at 18:00 (JST), September 18 (CC > Copilot)

 

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20240918180000_english_1.mp3

Welcome back to NHK Newsline.Here’s the latest we have for you at this hour.

Japan’s Defense Ministry said the Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning briefly entered the contiguous zone outside Japan’s waters early Wednesday.

The "Liaoning" traveled between two islands, Yonaguni and Iriomote.

This is the first time for a Chinese aircraft carrier to navigate in Japan’s contiguous zone, the area just outside a country’s territorial waters.

Under international law, vessels from other countries are allowed to travel in the zone.

The law also says a country can act in its contiguous zone to prevent illegal acts in its territorial waters.

In December 2022, the takeoff and landing of fighters and helicopters from the "Liaoning" was observed when the ship was in the Pacific south of Okinawa.

The Chinese military has been stepping up activities around Japan.

Last month, intelligence aircraft flew into Japan’s territorial airspace.

It was the first time that a Chinese military violation of airspace was confirmed.

A Chinese survey vessel entered into Japanese waters last month.

Japan’s ministry is analyzing the objective of the Liaoning’s latest move and monitoring the vessel.

A Japanese boy has been treated in hospital after being assaulted in China.

He attends a Japanese school there.

Officials in Japan said a man attacked the boy earlier on Wednesday in Guangdong Province.

The suspect has reportedly been arrested by local authorities and is being questioned.

Translator: To protect Japanese nationals, the Japanese consulate made the request to the local authorities to prevent this from recurring and shared detailed information.

In addition, the consulate has immediately sensed they have to decide to provide necessary support, and it will continue to respond appropriately.

The Japanese embassy in Beijing sent an email to Japanese citizens in China, urging them to exercise caution.

A U.S. Navy aircraft flew through the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday, prompting China to send up fighter jets to monitor it.

The passage is the latest show of strength in the region by Western nations as China steps up military pressure on Taiwan.

The U.S. 7th Fleet said in a statement that a U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon patrol and reconnaissance aircraft transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace.

The statement stressed the United States was operating in accordance with international law and upholding what it called the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.

It added that the transit of the strait was a demonstration of Washington’s commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.

China’s Eastern Theater Command, which oversees the East China Sea, including Taiwan, said in a statement that Chinese fighter jets scrambled to pursue and surveil the U.S. aircraft.

It criticized the transit, saying the U.S. is hyping it up publicly.

A U.S.-guided missile destroyer conducted a transit of the Taiwan Strait last month, and two German navy ships passed through it on Friday for the first time in 22 years.

Japan is condemning North Korea for firing off multiple ballistic missiles early on Wednesday.

It’s the latest provocation by Pyongyang this month as it moves to intensify its weapons program.

Japanese defense officials say the projectiles were fired at 6:53 and 7:23 a.m. and appear to have fallen near North Korea’s east coast.

Seoul says they were launched from Kaechon, north of Pyongyang, and flew about 400 kilometers.

South Korean media reports they may have been the Hwasong-11, a new type of ballistic missile the North claims to have successfully tested in July.

Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Japan’s defense minister criticized the move.

Translator: The launch of a ballistic missile is a clear violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions.

It’s totally unacceptable.

The government’s lodged a protest through diplomatic channels.

Last Thursday, Pyongyang launched several short-range ballistic missiles it calls super-large rockets.

The country’s state-run media says it was overseen by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

A U.S. State Department spokesperson has told NHK the U.S. plans to continue talks with its allies, including Japan, on how to respond.

The race to become leader in the ruling Democratic Party is heating up.

Nine candidates are hoping to succeed Kishida Fumio.

The candidates went head to head in the southern prefecture.

Okinawa currently hosts about 70% of facilities, including the Futenma.

The chief cabinet secretary said he vows to speed up that process and return the land to Okinawans.

He said if elected, he plans to continue Kishida’s policy.

And the foreign minister pointed to victims of sexual violence.

She said she’ll take a tough stance towards U.S. authorities to prevent former incidents.

The former secretary-general said U.S. bases should be jointly managed with Japan and also said if elected, he plans to enforce the agreement.

And Toshimitsu would go a step further.

And he said he also hopes to return the land so it can be developed to stimulate the economy.

Candidates touched on Japan’s defense abilities around Okinawa islands.

