Officials from Japan and the United States have agreed to continue applying maximum pressure on North Korea to take concrete action toward denuclearization.
Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso has reiterated that he will not resign. Opposition parties are urging him to step down to take responsibility for the ministry's document-tampering scandal.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has been reelected for a second 5-year term and his ally, Wang Qishan, has become vice president for the first time.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20180317200000_english_1.mp3
Key words : officials maximum possible
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180317_13/
Officials from Japan and the United States have agreed to continue applying maximum pressure on North Korea to take concrete action toward denuclearization.
Foreign Minister Taro Kono met US Vice President Mike Pence on Friday at the White House in Washington. Kono's US visit comes ahead of the scheduled inter-Korean summit meeting and the possible US-North Korea summit.
Kono stressed that in addition to pressuring Pyongyang over its nuclear and missile programs, Japan seeks to resolve the abductions of its nationals by North Korea in the 1970s and 80s before normalizing relations with the North.
He asked the US to take up the abduction issue during the prospective summit with North Korea to be held by May. The 2 agreed to work closely to resolve the issue.
In talks with Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan, Kono said North Korea has twice broken promises to denuclearize.
The 2 confirmed that Japan and the US will continue cooperating closely to maintain pressure and sanctions on the North until it takes complete, verifiable and irreversible steps toward denuclearization.
Sullivan is standing in after President Donald Trump fired Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Kono also met Tillerson, and thanked him for his efforts on the issue of North Korea.
In the talks with Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, the two officials agreed that Japan and the US will closely cooperate through various channels, including a meeting between their leaders that could take place in early April.
Kono also held talks with Trump's National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster.
Kono told reporters after his meetings that the frank exchanges led him to believe there are no discrepancies between Japan and the US on maintaining close cooperation over the North. He added he has no concerns about the direction in which the US is headed, or about the possible US-North Korea summit.
Key words : diplomatic source discuss
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180317_19/
Diplomatic sources say a North Korean foreign ministry official will take part in a meeting in which a former US diplomat and others will discuss security issues, including the North's nuclear development.
Choe Kang Il, deputy director general of the foreign ministry's North American Affairs Bureau is scheduled to attend the meeting which will begin in Finland on Tuesday.
Choe accompanied the high-level North Korean delegation to the closing ceremony of last month's PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games.
Other attendees will include the official in charge of the United States at North Korea's UN mission in New York, former US Ambassador to South Korea Kathleen Stephens and South Korean researchers.
An unofficial exchange of opinion is expected to take place on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula during the meeting, ahead of the US-North Korea summit that is expected to take place by May.
North Korea has not made any official comment on the bilateral summit.
Key words : Aso reiterate resign
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180316_35/
Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso has reiterated that he will not resign. Opposition parties are urging him to step down to take responsibility for the ministry's document-tampering scandal.
Some opposition parties, including the Democratic Party and the Japanese Communist Party, returned to Diet deliberations on Friday, ending their boycott.
On Monday, the ministry admitted altering documents related to the controversial sale of state-owned land to school operator Moritomo Gakuen.
A Democratic Party member, Hideya Sugio, criticized Aso for claiming the scandal was caused by a handful of ministry officials and putting all the blame on them. Sugio asked Aso if he intends to resign.
Aso said he will not step down, saying he must fulfill his responsibilities as the head of the ministry. He said he needs to find out the causes of the wrongdoing and take measures to prevent similar cases.
Key words : Chinese reelected first
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180317_14/
Chinese President Xi Jinping has been reelected for a second 5-year term and his ally, Wang Qishan, has become vice president.
The appointments were made on Saturday at a plenary session of China's National People's Congress.
The congress reelected Xi as president with a vote of 2,970 for to zero against.
His confidante, Wang, was elected as vice president for the first time.
Wang helped Xi consolidate his hold on power by playing a leading role in his anti-corruption campaign.
Wang retired from the Politburo of the Communist Party last year at the party's customary retirement age of 68.
It is rare for a person retired from the party's leadership to be appointed to the vice presidency, which is traditionally assumed by one of the top officials of the ruling party.
Last Sunday, the Congress adopted a constitutional amendment to scrap the limit of 2 five-year terms for president and vice president.
The move paves the way for Xi and Wang to stay in power indefinitely after their terms end in 2023.
Previously, Wang has worked on financial issues and ties between China and the United States. He is expected to exercise a large influence on economic and foreign policies.
Key words : Trump legislation unfair
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180317_08/
US President Donald Trump has defied Chinese pressure to sign legislation promoting closer ties between the US and Taiwan.
Trump signed the Taiwan Travel Act into law on Friday, after Congress approved it.
The legislation aims to encourage mutual visits between US and Taiwanese officials at all levels.
Trump's move comes against a backdrop of what the US sees as China's unfair trade practices and its expanding military build-up.
China strongly opposes the new law. It has urged the US to abide by the country's "One China" policy and cease official exchanges with Taiwan. Beijing views its policy as the foundation for relations with Washington.
A White House official says the US government is stepping up pressure on China over trade and other issues.
Observers say the new law may affect US-China cooperation in dealing with North Korea's missile and nuclear development.
Key words : Chinese reacted
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180317_09/
The Chinese Embassy in the United States has reacted sharply to the enactment of the Taiwan Travel Act.
The embassy issued a statement after US President Donald Trump signed the legislation into law on Saturday.
The statement says the relevant clauses of the act severely violate the "one-China principle", which it describes as the political foundation of the China-US relationship. It adds China is strongly dissatisfied with the act and firmly opposes it.
The Chinese urge the US side to stop pursuing all official ties with Taiwan aimed at improving relations with the island in any substantive way.
In a statement, the Taiwanese foreign ministry thanked the US Congress and President Trump for supporting the island.
The ministry said on Saturday relations between Taiwan and the United States have become closer and stronger since Trump took office.
It noted US government officials have often visited Taiwan for various purposes. It added Taiwan is committed to closely cooperating with the US and promoting peace and stability in the region.
Key words : Kuroda
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180317_01/
Japan's Diet has given the nod to the government's proposal to reappoint Haruhiko Kuroda as the head of the Bank of Japan. Kuroda has been pushing monetary easing measures in a bid to achieve the bank's 2-percent inflation target.
The Lower and Upper houses of the Diet approved the proposal with majority support. Kuroda will begin his second 5-year term on April 9th.
Kuroda is 73 years old. He took office as BOJ Governor in March 2013 and kicked off a massive monetary easing program. He also introduced a negative interest policy.
Attention is now focused on how soon he can achieve the inflation target.
The Diet also approved the government's nomination for deputy governors. The two are Professor Masazumi Wakatabe of Waseda University and BOJ Executive Director Masayoshi Amamiya. They will take office on Tuesday.
Key words : cherry confirmed Tokyo
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