at 20:00 (JST), December 31 AS

The Tokyo District Court on Monday approved prosecutors' request to detain former Nissan Motor chairman Carlos Ghosn for an additional 10 days.

Russia's President expressed his hope to continue constructive dialogue with Japan and wide-ranging fields and a message to Japan's Prime Minister.

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https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20181231200000_english_1.mp3


Key words : Tokyo district approved suspect
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20181231_12/

The Tokyo District Court on Monday approved prosecutors' request to detain former Nissan Motor chairman Carlos Ghosn for a further 10 days.

He will remain in custody until January 11th.

Ghosn was served a fresh arrest warrant on December 21st on allegations of aggravated breach of trust.

Tokyo prosecutors suspect that Ghosn had a Nissan subsidiary illicitly pay some 15 million dollars to the firm of a Saudi acquaintance who helped him obtain a credit guarantee to deal with personal investment losses.

Ghosn was initially arrested on allegations of underreporting his pay.

On December 20th, the Tokyo court made a rare decision to reject prosecutors' request to extend his detention over charges of falsifying financial reports.

Ghosn's lawyer said the former Nissan chairman denies the allegation of aggravated breach of trust. The lawyer quotes him as saying he did not cause any damage to the automaker.

Key words : Russia express
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20181231_01/

Russian President Vladimir Putin says he hopes constructive dialogue with Japan will continue in wide-ranging fields. Putin expressed his hope in a message to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

The Russian Presidential Office announced on Sunday that Putin has sent his New Year's messages to world leaders including Japan, the United States, and China.

In his message to Abe, Putin expressed hopes for an expansion of the legal foundation to facilitate bilateral cooperation, and for implementation of joint economic projects the two nations are planning in the Russian Far East.

Putin and Abe agreed last month that the two countries should accelerate negotiations on a peace treaty based on a 1956 joint declaration.
The declaration says Moscow will hand over to Japan two of the four Russian-held islands after a peace treaty has been signed.

The Japanese government maintains all four islands are an inherent part of Japan's territory. It says they were illegally occupied after World War Two.

Putin is due to meet with Abe in Russia in January.

Observers say Putin is looking for bilateral dialogue on political and economic issues. They say he is also looking for continued dialogue with Japanese leaders on international issues as Japan is to host the G20 summit next June.

Putin also sent a message to US President Donald Trump. He told Trump that a constructive dialogue between the two countries is especially needed to strengthen strategic stability in the world.
Putin called on Washington to enter talks that would lead to nuclear disarmament. Earlier in 2018, the US government expressed its intention to scrap the INF, the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.

Key words : survey in the United States
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20181231_07/

A survey in the United States has found that 14 percentage points fewer Americans than last year think the Japan-US Security agreement should be maintained.

An American firm appointed by Japan's Foreign Ministry conducted the telephone survey in March this year.

1,057 people aged 18 or older answered questions.

87 percent said they trust Japan, an increase of 5 points from last year. 69 percent said the bilateral relationship is "very good" or "good," an increase of 7 points.

While 90 percent of respondents said the security pact is "important" or "very important," an increase of 3 points, only 68 percent said "yes" when asked whether the pact should be kept. That's down by 14 points from last year.

Ministry officials say President Donald Trump's comment that US allies are not paying enough for security may have affected sentiment.

Key words : China says
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20181231_02/

China says it stands ready to work with the United States to implement the consensus reached between the two country's leaders. It says it seeks to expand cooperation on the basis of mutual benefit in the face of new challenges.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang released a statement on Sunday as the country is to mark the 40th anniversary of diplomatic ties with Washington on January 1st.

Lu said China-US ties have not only delivered huge benefits to the two peoples but also contributed to peace, stability, and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region and the world.

He added the two sides should view each other's strategic intentions in a rational and objective manner, step up strategic communications, enhance strategic mutual trust and avoid strategic misjudgment. Lu was apparently mindful of the recent trade friction between the two countries.

The spokesperson also said the two sides should properly manage differences in an effort to avoid disturbing the general picture of bilateral ties.

