Key words : group of seven wrapped
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240615_03/
G7 leaders adopt joint communique
The Group of Seven leaders have adopted a communique outlining their agreements on Ukraine, China and other topics.
They wrapped up two days of summit talks in Puglia, Italy, on Friday.
The communique includes an agreement to provide loans to Ukraine using interest from frozen Russian assets.
The leaders also affirmed that they will take necessary measures against entities in China and other third countries that materially support Russia.
Referring to China's maritime activities in the Indo-Pacific, the leaders expressed strong opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo through force or coercion.
They shared concerns regarding China's manufacturing overcapacity in a range of sectors, and agreed to coordinate their response.
Japanese officials say the G7 leaders were able to build on the achievements of last year's summit in Hiroshima, and affirmed their unity in an increasingly complex world.
They say Japan will continue to make contributions in line with the communique.
Prime Minister Kishida Fumio will also attend talks that start on Saturday in Switzerland to discuss a peace plan advocated by Ukraine.
He is expected to state that realizing lasting peace in the country would be symbolic in terms of steering the world from division to harmony.
Kishida is due to express Japan's continued commitment to realizing peace in Ukraine.
Key words : leaders 50 billion
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240614_N01/
G7 leaders agree on loan to Ukraine worth 50 billion dollars
The leaders of the Group of Seven nations share the belief that their allies in Ukraine need more support for weapons and to rebuild. They have agreed to provide a loan worth 50 billion dollars using interest from frozen Russian assets.
The leaders welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to their annual summit on Thursday in the southern Italian region of Puglia. This is the second G7 gathering that Zelenskyy has held in-person meetings with his counterparts.
The G7 leaders have been debating how to use an estimated 300 billion dollars in Russian funds held mostly in European banks. They plan to provide a loan to Ukraine that would be repaid using the interest on those assets.
Senior US officials say the money will continue to be held until the Russians pay for the damage they caused -- even after any ceasefire. Analysts at the World Bank put the cost of reconstruction over the next decade at more than 480 billion dollars.
"This is a very strong commitment, which gives the people of Ukraine the courage to do what is now necessary to defend their independence and their sovereignty," said German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Russian officials criticized the move, saying that taking income from their assets would be illegal. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said buoying the Kyiv regime with someone else's money threatens to "unbalance the financial system" and "create disastrous crises."
Russian leaders have shown no sign of letting up in their fight. They have doubled their annual spending on defense.
Key words : ban on weapons
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240615_04/
Pope Francis warns against using AI for important decisions
Pope Francis has called for a ban on weapons that use artificial intelligence to select and hit targets, saying important decisions must always be left to humans.
The pope was speaking on Friday at an outreach session on AI at the Group of Seven Summit in Italy. He is the first pontiff to attend the G7 gathering.
The pope said AI could enable the exponential advancement of scientific research, but could also cause "greater injustice between advanced and developing nations or between dominant and oppressed social classes."
He went on to warn that humans could lose the ability to make decisions about themselves by depending too much on the choices of machines.
He said, "We should be very clear that decision making, even when we are confronted with its sometimes dramatic and urgent aspects, must always be left to the human person."
The pope said that in this regard, it is urgent to reconsider the development and use of "lethal autonomous weapons" and ultimately ban their use.
Key words : japan and india
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240615_08/
Kishida, Modi pledge to deepen cooperation between Japan and India
Japan's Prime Minister Kishida Fumio and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi have agreed to deepen bilateral cooperation with an eye on an upcoming visit by the Indian leader to Japan.
Kishida and Modi met on Friday on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Italy. The Indian prime minister, who started his third term in office earlier this month, was among the world leaders invited to the summit.
Kishida noted that the Japan-India Special Strategic and Global Partnership is in its 10th year. He said looking ahead to the next 10 years, he hopes that bilateral relations will deepen and become more diversified.
Modi replied that India is willing to closely coordinate with Japan to further promote bilateral ties.
Key words : repeatedly blocking
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240615_09/
US imposes sanctions on 'extremist Israeli group' for blocking aid to Gaza
The US government has imposed sanctions on what it terms a violent extremist Israeli group for repeatedly thwarting deliveries of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
The US State Department issued a statement on Friday, announcing the sanctions, which include asset freezes.
The statement accused members of the group Tzav 9 of repeatedly seeking to thwart aid deliveries for months by such means as "blockading roads, sometimes violently" along the route from Jordan to Gaza.
The group's members are also alleged to have looted and set fire to two trucks in the West Bank carrying humanitarian aid destined for civilians in Gaza in May.
The group is largely comprised of Jewish settlers in the West Bank.
The State Department said: "We will not tolerate acts of sabotage and violence targeting this essential humanitarian assistance. We will continue to use all tools at our disposal to promote accountability for those who attempt or undertake such heinous acts."
