Welcome to NHK Newsline. I'm Ramin Mellegard in Tokyo.
CHINA URGES ITS CITIZENS TO STOP VISITING JAPAN
Authorities in Beijing are urging Chinese nationals to refrain from visiting Japan for the time being.
They say it's in response to comments about Taiwan by Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae.
China's foreign ministry released a statement late on Friday.
It accuses Takaichi of provocatively remarking about Taiwan and negatively impacting the atmosphere of mutual exchanges.
The statement also says the lives and physical safety of Chinese nationals in Japan are now at risk, and urges them to be fully attentive to the local security situation.
Takaichi told the Diet earlier this month that a military emergency over Taiwan could be regarded as a situation that would threaten Japan's survival.
JAPAN: TAKAICHI MERELY REFLECTED OFFICIAL POSITION
Takaichi's comment has left Beijing fuming, but officials in Tokyo insist she was only reflecting the conventional position of the government.
The Chinese foreign ministry has summoned Japan's ambassador to China, Kanasugi Kenji, to lodge a protest and demand a retraction.
Speaking on Friday, Japan's foreign minister, Motegi Toshimitsu, said Kanasugi clearly objected to the protest and explained the meaning of Takaichi's remark.
Motegi added that there's no need to retract what she said.
Japan has also condemned a social media post by Chinese Consul General Xue Zhuan in Osaka following Takeichi's comment.
Now, Xue said the intruding dirty neck must be cut off without a moment's hesitation.
Japan's vice foreign minister, Funakoshi Takehiro, summoned China's ambassador to Japan, Wu Jiang Heo on Friday to lodge a strong protest. Funakoshi said the post was extremely inappropriate.
Some members of Japan's ruling and opposition parties have called for measures against the consul general, including deporting him as a persona non grata.
TAKAICHI PLEDGES ACTION 48 YEARS AFTER N. KOREA ABDUCTIONS.
North Korea's abductions of Japanese nationals are a high priority for Prime Minister Takaichi.
She has once again expressed her commitment to achieving a breakthrough while in office.
Takaichi said she intends to deal directly with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and seek concrete results through bold action.
Saturday marks exactly 48 years since North Korean agents abducted Yokota Megumi from Niigata City on the Sea of Japan coast.
She was 13 years old at the time.
Takeichi said 48 years is an exceedingly long time. She added that she felt sorry that other abductees have also not yet been returned from the North.
00:03:18 話者 2
I want to achieve a breakthrough no matter what, exploring every possible option.
I'm determined in this matter. We will do everything we can.
00:03:31 話者 1
Earlier this week, Yokota Megumi's mother, Yokota Sakie, attended a meeting of supporters in Tokyo.
She said her daughter's disappearance threw her family into total darkness.
Sakie is the only living parent of a government-identified abductee.
The Japanese government says at least 17 of its citizens were abducted by North Korea in the 1970s and '80s.
Five were returned home after a bilateral summit in 2002.
The other 12 remain unaccounted for.
TRUMP TARIFFS
TRUMP REMOVES SOME TARIFFS IN BID TO COUNTER INFLATION
US President Donald Trump has announced that he is removing tariffs on a wide range of agricultural products with retroactive effect from 12.01 A.m. Eastern Standard Time on Thursday.
00:04:18 話者 3
For the most part, the foods, when we cut back a little bit on those herbs, we'll get the price down.
00:04:24 話者 1
Trump on Friday signed an executive order allowing imports of items that the US
relies on, such as coffee and tropical fruit, to be exempt from tariffs.
It is a modification to the policy he calls reciprocal tariffs, which he announced in April.
This change comes as full imposition of the levies is among the causes of prices rising in the country.
There is increasing public discontent with the inflationary trend.
The move also follows the New York mayoral victory in early November of Democrat Zohran Mamdani, who has been critical of the Trump administration.
Trump apparently made the decision to appease voters eager for anti-inflation measures ahead of the US midterm elections in November next year.
TRUMP: 'SORT OF MADE UP MY MIND' ON VENEZUELA
In separate news, Trump has indicated that he has made a decision on dealing with Venezuela amid speculation that his administration may take military action against the South American country.
00:05:26 話者 4
Can you say, have you made-up your mind on what you'd like to do as far as action?
00:05:30 話者 3
I sort of have made-up my mind, yeah. I can't tell you what it is, but we've made a lot of progress with Venezuela in terms of stopping drugs from pouring in.
00:05:40 話者 1
The Trump administration says the large amounts of drugs are being smuggled into the US from countries including Venezuela.
Since September, the US military has attacked several boats, allegedly carrying drugs in waters off the Venezuelan coast, and sent an aircraft carrier to the area.
The Washington Post reports that on Friday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman General Dan Caine visited the White House for a second consecutive day of talks, centered on potential military action against Venezuela.
In response, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has called on the US to back off.
00:06:23 話者 5
Stop the insane hand of those who order bombing, killing, and bringing war to South America, to the Caribbean. Stop the war. No to war.
00:06:33 話者 1
He said peace will triumph, as will international law.
US APPROVES $330 MIL. ARMS SALE TO TAIWAN
The US has announced a proposed $330 million weapons sale to Taiwan, and it's the first one since President Trump took office in January.
The Pentagon says the sale includes parts for Taiwan's fleet of F-16 fighter jets and C-130 military cargo planes, and it covers technical and logistics support.
It also says the sale will improve Taiwan's capability to meet current and future threats without altering the basic military balance in the region.
Taiwan welcomed the announcement. It says the action firmly upholds US commitments to Taiwan's security. But China sharply reacted to the move.
00:07:20 話者 6
It seriously violated China's sovereignty and security interests and sent a wrong signal to the Taiwan independent separatist forces.
China is strongly dissatisfied with this and firmly opposes it.
00:07:34 話者 1
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian also says the Taiwan question is the first red line that can't be crossed in China-US relations.
JAPAN, INDONESIA TO HOLD MEETING OF FOREIGN, DEFENSE MINISTERS.
Japan and Indonesia are set to hold meetings with their foreign and defense ministers next week in Tokyo.
The so-called two-plus-two talks will be the first such meeting since Prime Minister Takeichi's cabinet was launched last month.
Japan's Defense Minister Koizumi Shinjiro announced on Friday that the two countries will hold the talks on Monday.
Koizumi and Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu will meet Indonesia's Foreign Minister Sugyono and Defense Minister Shafri Shamsudin.
The two sides are expected to share views on the global situation and discuss how to expand cooperation between their maritime security and defense authorities.
SHAFRI is expected to inspect vessels and units of Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force on the sideline of the talks.
00:08:45 話者 7
Indonesia is a geopolitically important country with important sea lanes and is an indispensable partner that should strengthen cooperation in the field of defense as a maritime nation like Japan.
00:08:58 話者 1
Koizumi added that he wants to have frank discussions on issues that must be resolved urgently for a free and open Indo-Pacific.
And those are the stories for this hour.
WEATHER
♫～ 3-DAY FORECAST ～♫
And that's a wrap for this edition of NHK Newsline. I'm Ramin Mellegard.
Thank you very much for joining us.
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