Welcome to NHK Newsline. I'm Gene Otani in Tokyo.
The Japanese government will host a trilateral meeting with top diplomats from China and South Korea next weekend. The talks are scheduled for March 22 in Tokyo.
The foreign ministers are expected to discuss how to boost cooperation in areas including personnel exchanges, the economy, and measures to cope with declining birth rates. The arrangement of a trilateral summit later this year is also on the agenda. Japan plans to hold two-way talks with the Chinese foreign minister on the sidelines of next Saturday's event. It is also scheduling a high-level economic dialogue with China featuring the relevant ministers from both countries. This would be the first such meeting since 2019.
The government is hoping the talks with China will serve as an opportunity to resolve pending issues between the countries. This includes China's import suspension of Japanese fishery products.
US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has indicated Japanese vehicles will not be exempt from new auto tariffs. He says cars from all countries will be subject to the 25% duties which Washington plans to impose next month.
Lutnick made the remarks during an interview on Fox Business Network on Friday. He said the Trump administration will be tariffing cars from everywhere and the measure would not allow Japan to have an unfair advantage.
Lutnik also called the US auto industry the country's fundamental manufacturing capability. He said President Donald Trump believes it is crucial to national security. The US currently levies a 2.5% tariff on imported cars in principle. There are growing concerns in Japan that an increase to 25% would deal a major blow to the country's car makers.
Japanese automobile exports to the US totaled about $40 billion last year.
Russian President Vladimir Putin says he's considering a request from his US counterpart to spare the lives of Ukrainian soldiers in the western region of Kursk and other front lines, but only if the troops surrender. Putin was speaking at a meeting of his Security Council.
For the effective implementation of the United States president's call, there is a need for a corresponding order from the military and political leadership of Ukraine to its military units to lay down their arms and surrender.
Putin says he understands Trump's request to take humanitarian considerations into account in a post on social media, Donald Trump. asked that the lives of Ukrainian soldiers be spared. He says thousands of them are surrounded and vulnerable.
We've spoken with President Putin. We've spoken with a lot of people. I'm getting from the standpoint about a ceasefire and ultimately a deal, some pretty good vibes coming out of Russia.
Russia's presidential office says Putin met in personWith Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff on Thursday, they are believed to have discussed a US proposal for a 30 day ceasefire. Russian military officials say their forces have recaptured almost all areas in the Kursk region. There is speculation that they may be planning to advance across the border into northeastern Ukraine.
The foreign ministers of the Group of Seven nations are urging Russia to accept Washington's proposal for a 30 day pause in fighting, they say the alternative could entail more sanctions.
The ministers wrapped up a three day meeting on Friday in Canada. They released a statement reaffirming their unwavering support for Ukraine to defend its territorial integrity and right to exist. The ministers praised Kiev's readiness to accept the ceasefire.
They also criticized North Korea and Iran for providing military assistance to Russia, and they accused China of supplying weapons and components with potential military use. Observers say the G7 want to show a united front against Russia in light of Washington's push for concessions from both Moscow and Kyiv, but the statement is notable for its softer tone. Japan's Foreign Minister Iwaya Takeshi said it is increasingly important for the G7 to cooperate in all fields. He cited economic security and the fight against fake information.
I want to continue to strengthen the unity of the G7 through close communication.
Iwaya also said European countries need to continue engaging in security issues in the Indo-Pacific region.
A spacecraft carrying Japanese astronaut Onishi Takuya and three other crew members has been successfully launched on a trip to the International Space Station. Three, two, one, ignition, and go Space. After engine ignition, the Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Crew Dragon craft lifted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in the US state of Florida. Besides Onishi, there are two American astronauts and a Russian cosmonaut on board. About 10 minutes later, the craft separated from the rocket on a planned orbit. Onishi communicated with ground control and expressed gratitude for their support. He also spoke about being back in space.
I'm experiencing 0 gravity for the first time in nine years. I'm enjoying myself.
Onishi is scheduled to stay on the ISS for about 6 months. It will be his second stay on the station after his first flight in 2016. During his mission, Onichi will install a new carbon dioxide removal system developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency on the ISS's Kibo Laboratory module and conduct experiments to prepare for future manned space exploration. Onichi will take over command of the ISS.
East Japan Railway has now resumed normal operations on its Tohoku Shinkansen Line. Some services have been canceled after two connected trains came undone last week.
The line includes trains that are coupled for part of the routes before separating and heading to different cities in northeastern Japan. But travelers have had to get off and switch trains since the incident the company resumed. Some coupled services on Friday and returned to its normal schedule on Saturday.
It's good that this will relieve congestion. I want the operator to find out the cause of the incident and restore trust. A coupled train was traveling north from Tokyo on March 6 when it separated. The railway company says it took emergency measures to confirm safety, and is now investigating the cause of the incident.
There was a similar case last September. The likely cause was identified as a metal fragment triggering an emergency decoupling switch.
South Korea has recorded its first case of foot-and-mouth disease in nearly two years. The infection was confirmed at a beef cattle farm in the country's southwest. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced the case on Friday. It says more than 180 cattle will now have to be culled at the farm in South Chola province. It will also implement measures to prevent the disease from spreading, including the disinfection of nearby farms and roads.
The ministry says it will also bring forward a plan to vaccinate cattle and other livestock at farms across the country from April to later this month.
Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has responded by issuing a notice urging prefecture governments to exercise caution.
And those were the main stories for this hour.
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And that's the news this hour. I'm Gene Otani from all of us here at NHK Newsline to all around the world. Thanks very much for joining us.
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