at 20:00 (JST), September 04

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam has announced the withdrawal of an extradition bill.

A three-day international economic forum aimed at attracting investment to the Russian Far East has opened in the city of Vladivostok.

A senior Russian diplomat indicated it is unlikely a breakthrough will be made on signing a peace treaty with Japan at a bilateral summit planned for this week.

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20190904200000_english_1.mp3


Key words : chief executive withdrawal more democracy
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190904_38/

Media in Hong Kong say the territory's Chief Executive will announce the withdrawal of an extradition bill that sparked months of protests.

The legislation would, if passed, allow suspects to be sent to mainland China to face trial there.

Shortly after mass demonstrations started, Carrie Lam announced the bill had been suspended, and said later it was effectively dead. But the government had refused to scrap it completely until now.

Lam has faced growing pressure as the protests have escalated, with increasingly violent clashes between police and demonstrators.

Protesters want an independent investigation into how police have handled the unrest. Their demands have expanded to include calls for more democracy in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.

Key words : three-day investment held
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190904_20/

A three-day international economic forum aimed at attracting investment to the Russian Far East has opened in the city of Vladivostok.

Political and economic leaders from 65 countries and territories are participating in the Eastern Economic Forum, which is sponsored by the Russian government.

Nine sessions were held on Wednesday morning. Participants in one of them discussed the economic and social impact of the Olympic and Paralympic Games on Asia.

The head of the Japanese Olympic Committee, Yasuhiro Yamashita, and another official attended the discussion. Tokyo is hosting the 2020 Games.

Yamashita, an Olympic gold medalist in judo, is a personal friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He urged people to attend the Tokyo Games, and conveyed Japan's readiness to receive athletes and tourists with the warmest hospitality.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is also on hand. He is scheduled to meet with Putin on the sidelines of the forum on Thursday.

Key words : Abe arrived
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190904_31/

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has arrived in Russia to meet its President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of an economic forum.

Abe flew into the Russian city of Vladivostok on Wednesday afternoon to attend the Eastern Economic Forum. The gathering, sponsored by Russia's government, is to be attended by political and economic leaders from the Asia-Pacific region.

In what would be their 27th summit, Abe and Putin are expected to discuss on Thursday issues including their countries' negotiations on a peace treaty and North Korea.

Russia appears reluctant to lose ground on the issue of four Russian-controlled islands claimed by Japan.
The Japanese government maintains the islands are an inherent part of Japan's territory. It says they were illegally occupied after World War Two.

The territorial issue has prevented the countries from signing a peace treaty even though the war ended more than 70 years ago.

Abe hopes to produce a breakthrough in the peace treaty talks through a relationship of trust with Putin and joint economic activity projects in the region.

Abe is scheduled to give a speech at the forum and have sideline talks with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi and Mongolian President Khaltmaa Battulga.

Abe is likely to raise such issues as North Korea's denuclearization and abductions of Japanese nationals.

Key words : senior Russian
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190904_01/

A senior Russian diplomat indicated it is unlikely a breakthrough will be made on signing a peace treaty with Japan at a bilateral summit planned for this week.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov spoke to reporters in Vladivostok on Tuesday, ahead of the meeting between President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday.

Morgulov said he would not expect any breakthrough since the negotiation process is lengthy. He added that the two countries' positions significantly differ.

The diplomat noted that Russia will continue dialogue with Japan on those differences to keep searching for ways to achieve mutually acceptable solutions.

He revealed a plan to visit Tokyo next week for talks with his Japanese counterpart.

Russia agreed with Japan last November to accelerate bilateral negotiations toward a peace treaty based on a 1956 joint declaration. It states that Russia will hand over two of four Russian-held islands after a peace treaty is concluded.

Russia controls the islands. Japan claims them. The Japanese government maintains the islands are an inherent part of Japan's territory. It says the islands were illegally occupied after World War Two.

But Moscow insists Japan should first recognize that the islands became part of Russian territory as a result of World War Two.

The territorial issue has prevented the countries from signing a peace treaty even though the second world war ended more than 70 years ago.

Key words : top spokesperson
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190904_23/

The Japanese government's top spokesperson has declined to comment on a weekly magazine's feature story that drew fire for inciting hatred against South Koreans. But he pointed to the need to continue private-sector exchanges between the countries.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga spoke to reporters on Wednesday about the special report in the latest edition of the Shukan Post weekly magazine published on Monday.

The 10-page section was titled "We don't need South Korea." The publisher of the magazine, Shogakukan, issued an apology after the article drew a storm of criticism. Some contributors have said they will no longer write for the magazine or the publisher.

Suga said relations between Japan and South Korea are at a low point. But he said exchanges of people between the countries should continue even during such times. He said they will serve as a basis for mutual understanding in the future.