The department also called on Israel to address the issue. It said, "The Government of Israel has a responsibility to ensure the safety and security of humanitarian convoys."
The United Nations says more than 1 million Palestinians in Gaza do not have enough clean drinking water and face desperate levels of hunger. It also points out that over 50,000 children require treatment of acute malnutrition.
Key words : new maritime
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240615_01/
China's coast guard given new powers from Saturday
New maritime regulations take effect in China on Saturday, giving the coast guard new powers to detain foreign nationals deemed to have illegally trespassed into the country's waters.
Suspects can be detained for 30 days, or up to 60 days in more complex cases.
Authorities created the regulations based on a law introduced in 2021 allowing the coast guard to use weapons.
The Philippines views the latest move as an attempt by Beijing to consolidate its control over the South China Sea, where the two countries have territorial disputes.
Last month, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said China's plan is "completely unacceptable."
Officials with the US Indo-Pacific Command have expressed concern about a possible escalation in tensions.
The Japanese government is poised to closely watch China's maritime activities so that the legitimate interests of other countries won't be harmed.
Masuda Masayuki, an expert at the National Institute for Defense Studies, says China could soon step up its law enforcement activities in the South and East China seas, including the Senkaku Islands in Okinawa Prefecture.
Masuda suggests that China may be expanding so-called grey zone tactics without resorting to open combat.
Key words : akane
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240614_22/
ICC president calls for raising awareness of court's role
The president of the International Criminal Court is seeking widespread understanding and support for the activities of the court to establish the rule of law in the international community.
Akane Tomoko spoke on Friday at a news conference at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo.
The judge became the first Japanese to helm the court in March. This is her first visit to Japan since then.
The ICC has been working to hold national leaders and others accountable for alleged war crimes and other offenses over such conflicts as the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Sizing up the situation, Akane said conflicts are taking place in many parts of the world, including major countries, and war crimes and crimes against humanity are being committed.
The judge said it is a difficult time for the court to carry out its mission to uphold the rule of law and put an end to impunity for perpetrators.
She noted the various political pressures placed on the ICC. Russia has put ICC officials on its wanted list over an arrest warrant issued by the court for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Akane said every ICC official and judge is carrying out their duties every day determined not to buckle under such pressures.
She noted that political pressures can be deterred by making people aware that the ICC is an independent and impartial court whose decisions should be respected. She added that Japan, which advocates for the rule of law, also has a prominent role to play.
Key words : think tank burden
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240614_32/
Japan births likely to hit record low in 2024
A leading Japanese think tank estimates the number of births in Japan will likely fall below 700,000 this year, marking a record low.
If such a drop in births occurs in 2024 it would come 14 years earlier than the government predicted.
The Japan Research Institute, or JRI, has made the estimation based on the health ministry's preliminary data on the number of babies born across Japan.
The JRI says the number of Japanese babies for this year is estimated to be about 698,000 at most. It would be the lowest since the government began keeping data on the matter.
Earlier, the National Institute of Population and Social Security estimated that the number of births in Japan would drop below the 700,000 mark in 2038.
A senior researcher at JRI, Fujinami Takumi, attributed the estimated low number to Japan's younger population shrinking and a growing number of people thinking marriage and having a child are not necessarily a must amid changing values.
Fujinami also pointed to the COVID-19 pandemic years when the number of marriages fell as young people had fewer chances to meet partners, saying aftereffects from that continue.
He suggested raising real wages for young workers and eradicating gender inequality at home and work to reduce burdens on working mothers.
Key words : banksy
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240615_07/
Work to repair Banksy mural starts in Ukraine
A national institution in Ukraine has begun to repair a mural painted by the anonymous artist Banksy in a town devastated by the Russian invasion.
The artwork was one of seven paintings unveiled in Kyiv and surrounding towns in November, 2022.
The mural shows a man scrubbing his body in a bathtub. It was painted using black and white spray paint on the wall of a badly-damaged apartment building.
The piece has deteriorated in the more than one and a half years since its creation. So it was removed on Wednesday, along with the wallpaper it was painted on, and transferred to a national institution specializing in art restoration.
Workers at the national research and restoration center of Ukraine were seen on Friday carefully removing the dust on the painting's surface using cotton pads soaked in a cleaning solution. They then turned the piece over and gently wiped off mold.
The center says a detailed study and analysis of the artwork is planned, as well as work to plug holes in the painting. It expects to take at least one year to complete the repair work.
The center's director general, Svitlana Strielnikova, says the Banksy graffiti will be extremely difficult to restore because it has been seriously damaged. But she says it needs to be preserved, describing it as an echo of the war.
She says the center faces a shortage of materials needed for the art restoration work, and called for support from other countries.
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