at 20:00 (JST), March 22 AS

A South Korean government official says North Korea withdrew its officials from an inter-Korean liaison office set up last September.

Senior foreign ministry officials of Japan and Russia have exchanged views in an attempt to narrow their differences over peace treaty negotiations.

Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai is in Japan for the first time, to address an international conference in Tokyo.

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20190322200000_english_1.mp3


Key words : government official September
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190322_42/

A South Korean government official says North Korea has withdrawn its officials from an inter-Korean liaison office set up last September.

Vice Minister Chun Hea-sung of South Korea's Unification Ministry announced the Friday morning withdrawal at a hastily arranged news conference in the afternoon.

Chun added that Pyongyang had said it would withdraw from the office according to a directive from higher-ups and report practical matters later.

Expressing regret about the withdrawal, Chun stressed that he hopes the personnel return to the office soon and that it resumes normal operations. He added that South Korea will keep its personnel there.

The two sides set up the office in the North's Kaesong industrial complex, in line with a joint statement released after an inter-Korean summit last April. The office is designed for working-level consultations and supporting private-sector exchange. It's the first-ever liaison office to enable the two Koreas to contact each other anytime.

A total of about 50 officials were stationed at the office around the clock, with senior officials from both sides serving as co-leaders.

North Korea has been increasingly critical of the South since the second US-North Korea summit ended with no agreement.

Observers see the North's latest move as aimed at pressuring South Korea to work on Washington to break the stalemate, including easing sanctions on Pyongyang.

Key words : Kim first summit
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190322_13/

A senior aide to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is in Moscow, apparently to discuss holding Kim's first summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Diplomatic sources say Kim Chang Son arrived in Moscow via Beijing on Tuesday.

The official, sometimes dubbed Kim's "butler", visited Singapore and Vietnam ahead of the US-North Korea summit meetings, and inspected their venues and hotels.

Putin has asked Kim Jong Un to visit Russia. Last week, North Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Im Chon Il met his Russian counterpart Igor Morgulov in Moscow. They are believed to have discussed possible dates for the summit.

Key words : Foreign ministry and Russia
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190322_16/

Senior foreign ministry officials of Japan and Russia have exchanged views in an attempt to narrow their differences over peace treaty negotiations before a possible bilateral summit meeting.

Japanese Senior Deputy Foreign Minister Takeo Mori and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov met in Moscow on Thursday.

Morgulov said the negotiations have just started, and he must admit there are big differences between both sides' stances, but Russia is ready to hold discussions in a positive manner.

Mori responded that he hopes to have steady talks that could lead to a flourishing of bilateral ties, at a time when cherry blossoms are blooming in Tokyo and snow is melting in Moscow.

Mori later told reporters that they discussed concrete steps to narrow their differences with the aim of achieving progress in the upcoming higher-level talks.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is expected to visit Japan ahead of a summit between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which is being arranged for June.

Mori noted that although there was no breakthrough, he and Morgulov agreed on how to promote discussions and some technical issues. He added that he believes the accumulation of minor efforts will help the talks to move onto the next step.

Mori referred to a recent Russian media report that quoted Putin as saying that "the tempo has been lost" for negotiating a peace treaty with Japan.

He dismissed Putin's comment, citing the substantial talks with the Russian side as evidence that disproves this view.

Key words : Nobel first time
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190322_37/

Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai is in Japan for the first time, to address an international conference in Tokyo.

Malala is attending the two-day World Assembly for Women, starting on Saturday, to speak about the importance of education for women.

She also plans to exchange opinions with other female leaders including UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet.

Malala was shot by Islamic militants in Pakistan in 2012. She later set up a fund using donations from around the world and has campaigned for education for girls and women. She won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 at the age of 17.

Malala studies philosophy, politics and economics at the University of Oxford in Britain. She also works to raise international awareness for refugee girls who suffer from poverty and conflict and have no chance to receive education.

Key words : Okinawa lawsuit ready for
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190322_24/

Okinawa Prefecture in southwestern Japan has decided to file a lawsuit to demand the cancellation of a decision by the land minister over a landfill project related to the relocation of a US base.

The ongoing landfill work is part of a plan to relocate the US Marine Corps Futenma Air Station in Ginowan City to the less-populated Henoko district of Nago City.

The prefecture decided to file the lawsuit with the Naha branch of the Fukuoka High Court on Friday. The lawsuit demands the cancellation of the decision that the land minister made last October to suspend the prefecture's retraction of the approval for the landfill work.

Landfill work began following the suspension decision.

On Tuesday, Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki asked Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to suspend the work to allow time for negotiations on the relocation project that was opposed by a majority of eligible voters in the recent prefectural referendum. Tamaki indicated that he hopes to solve the issue through dialogue.

The central government says it is ready for dialogue. But it told the prefecture that the landfill work will continue as scheduled, adding that dumping rocks and sand in a new area off Henoko will begin as early as next Monday.

The prefecture had also asked a committee that handles disputes between the central and local governments to judge whether the land minister's suspension decision is illegal. But the committee dismissed the request last month.

Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya expressed regret over the prefecture's decision to file a lawsuit.

Iwaya said that while the central government must take the feelings of the people of Okinawa seriously, it is determined to avoid making the Futenma base permanent.

Key words : government panel
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190322_36/

A Japanese government panel says a massive eruption of Mt. Fuji could send volcanic ash all the way to the wider Tokyo metropolitan area, causing traffic and power supply disruptions.

The panel simulated the impact of a major eruption of Japan's highest peak, an event that would be comparable in scale to the Hoei eruption in the Edo era and that would last for 15 days.

The Hoei eruption began on December 16, 1707, and continued until January 1, 1708. Mt. Fuji dumped meters of ash over surrounding villages, and several centimeters over Tokyo, called Edo at the time.

The panel estimates that in the next major eruption, one to two centimeters of ash will fall per hour on Gotemba City, Shizuoka Prefecture, near the foot of the mountain, and the total accumulation there will be 1.2 meters.

The simulation forecasts about 10 centimeters of ash will fall on Yokohama City, about 80 kilometers from Mt. Fuji.

Panel members say Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward, which is about 90 kilometers away, won't suffer any immediate fallout. But ash will start to reach the area on the 13th day, resulting in a build-up of 1.3 centimeters.

The panel predicts the eruption would inflict severe damage to areas at the foot of Mt. Fuji. It says even in the greater Tokyo area, land and air traffic would be disrupted and power outages would be likely in the case of rain.

The panel says in the next fiscal year, which starts in April, it plans to compile a list of draft measures to deal with such an event.

University of Tokyo Professor Emeritus, Toshitsugu Fujii, says it is certain that Mt. Fuji will erupt eventually, although scientists do not know when.

Fujii said if volcanic ash falls in and around Tokyo, many people may be unable to return home and deliveries of food and other daily necessities could stop.

Japan's expressway operators and Japan Railway companies, whose service areas include Tokyo and its surroundings, say they have no measures at present for dealing with volcanic ash. They say they will look into the matter. East Japan Railway says it has already developed a special train that can remove ash from the tracks and has deployed it to key locations.

Key words : news key word segment volcanic disaster prevention measures for Mt. Fuji
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Key words : record high foreigner
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