at 20:00 (JST), June 17 AS

Japanese Defense Minister plans to visit potential sites for the deployment of a new ground-based ballistic missile defense system.

エラー 2042

Japan's national soccer team has conducted a closed training session ahead of its first match of the World Cup in Russia against Colombia.

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20180617200000_english_1.mp3


Key words : defense plans to visit
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180617_03/

Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera plans to visit potential sites for the deployment of a new ground-based ballistic missile defense system.

The government wants to install 2 Aegis Ashore units to counter possible missile attacks from North Korea.

But some members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, citing the high cost of deploying the systems, argue that the plan should be reviewed in the wake of the US-North Korea summit.

The defense chief plans to brief governors and officials from Akita and Yamaguchi Prefectures, where the 2 potential sites are located, as early as this week.

Onodera believes that North Korean missiles remain a threat to Japan, as the North did not promise, during the summit, to dismantle short- and intermediate-range missiles that can reach Japan.

He is expected to tell the officials that the central government plans to introduce the missile defense system as scheduled.

Onodera hopes to win over the local people in the 2 prefectures, and ease their concerns, by providing more information about the deployment schedule.

Key words : Kono seek direct
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Key words : Cambodian rallied
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180617_13/

Cambodian residents in Japan have rallied in central Tokyo to call on the Japanese government to end its support for a general election in July.

Organizers say about 1,000 Cambodian residents took part in the rally in Hibiya Park on Sunday.

Members of the Cambodia National Rescue Party, the country's largest opposition group, are banned from running in the election.

A Cambodian court ordered the party to disband last year and banned its senior members from engaging in political activities.

The protesters in Tokyo marched about 2 kilometers. They held up banners asking the Japanese government to immediately halt its support for the election and not to recognize its results.

The United States and the European Union have been critical of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and suspended assistance for the vote.

But Japan continues its support, saying it wants to keep urging the administration of Hun Sen to hold a fair election until just before the race.

Hay Vanna represents a group of Cambodian residents in Japan. He said the election will not be fair, and he hopes Japan will end its assistance without coddling Hun Sen, who he called "a dictator."

Key words : Myanmar
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180617_01/

A ceremony has been held in Myanmar to celebrate the introduction of a system designed to automatically control railway operations.

Officials from Japan and Myanmar, including Myanmar's transport minister Thant Sin Maung and Japanese ambassador Ichiro Maruyama, took part in the event. It was held on Saturday at the central station in Yangon, Myanmar's largest city.

The new system is capable of automatically controlling traffic lights and railroad switches. It is much safer and more efficient than the old manually-operated system.

Myanmar's railway services are outdated, despite the fact that the rate of economic growth in the country is high.

Old equipment and facilities, as well as poorly maintained rail tracks, have been the main causes of delays in railway operations.

The Japanese government has provided Myanmar with loans worth more than 100 billion yen, or about 900 million dollars, to help modernize the existing railway line between Yangon and the commercial city of Mandalay.

Masayuki Karasawa of the Japan International Cooperation Agency's Myanmar Office said he hopes the railway and road projects, which Japan is helping Myanmar complete, will bring about growth in Yangon's urban areas and in the country's rural regions.

Key words : new study
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Key words : Japan soccer conducted
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180617_10/

Japan's national soccer team has conducted a closed training session ahead of its first match of the World Cup in Russia against Colombia.

Only the first 15 minutes of practice at its training base in the Russian city of Kazan was open to the public on Saturday.

The squad reportedly took part in a simulated game to check their coordination.

Defender Yuto Nagatomo, a three time veteran of the World Cup, told reporters that fighting spirit as well as strategy is crucial.

Japan faces Colombia on Tuesday in the city of Saransk, which is about 650 kilometers southeast of Moscow.