2024年5月25日土曜日

at 18:00 (JST), May 25

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20240525180000_english_1.mp3


Key words : defense minister resuming
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240525_10/

Japan, S.Korea defense ministers expected to discuss resuming exchanges

Defense ministers of Japan and South Korea are expected to discuss resuming exchanges between Japan's Self-Defense Forces and the South Korean military.

Japanese government sources say that coordination is underway for a meeting between Japan's Defense Minister Kihara Minoru and his South Korean counterpart Shin Won-sik on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, which will start on May 31 in Singapore.

Exchanges between the SDF and the South Korean military have been suspended following a radar incident in 2018.

The Japanese government says a South Korean Navy destroyer directed fire-control radar at an SDF patrol aircraft over the Sea of Japan. But South Korea says its ship did not aim radar at the plane.

As bilateral relations have improved, Japanese and South Korean defense ministers agreed last year to accelerate talks on issues including measures to prevent such incidents.

Kihara and Shin are not expected to have in-depth discussions over the radar incident, as the two sides remain apart on the issue, but instead are likely to focus on measures to prevent a recurrence based on international standards.

The ministers are also expected to discuss the resumption of joint exercises and exchanges.

If they reach an agreement, Japan and South Korea are expected to move ahead toward strengthening bilateral security cooperation, including responses to North Korea, which is pushing forward its nuclear and missile development programs.


Key words : north central committee
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240525_07/

N.Korea to weigh key policies at plenary meeting of Central Committee in June

North Korea says it will hold a plenary meeting of the ruling Workers' Party Central Committee late next month to discuss the country's key policies.

The party's newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, reported on Saturday that the decision was made during a meeting of the Political Bureau of the party the previous day, with leader Kim Jong Un in attendance.

The plenary meeting of the Central Committee will be the first since last December. It will reportedly be held to "conduct an interim review of the work in the first half of this year and discuss and decide a series of important issues, in order to successfully implement this year's orientation of state affairs."

Decisions concerning diplomatic relations with the United States ahead of the presidential election in November will be a main focus of attention. Military policies based on the five-year defense plan, which has entered its fourth year, is another high priority.

Meanwhile, participants at Friday's meeting reportedly presented immediate tasks for the North Korean armed forces to credibly defend the national sovereignty and security, and underlined the need to responsibly carry them out.

A South Korean military official said on Friday that they had detected suspected signs that the North is preparing to launch a military spy satellite at a launching station in Tongchang-ri. Relevant countries are stepping up their monitoring.


Key words : world health deadline
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240525_08/

WHO members miss deadline for agreement on pandemic treaty

Member states of the World Health Organization have failed to meet a deadline on consensus for a global treaty to fight future pandemics in time. They plan to discuss measures going forward at the WHO general assembly that starts in Switzerland next week.

The WHO members began talks two years ago based on lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. Negotiators had discussed ways to strengthen global anti-infection measures to prevent the spread of new viruses.

But negotiations ended on Friday without adopting a document.

The sticking points included the transfer of technologies and the sharing of information about pathogens.

Developing countries demanded the distribution of vaccines, but developed nations expressed concerns about the impact that could have on their pharmaceutical firms.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for continued negotiations, saying, "We need to use the World Health Assembly to re-energize us and finish the job at hand, which is to present the world with a generational pandemic agreement."

He added, "The world still needs a pandemic treaty."


Key words : uk parliament bill
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240525_02/

UK passes bill to exonerate, compensate postal workers

Britain's Parliament has passed a bill to exonerate and compensate all Post Office workers wrongly convicted due to a flawed accounting system.

The software was provided by a subsidiary of Japanese firm Fujitsu.

Lawmakers passed the bill late Thursday, with royal assent expected Friday.

More than 900 post office managers and other employees were wrongly prosecuted between 1999 and 2015 after the faulty software showed money had gone missing.

A British court has already exonerated more than 100 of those who had been prosecuted after recognizing that the software was defective in 2019.

The new bill will clear the rest, and entitle the victims to 600,000 pounds, or about 764,000 dollars, in compensation.

Post Office branch managers who were not found guilty but suffered losses or experienced other trouble will receive 75,000 pounds, or 95,500 dollars.

In January, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak described the scandal as one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in the country's history.


Key words : austin singapore
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240525_05/

Defense chiefs of US, China to meet during security conference in Singapore

The US Defense Department says Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is planning to meet with his Chinese counterpart, Dong Jun, during a major security conference in Singapore.

The Pentagon said in a statement on Friday that the meeting is slated to take place on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, which will start on May 31.

It will be the first in-person meeting between US and Chinese defense chiefs since November 2022. Austin and Dong held a video call last month.

The move comes as US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to resume dialogue between the two countries' top defense officials during their summit last November.

Austin and Dong are expected to discuss Taiwan and the South China Sea during their meeting. Beijing is stepping up pressure on Taiwan through military drills in areas surrounding Taiwan, and is continuing its assertive behavior in the South China Sea, including firing water cannons at Philippine vessels.

The Pentagon also said Austin is slated to participate in a trilateral meeting with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts, Kihara Minoru and Shin Won-sik.

The Defense Department stressed that it will continue to strengthen US relationships with allies and partners in support of a shared regional vision for peace, stability and deterrence.


Key words : 2nd day detected
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240525_06/

China keeps pressure on Taiwan with 2nd day of military drills

Taiwan says it detected a total of 62 Chinese military aircraft during a second day of drills by Beijing in areas surrounding Taiwan on Friday.

China's Eastern Theater Command announced on Thursday that a two-day exercise would take place through Friday around Taiwan, the Kinmen Islands and other areas.

Taiwan's defense ministry said that from after 7 a.m. through 9:40 p.m. on Friday, it detected 62 Chinese military aircraft including H-6 bombers and KJ-500 early warning and control aircraft, as well as Chinese military and coast guard vessels.

Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Wu Qian said on Friday that every time "Taiwan independence" separatist forces provoke China, Beijing will push its countermeasures one step further, until the complete unification of the motherland is achieved.

The comment is believed to be a strong warning to the administration of Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, which does not recognize the "one-China" principle.

The Chinese military has yet to announce whether the drills have ended, but observers say Beijing will continue to step up pressure on the Lai administration through military activities.


Key words : protest reform
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240525_04/

Rally held in Taiwan against opposition's plan for parliamentary reforms

More than 100,000 people rallied in Taiwan on Friday against a set of parliamentary reforms proposed by the opposition.

The largest opposition Kuomintang party and the second-largest Taiwan People's Party are leading deliberations on the legislation.

The protesters accuse the bloc of trying to unjustly expand its authority.

The proposed reforms include amendments to the criminal code.

One revision requires the president to make regular reports and face questions from lawmakers.

The ruling party is resisting the legislation, and voting on each article has been slow.

Even if the legislation is passed, the Executive Yuan, or Cabinet, can call for a second round of deliberations or a constitutional review.

Civic groups plan to hold another rally on the sidelines of a plenary session scheduled for Tuesday.


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