Kono Taro said there needs to be more discussion on how the U.S. military can defend those islands, Okinawa, and the nation in light of China’s increased maritime activity.

The future of Okinawa’s economy was also on the agenda.

The economic security minister said she helped the I.T. take root in Okinawa.

She said she wants to boost the economy and strengthen the power at large.

The former security minister Takayuki said if elected, he would increase jobs.

And environment minister Shinjiro plans to modernize Okinawa by moving on tourism.

And the former chief cabinet secretary said he will strive to direct more of Japan’s budget towards Okinawa.

He said he will dedicate himself to doubling the salaries of those living in the prefecture.

The LDP will hold vote-counting on September 27th.

The winner of the election is expected to become the country’s next prime minister.

Security officials in Lebanon are trying to understand what happened in what appears to be a sophisticated remote attack.

They’ve seen hundreds of handheld pagers across the country explode at around the same time.

They say nine people were killed, more than 2,700 wounded.

Reuters news agency says it happened Tuesday afternoon.

Many of the devices went off in a suburb of Beirut, a stronghold for Hezbollah fighters.

They’ve been exchanging fire with Israeli forces across the border for months.

The group’s leaders say two of them are among the dead.

Citing U.S. and other officials, the New York Times says Israel planted explosives within the Taiwanese-made pagers before they were shipped to Lebanon.

It says the pagers were also embedded with a switch that could be triggered remotely to detonate the explosives.

However, a Taiwanese company said in a statement it only provides brand trademark authorization and has no involvement in the design or manufacturing of the product.

U.S. officials say they played no part.

I can tell you that the U.S. was not involved in it.

The U.S. was not aware of this incident in advance.

Hezbollah has released a statement saying Israel would receive fair punishment.

Israeli military officials have refused to comment.

At least 21 people have died after days of torrential rain flooded parts of central and eastern Europe.

Deaths were reported in the Czech Republic, Austria, Poland, and Romania.

This video was taken on Monday in the eastern Czech city of Ostrava, which is located near the Polish border.

It shows the flooding of a residential area and people being rescued by helicopter.

Neighboring Austria also saw suburban districts being inundated on Tuesday, prompting firefighters to carry out rescue operations by boat.

The Polish government has declared a state of disaster to the affected region in southern Poland to facilitate evacuations and rescues.

The government also announced that it will provide 260 million U.S. dollars to victims immediately.

Translator: The financial aid comes only after an assessment of the impact of the floods.

And naturally, you will not have to apply, just raise your hand.

Storms hit the region last week, bringing extreme downpours that have caused extensive damage across parts of Europe.

Cleanup efforts are under way in areas where the water has receded, but many people are still without electricity and water.

♪

Now, it’s time to check the weather with our meteorologist Jonathan Oh.

So, Jonathan, it was a hot day in Tokyo before the clouds rolled in.

But when are things going to cool off?

Hello, we’re experiencing the heat just a little bit longer before the cooldown comes into the picture as we go into the weekend.

We hit a high of 35.1 degrees in Tokyo.

That’s the highest on record.

We haven’t seen this for 85 years where temperatures hit that this late in the season.

Cloud cover may help to give more shade from the sunshine.

Meanwhile, we look to the south and we’re keeping an eye on a tropical storm that is on its way towards Okinawa.

Let’s take a look at some video coming out from the general region from Japan.

A

Palazan has been bringing storms.

And because of the storm on its way.

Weather officials have warned residents to take precautions against heavy rain that could lead to flooding, strong winds and waves.

Some locations we could see powerful winds, over 100 miles per hour.

That will continue as we see storms moving towards the northwest trajectory.

Now, the storm may peter out.

But those in China, you already saw the impact of a different system earlier in the week so additional rainfall could give issue as we go forward in time.

Quick note, third 30s in Tokyo, may see thunderstorms, especially areas points south and east as we go into Thursday.

So be on the lookout for that.

Meanwhile, keep an eye on another system that’s moving towards Southeast Asia, already from the impacts of Yagi.

But now we could see additional rainfall that compound issues that the region has been experiencing.

Quick look at the forecast, rain in Bangkok, Shanghai, as we go into Thursday.

Hope you have a good day.

And that brings us to the end of this edition of NHK Newsline. We’ll have more for you at the top of the hour.Thanks for watching.