at 18:30 (JST), February 16

Asian View

"Asian View" is a five-minute news segment broadcast by NHK WORLD-JAPAN. It features the latest news and deep analysis from Japan and the rest of Asia. Listen to "Asian View" and get the latest information from a region that's playing an increasingly important role in the world.

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20230216183000_english_1.mp3


Key words : japanese flying objects how
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230215_40/

Japanese officials could revise how the country responds to flying objects that violate its airspace. The potential policy change comes after they announced a number of recent incursions.

Defense officials say unidentified flying objects have been spotted in Japanese airspace over the past four years. They are strongly suspected to have been Chinese spy balloons.

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio says Japan strongly urged the Chinese government through diplomatic channels to make sure that such incidents will not happen again.

Members of the main ruling Liberal Democratic Party say the Self-Defense Forces should be able to shoot down the balloons if they enter Japanese airspace.

Currently, they can only use weapons in self-defense or to evade imminent danger. Government officials want the SDF to be able to use weapons if it is deemed necessary to protect people including the safety of air traffic.

Meanwhile, Beijing is reacting sharply to Japan's announcements. Wang Wenbin, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, says the country strongly objects to Japan's slander and accusations against China without any firm evidence. Wang said Japan should avoid being influenced by what he called "an American publicity campaign".

The flying objects were spotted near a nuclear power plant and bases for the SDF and US military. A Japanese expert thinks China is trying to glean more about their activities.

Ohara Bonji, senior fellow of Sasakawa Peace Foundation, says when aircraft or ships go on missions, they communicate by radio and their sensor equipment releases radio waves.

Ohara says China probably wants to get intelligence from these signals, since that will make it easier to pick up signs of any shift away from routine operations.

The US military shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon on February 4th. Beijing claims it was a "civilian airship" mainly used for weather research.

American officials say China has flown such balloons over more than 40 countries.

Key words : trade deficit rising energy
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230216_16/

Japan posted its biggest monthly trade deficit in January, due to a combination of rising energy prices and weak exports.

The Finance Ministry said on Thursday the deficit reached almost 3.5 trillion yen, or more than 26 billion dollars.

The trade balance has now shown a deficit for 18 straight months. The amount was the most since comparable data became available in 1979.

Imports swelled 17.8 percent in yen terms from a year earlier to 75 billion dollars.

But exports increased by just 3.5 percent to 49 billion dollars.

Exports to China, Japan's biggest trade partner, fell by 17.1 percent. That was mainly because Chinese business activity ground to a halt during the Lunar New Year holidays.

Key words : china south korea
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230215_22/

China's embassy in Seoul says it will resume issuing short-term visas for South Korean visitors to the country from Saturday.

The embassy made the announcement on Wednesday without mentioning the reason. The move comes following last week's lifting of visa restrictions imposed by South Korea on Chinese travelers.

The tit-for-tat began in late December, when South Korea announced that it would require Chinese travelers to take PCR tests before and after their arrival through end of February. This policy was due to China's surging coronavirus cases.

In retaliation, China on January 10 suspended issuance of short-term visas for South Korean travelers. Beijing had accused Seoul's measures of being discriminatory.

In late January, the South Korean government said it would extend for a month its restriction on issuing short-term visas to travelers from mainland China. But it lifted the restriction last week after the infection rate of people entering the country from China dropped sharply.

Key words : foreign minister japan and south meet
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230215_10/

The foreign ministers of Japan and South Korea may meet this week to try to reach a settlement on the wartime labor issue, which has strained ties between their countries.

Arrangements are being made for Japan's Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa to meet his South Korean counterpart Park Jin on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. Hayashi will be in Germany starting on Friday.

Hayashi and Park last met in person in September. Hayashi has said that the two countries need to communicate closely with each other in order to put bilateral ties on solid footing.

Senior diplomats from the two sides met in Washington on Monday to discuss the wartime labor issue. A meeting between Hayashi and Park would bring the talks to a higher political level.