Key words : film director
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190904_28/

Japanese film director Hirokazu Koreeda has been named "Asian Filmmaker of the Year" by the organizers of the Busan International Film Festival.

The 24th annual festival will be held next month in the South Korean city.

Organizers described Koreeda as Asia's most influential and popular film director, saying he has contributed to the promotion and development of the region's film scene.

Koreeda is scheduled to attend the festival, where his latest film, "The Truth," will be shown.

"The Truth" was screened at the opening of the Venice Film Festival last month. It has also been nominated for the festival's Golden Lion award.

Key words : Abe has stressed
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190903_33/

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has stressed that South Korea must follow its agreement with Japan regarding the wartime labor issue.

Abe made the comment in a meeting with former chief cabinet secretary Takeo Kawamura on Tuesday.

Kawamura held talks with South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon in Seoul on the previous day. They discussed the issues of wartime labor and the current intelligence-sharing pact between the two countries, called the General Security of Military Information Agreement, or GSOMIA.

Kawamura told Abe that Lee said the two countries need to solve the issues of GSOMIA and Japan's tightening of export controls for South Korea before the intelligence pact expires in November.

Abe said the priority is on solving the wartime labor issue which lies at the base of the problems.

After the meeting, Kawamura told reporters that during his visit to South Korea, he met with Kang Chang-il, who heads a parliament group working for bilateral friendship.

Kawamura said they agreed to try to arrange a meeting between the two countries' lawmakers in Tokyo on November 1. The meeting originally scheduled for September was postponed after South Korea decided to withdraw from GSOMIA.

Key words : government briefing
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190904_30/

Japan's government has held a briefing for foreign embassy officials on radioactive wastewater building up at the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

Diplomatic officials from 22 countries and regions attended Wednesday's briefing at the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo. After an opening photo op, the meeting went behind closed doors.

Government officials said tanks for storing wastewater containing mostly tritium will become full in summer of 2022. Wastewater generated in damaged reactor buildings is cleared of most other radioactive materials.

Officials explained measures being discussed by a government panel, such as diluting the water and releasing it into the sea, or adding extra tanks.

Individual remarks from the briefing have not been disclosed, but Japanese officials said no participants voiced concern or protested over the explained measures during the meeting.

The government has briefed foreign embassies more than 100 times since the plant's nuclear accident in March 2011, following an earthquake and tsunami.

It had not disclosed to media the contents of such meetings with foreign officials, but said it reversed course in light of growing demand for transparency.

South Korea had demanded that Japan explain how the radioactive wastewater is being processed. Japan's government sent a letter to Seoul on August 27 saying the matter is under consideration and that it has not reached a conclusion. The government says South Korea has yet to respond.

Key words : United Nations Brexit
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190904_11/

The United Nations says a no-deal Brexit would cost Britain at least 16 billion dollars annually in trade with the European Union.

The UN Conference on Trade and Development said in a statement on Tuesday the losses would be the result of Britain giving up preferential market access to dozens of countries.

The agency says the auto sector would be hit hardest, losing about 5 billion dollars in trade. Clothing and textile exports would drop by 2 billion.

The EU has trade agreements with about 70 countries. Britain is hoping to replace these with bilateral deals, but it looks unlikely negotiations will be concluded before the October deadline.

The statement adds that these estimates are conservative, and the actual losses may end up being even greater due to "non-tariff measures, border controls and the disruption of existing UK-EU production networks."

Key words : French propose credit line
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190904_08/

The French government has proposed offering a credit line for Iran that would be guaranteed by its oil revenues. Reuters and other sources say France could provide up to 15 billion dollars.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves le Drian said talks on the credit arrangement were continuing on Tuesday, a day after he met visiting Iranian foreign ministry officials.

He told reporters in Paris that France will require Tehran to fully comply with the 2015 nuclear deal and to take steps to ensure the security of the Persian Gulf.

He also said the arrangement presupposes that US President Donald Trump issues waivers.

The US has re-imposed and tightened economic sanctions on Iran since Trump pulled out of the nuclear deal last year.

Iran has exceeded the limit on uranium enrichment set by the agreement, saying it is not getting the promised economic benefits.

Tehran has suggested it could further increase the enrichment level this week, depending on what European countries can do to help its economy.

Key words : US department
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20190904_19/

The US Department of Defense has decided to shift 3.6 billion dollars from military construction projects to build a border wall with Mexico.

The Pentagon announced the decision on Tuesday. It says the funds will come from 127 construction projects at home and abroad.

The decision was made based on a national emergency declaration signed by President Donald Trump in February to bypass Congress. The declaration is intended to divert already allocated funds to build a wall along the Mexican border.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called the decision as "a slap in the face" to members of the US armed forces. He said Trump "is willing to cannibalize already allocated military funding to boost his own ego."

Building the border wall is a key election pledge of Trump, who is seeking re-election next year. His political battles with his Democratic opponents will likely further intensify.