State-run Xinhua news agency has reported President Xi Jinping conveyed his wishes for better relations in his phone conversation with President Donald Trump on Saturday. Xi referred to the upcoming anniversary and expressed his wishes for further exchanges.

Key words : key gauge
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20181231_14/

A key gauge of China's manufacturing sector fell for the fourth straight month in December.

Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday shows that the official Purchasing Managers' Index, or PMI, fell to 49.4. A figure under 50 indicates contraction instead of growth.

The December figure is down 0.6 points from November, and is the first contraction since July 2016.

The PMI for new export orders fell to 46.6, marking a contraction for the seventh straight month.

Investment in infrastructure, which has been the main engine of China's growth, is stagnant. Sales of new cars this year are expected to be below last year's figure. That would be the first year-on-year decline in 28 years.

The figures show that the economic outlook among manufacturers in China is increasingly bleak against the backdrop of ongoing trade friction with the United States.

Key words : cyber newspaper
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20181231_09/

A cyberattack on the operations of a major US newspaper has caused delivery delays, prompting the Department of Homeland Security to look into the situation.

The information and printing system of the Los Angeles Times has been disrupted since Thursday night. It meant some content could not be sent to printing plants.

The Los Angeles Times was not delivered in some areas, while the Chicago Tribune and a newspaper in Florida were also hit as they use the same system.

The Los Angeles Times wrote that the attack is likely to have come from outside the United States. It reported that the attack came in the form of malware.

Other US media pointed to the possible involvement of a North Korean hacker team called "Lazarus Group," which is known to have previously used the same malware.

The Los Angeles Times told NHK on Sunday that the system outage has not yet been completely resolved.

Key words : bangladesh secured
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20181231_10/

Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has secured a fourth term after her ruling party clinched a landslide victory in Sunday's general election.

The country's election commission announced on Monday that Hasina's Awami League had won 259 of the contested 300 seats in parliament. The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, or BNP, won 5 seats.

Hasina told reporters on Sunday that she believes the people will support the government's development projects.

She expressed her intention to push ahead with the support of other countries to achieve further economic growth.

Meanwhile, the opposition alliance led by BNP has issued a statement demanding a fresh vote. It claims Sunday's polls were rigged.

The opposition camp also accuses the ruling party of persecuting its members. It says police have detained over 11,000 opposition members since November.

Authorities say at least 13 people were killed and more than 200 injured in clashes between government and opposition supporters on Sunday.

Further violence is feared following the announcement of the election results.

Key words : vote-counting Congo
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20181231_05/

Vote-counting is underway after a presidential election in the Democratic Republic of Congo. But machine glitches and torrential rain have disrupted voting at multiple stations in the central African nation.

Voters cast ballots on Sunday to choose a successor to President Joseph Kabila, who has been in power for 17 years.

Many Congolese had hoped it would be their first time to cast their ballots to peacefully elect a new leader since the country's independence from Belgium in 1960.

The country has suffered through a checkered history of assassinations of leaders, coups and civil wars.

As balloting continues, lengthy delays were reported at some polling stations due to the malfunctioning of newly-introduced voting machines.

Former interior minister Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, who was backed by President Kabila faced several opposition candidates.

Clashes continue between opposition supporters and security forces that are largely under Kabila's control.

The unrest could intensify as Shadary and two main opposition rivals failed to reach an agreement on accepting the election results.

The outcome of the vote counting is expected to be known in early January.

Key words : Afghan election
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20181231_04/

The Afghan election commission says it will postpone the country's presidential election by three months.

The Independent Election Commission announced on Sunday that presidential polls will be held on July 20 instead of the originally scheduled April 20. It cited poor preparation and a lack of funds as reasons. The presidential race is held every five years.

Security has been deteriorating in Afghanistan. When Lower House elections were held in October after having been put off for as long as three years, numerous accusations of voting irregularities were voiced in some states. The elections results have not been announced in those states.

Peace talks have been going on since July between the US government, which stations its military in the country and anti-government Taliban militants.

Observers say the delay reflects the Afghan government's decision to watch how the peace talks play out first.

Key words : Japanese government improve
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Key words : Tokyo official calling on
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