decisions.
The conference failed to reach an agreement on rules on counting emission reduction credits attained through technological assistance to other nations. The issue will be discussed at COP26 next year.
This means the Paris Agreement will be implemented with part of its rules pending.
Key words : London-based
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_26/
The London-based human rights group Amnesty International says more than 300 people were killed in protests in Iran last month.
In a report released on Monday, Amnesty says that according to reports it compiled, at least 304 people were killed and thousands injured after authorities crushed protests with lethal force.
The organization interviewed dozens of people inside Iran. It also analyzed video footage obtained by the group, which shows Iranian security forces opening fire on unarmed protesters who did not pose any imminent risk.
Thousands of journalists and human rights defenders have also been arrested in an attempt to stop them from speaking out about Iran's repression.
Demonstrators took to the streets across Iran in protest of the government's decision to raise gasoline prices without prior notice.
US Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook said earlier this month that Iranian security forces may have killed more than 1,000 people in the protests.
Iran has yet to disclose details of the casualties.
Key words : protests are spreading
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_32/
Protests are spreading in India over a new citizenship law. Critics say the measure is at odds with the secular nature of India's democracy.
People are taking to the streets on a number of university campuses across the country. In the city of Lucknow, hundreds of students faced off with security forces. Local media say the gates to a local university campus were shut to disrupt a planned march.
The unrest comes a day after violent clashes erupted between police and protesters in the capital. Police fired tear gas to disperse demonstrators at Jamia Millia Islamia university. An official says about 200 people were injured. The violence sparked allegations of police brutality.
The protesters are angry about a new measure that grants citizenship to Hindus, Christians and other religious minorities under certain conditions, but excludes Muslims.
The protests began in the country's northeast, where many residents are angry that immigrants from Bangladesh will now have a path to citizenship. The government says the new law will help people facing persecution in Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called the protests "deeply distressing" and suggested vested interest groups are to blame.
Key words : sentenced
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_25/
A former top bureaucrat at Japan's agriculture ministry has been sentenced to six years in prison for murdering his violent son.
The Tokyo District Court on Monday handed down the term on 76-year-old Hideaki Kumazawa for fatally stabbing his son Eiichiro at their home in June. The former vice agriculture minister had pleaded guilty.
Prosecutors had demanded an eight-year prison term while defense lawyers requested a suspended sentence.
Kumazawa said that he stabbed his 44-year-old son out of fear for his own life, but pesiding judge Tomoyuki Nakayama said his claim lacked credibility.
Nakayama said the defendant attacked when the victim could not put up resistance, showing strong intent to take his son's life.
The judge criticized Kumazawa for not going to his son's doctor or the police for help, and deciding to kill his son just one week after he returned to live with his parents.
But the judge acknowledged Kumazawa had previously met his son's doctor and delivered medication for his son's development disorder and made efforts to build a stable father-and-son relationship.
Nakayama said there was no doubting Kumazawa felt fear when his son assaulted him immediately after returning to live with him and worried about how to deal with him, and this should be taken into account.
The judge concluded that a suspended prison term is not appropriate for people convicted of killing their offspring, but Kumazawa should not be given a lengthy sentence.
Key words : Miyagi
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_11/
A town in Miyagi Prefecture which will host some of the 2020 Olympic events plans to set up facilities for visitors to learn about the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake.
Rifu Town, which suffered damage in the disaster, will set up 10 spots between a local stadium for Olympic soccer events and the nearest train station, about three kilometers away, to welcome the visitors.
At these spots, people will be able to view soccer matches on large TV screens and experience Japanese culture, including tea ceremonies and calligraphy.
Town officials say they will also install cardboard beds and other equipment at an elementary school to give visitors hands-on experience of life at emergency shelters during disasters.
Panels will also be displayed to show the town's recovery from the 2011 disaster.
The officials plan to solicit volunteers to help run these facilities.
Rifu Town Mayor Yutaka Kumagai says many people offered support for his town after the disaster. He said that in return, town officials will work with residents to welcome visitors for the Olympic events to make them a success.
Key words : maker industrial
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_17/
Japan's leading makers of industrial robots are teaming up with technical colleges to train engineers.
The program is aimed at dealing with a growing demand for robotics technology, caused in part by the country's serious labor shortage.
Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Fanuc and Yaskawa Electric are among the companies taking part in the program that begins next April.
Their engineers will be dispatched to the schools to lecture and train.
At the same time, schools' teachers will be invited to production lines to learn about the industry's latest developments.
Japanese makers have a global market share of nearly 60 percent in industrial robots.
But technical colleges lack up-to-date equipment needed for training students. By contrast, China has launched a national project to nurture robot engineers.
Japan's industry ministry is supporting the training project. Officials say they hope the program will expand to cover all of Japan.
Key words : scientists in western
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_24/
Scientists in western Japan have developed a biodegradable humidity sensor for farm-use.
The group led by Osaka University researcher Takaaki Kasuga has created a circuit board sensor mostly composed of cellulose nanofibers.
The sensor will allow farmers to determine which areas of their vast farmlands need watering by transmitting a signal that changes based on soil humidity.
At this stage of development, the researchers say that most of the sensor will decompose in about 40 days.
The current model still requires an external power source to function and also contains minute quantities of metals that aren't biodegradable.
The group hopes to overcome these shortcomings by the time the product is ready for commercial use.
Kasuga says in the future, these kinds of sensors will help promote Internet of Things technology in the field of agriculture, so farms can be managed more efficiently.
Key words : Arashi
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20191216_20/
Officials of Japan Post and members of the pop group Arashi are encouraging people to send greeting cards for the New Year.
Japan Post held a ceremony at the central post office in Tokyo on Monday to mark the start of the season for mailing the traditional postcards.
The company began accepting the cards on Sunday, the first processing of New Year's postal greetings in the Reiwa era that began in May.
Japan Post President Kunio Yokoyama said social media and other technologies have become a major means of communication, but there is extra value in writing messages on cards while thinking of the recipients.
Arashi singers Sho Sakurai and Kazunari Ninomiya put cards addressed to other band members into a special heart-shaped mailbox.
Sakurai said a simple message like "How are you?" can warm people's hearts. He added that the first New Year's cards of the new era will have a special significance.
Japan Post is selling cards with lottery numbers, giving the recipients a chance to win prizes. These include tickets for the opening or closing ceremonies of the Tokyo Olympics, and about 2,800 dollars in the form of electronic money.
It says people should post their cards by December 25 to ensure delivery on January 1.
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