South Korea's government is now considering a plan aimed at resolving the issue. The plan involves having a public foundation offer payments to the plaintiffs in the wartime labor lawsuits. The public foundation would be used instead of the Japanese companies that have been ordered by South Korea's Supreme Court to compensate the plaintiffs. South Korea is also asking Japan to respond in good faith.

Japanese government officials are reportedly thinking of underscoring a statement made by a Japanese prime minister in the past. He expressed deep remorse, and extended a heartfelt apology, for Japan's colonial rule and wartime aggression.

Key words : philippines serious concern manila
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230215_11/

The Philippines' President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has summoned the Chinese ambassador to his country to express his "serious concern" over China's alleged use of a laser in the South China Sea.

The Philippines' presidential office released a statement on Tuesday. It said Marcos relayed his concern "over the increasing frequency and intensity of actions by China" to the ambassador.

On Monday, the Philippine Coast Guard said a Chinese Coast Guard ship had directed a military-grade laser at one of its vessels near a shoal of the Spratly Islands on February 6. The shoal is in the Philippines' exclusive economic zone.

Manila has since been protesting and has released footage that it says shows the Chinese vessel pointing the laser at the Philippine ship. But China has denied the allegation.

On Tuesday before Marcos summoned the Chinese envoy, Manila filed a formal protest, saying the act goes against an agreement reached at a bilateral summit last month that maritime differences should be managed through dialogue rather than by force.

Key words : indian tax
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230215_01/

The British public broadcaster BBC says Indian income tax officers searched its bureaus in the capital, New Delhi and the western city of Mumbai on Tuesday. The company reported this on its official Twitter account.

Details have not been disclosed on why and how the tax surveys were conducted. But local media reported that the mobile phones of employees in the BBC offices were taken away by the tax team.

The raid came after the BBC last month aired a documentary critical of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The documentary focused on the prime minister's role in a religious conflict in Gujarat in 2002 that left more than 1,000 people dead. He was chief minister of the western state at the time.

The Modi administration reacted sharply to the program, calling it a "propaganda piece" meant to push a "discredited narrative."

A senior official of India's main opposition Congress party said that Tuesday's search shows that the Modi government is scared of criticism.

The BBC said on Twitter that it is "fully cooperating" with authorities. It said, "We hope to have this situation resolved as soon as possible."

Key words : visitor japan surged
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230216_14/

The number of overseas visitors to Japan surged by almost 9 percent in January from a month earlier. Tourists from East Asia during the Lunar New Year holidays accounted for much of the increase.

The Japan National Tourism Organization says the country welcomed 1,497,300 foreign travelers last month. That is an increase of 127,300 from December.

Almost 40 percent of them, 565,200, were from South Korea. Another 259,300 came from Taiwan and 151,900 from Hong Kong.

The number of inbound tourists has been growing since the government started easing coronavirus-related border restrictions last June.

But January's figure is still only about half what it was for the same month in 2019 before the pandemic.

The government is shifting its focus from visitor numbers to trying to attract high-spending holidaymakers. It wants to see spending per inbound tourist reach 200,000 yen, or about 1,500 dollars, by 2025.

Key words : nhk inoue
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230215_17/

Japanese public broadcaster NHK has named Inoue Tatsuhiko as its executive vice president.

The former NHK senior director assumed the post on Wednesday for a 3-year term.

He has served as head of NHK's political news division and of its programming department before becoming a member of the executive board.

Inoue told reporters he will support President Inaba Nobuo, who has pledged to scrutinize reforms at NHK and to ensure the broadcaster continues to develop.

He vowed to do his utmost to make sure NHK continues to fulfill its role as a public broadcaster and remains indispensable for viewers.

He also said that maintaining content quality despite reduced revenues poses a challenge.

He said he believes the programs and content have been and will be a top priority.

He added he will work with other officials and staff to embrace the value of a public service media organization amid rapidly changing industry circumstances.