at 18:30 (JST), May 22

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/20230522183000_english_1.mp3


Key words : Kishida hailing success
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230522_12/

Japan's Prime Minister Kishida Fumio is hailing this year's Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima as a success.

Kishida, who chaired the summit, said that leaders made clear their determination to protect international order and, with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's dramatic appearance, heralded their solidarity with Ukraine.

In his closing speech of the summit on Sunday, Kishida said, "I feel it is significant that we invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Japan, showed unwavering solidarity between the G7 and Ukraine, confirmed the importance of a free and open international order based on the rule of law, and strongly demonstrated to the world that we have renewed our commitment to protecting it."

During the three-day meeting, G7 leaders announced new sanctions and export controls against Russia.

They promised millions in new military aid, including the training of Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets.

They vowed to aim for a world without nuclear weapons, and to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan strait.

And they deepened ties with emerging nations invited to the summit, including India, which has close ties with Russia.

In a post-summit speech, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for support that would make Russia the last nation to invade another country.

He said, "Though the enemy is not using nuclear weapons, our cities that have been burned to the ground by Russian bombs and artillery look similar to what Hiroshima looked like in photos after the atomic bombing."

There was a strong reaction from Russia's foreign ministry. It says the G7 leaders' statements were brimming with "anti-Russian and anti-Chinese" language.

Russia says bringing Zelenskyy to the summit turned the meeting into a "propaganda show."

China's foreign ministry says it has summoned the Japanese ambassador over references to Beijing-related comments at the summit. It says Japan colluded with other countries in smearing and attacking China and grossly interfered in its internal affairs.

Key words : survivor disappoint did not mention
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230521_32/

A 91-year-old atomic bomb survivor told reporters in Hiroshima on Sunday that she was disappointed there was no mention of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in the statement on the nuclear disarmament the G7 leaders released during their summit.

Setsuko Thurlow, who now lives in Canada, was about 1.8 kilometers from ground zero and was exposed to radiation from the explosion when she was 13.

For more than half a century, she has been calling for abolishing nuclear weapons around the world. She gave a speech at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony when the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, or ICAN, was awarded the prize in 2017.

Thurlow said she felt the statement "G7 Leaders' Hiroshima Vision on Nuclear Disarmament" did not mention their feelings.

She said the people of Hiroshima had hoped that the leaders would understand the significance of the summit being held in the city, visit Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, and see what the people in the city went through.

Thurlow said she was surprised that the statement did not include a single word about the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons that actually exists in the international community.

She said she was also disappointed that the statement only carried things that had been discussed in the past, despite the leaders having the opportunity to meet atoic bomb survivors, visit the museum and think.

Thurlow added that she does not feel the G7 summit in Hiroshima created momentum for the people and the government to work together toward abolishing nuclear weapons.

She stressed that she hopes the leaders will not let the G7 summit end as a celebration, but keep up the momentum toward abolishing nuclear weapons.

Key words : refugee myanmar
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230520_30/

Prospects are dim for immediate restoration in areas of Myanmar hit by a devastating cyclone a week ago.

Cyclone Mocha made landfall on May 14 in the western state of Rakhine, where the military has been pressuring minority Rohingya Muslims.

The pro-democracy National Unity Government, which opposes the country's military rulers, says the cyclone has left 435 people dead, and the figure is expected to rise.

Takagi Noriko, who heads the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Myanmar, spoke to NHK on Saturday.

Takagi said her office has been gradually providing aid. But she said it has not been able to help all the people affected, as the staff cannot visit the cyclone-hit areas to investigate the situation.

She said she met military officials in the capital Naypyitaw on Tuesday to ask for permission to enter the affected areas, but has not yet received approval.

Takagi said her office had stockpiled supplies before the cyclone, and is ready to distribute them.

She said the lives of the affected people will become worse as aid is delayed, and that her office wants to get access to the affected areas as soon as possible.

Key words : china chip micron
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230522_02/

China has required domestic operators of critical information infrastructure to stop procuring from major US chipmaker Micron Technology. The move is seen as a countermeasure against tightened US controls on semiconductor-related exports to the country.

China's cyberspace regulator announced the requirement on Sunday, saying it found serious network security risks in Micron's products.

The regulator says the products pose significant security risks to China's critical information infrastructure supply chain, affecting the country's national security.

About 3.3 billion dollars' worth of the company's products were sold in China last year, accounting for 10 percent of the firm's overall sales.

Key words : south 21 one-seven
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230521_15/

A team of South Korean experts will start a four-day survey on Monday to check the safety of Japan's plan to release treated and diluted water from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the sea.

The treated water will be diluted to reduce tritium levels before it is released into the ocean. Its tritium concentration will be lowered to one-seventh of the World Health Organzation's standards for drinking water.

Japan and South Korea agreed at a meeting in early May to have South Korea send experts on nuclear plants and the marine environment for an on-site survey.

The 21-member team led by Yoo Guk-hee, the chief of South Korea's Nuclear Safety and Security Commission, left Incheon Airport on Sunday for a six-day stay in Japan.

Before their departure, Yoo told reporters that the team will use scientific methods to check on the plan.

He also noted that the team will communicate its findings to the South Korean people. He stressed that by using a scientific, meticulous approach, the team can earn the trust of the public.

The experts will assess the results of analysis on water treated by the Advanced Liquid Processing System, or ALPS, during their visit. They will also examine how treated water is stored and managed.

South Korea has banned fisheries products from Fukushima and several other prefectures due to safety concerns over radioactive contamination.

Key words : asakusa
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20230521_22/

Tokyo's Asakusa district is crowded with people to witness a traditional festival being staged close to its original form for the first time in four years.

The Sanja Matsuri is a centuries-old festival that heralds the arrival of summer. The three-day event reached its peak on Sunday, with a procession of "mikoshi," or portable shrines.

Three floats were brought out from Asakusa Shrine early in the morning. Parishioners then paraded them through the streets of Asakusa.

It is the first time the procession has been staged in its full form since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

A man there to watch the parade said he's glad that excitement has returned to Asakusa.

A woman among the "mikoshi" bearers said she enjoyed carrying the portable shrine for the first time in four years.