Asian View
Key words : head olympic committee
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210519_25/
The head of the International Olympic Committee has reiterated his commitment to holding the Tokyo Games in a safe manner.
IOC President Thomas Bach spoke on Wednesday at the opening of a three-day online meeting with the organizing committee, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and the Japanese government.
Bach said, "Together with our Japanese partners and friends, I can only reemphasize this full commitment of the IOC to organize safe Olympic and Paralympic Games for everybody."
He added, "To accomplish this, we are now fully focused on the delivery of the Games," and noted the opening ceremony is only 65 days away.
Bach said that about 75 percent of athletes and delegates set to enter the Olympic Village have already been vaccinated or are scheduled to be vaccinated before the Games.
He added he expects that more than 80 percent will have been vaccinated by the time of the event.
The minister for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, Marukawa Tamayo, stressed that non-athletes, including journalists, also need to be vaccinated. She expressed hope that as many people involved in the Games as possible will be inoculated.
Organizing committee president Hashimoto Seiko said the mission of the Tokyo Games is to present to the world and generations to come a case history on how to deal with a global challenge.
Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko said the Metropolitan Government is doing all it can to contain the spread of coronavirus variants.
The meeting will discuss anti-virus measures at the Games, whether or not to allow spectators, and if so, how many, and other measures such as to prevent heatstroke.
Key words : okinawa ask declare
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210519_26/
Japan's southern prefecture of Okinawa has asked the central government to declare a state of emergency for it amid a surge in coronavirus cases.
The move came on Wednesday when the number of new daily cases in the prefecture exceeded 200 for the first time and marked record highs for two straight days.
A state of emergency declaration would allow Okinawa's governor to implement stricter anti-virus measures.
Governor Tamaki Denny, who was visiting Tokyo, had an online meeting with the prefectural government's task force on Wednesday. The decision was then made to ask the central government for a state of emergency.
Okinawa has been taking intensive anti-virus measures since April 12 without a state of emergency. The number of cases fell shortly before the holiday period between late April and early May.
But the conditions in Okinawa are now at Stage 4, the highest level on a four-point scale, in four of the seven indexes used to gauge the virus situation.
Officials say the number of new cases per 100,000 people over the past week is at the same level as areas already under a state of emergency.
Okinawa has also issued a medical state of emergency, as the local healthcare system is now overstretched. Officials are calling on residents to refrain from visiting medical institutions for non-emergencies.
Key words : taiwan second highest five days
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210519_32/
The coronavirus alert level has been raised to the second highest on a four-tier scale for the whole of Taiwan amid a surge in new cases.
Authorities reported 267 local infections on Wednesday. The total number of confirmed cases in Taiwan stood at 164 as of last Friday. But more than 1,200 infections have been reported over the past five days.
The alert level for Taipei and New Taipei cities was raised to Level 3 last Saturday. The same level is now applied across the whole of Taiwan.
Indoor gatherings will be limited to four people, and outdoor gatherings to 9 people through May 28.
The authorities also announced that 410,000 doses of coronavirus vaccine arrived on Wednesday through the COVAX Facility, an international distribution framework led by the World Health Organization.
Officials want to speed up vaccinations, as only about 1 percent of the population, or 245,000 people, have received at least one shot so far.
Key words : Biden indo-pacific
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210520_07/
US President Joe Biden says he wants deeper ties with the coast guards of nations in the Indo-Pacific region to counter China and other nations that seek to challenge maritime order.
Biden spoke at a commencement ceremony at the US Coast Guard Academy in the US eastern state of Connecticut on Wednesday.
He said the United States is increasingly seeing rules at sea "challenged, both by the rapid advance of technology and the disruptive actions of nations like China and Russia."
He also said the US Coast Guard has reached agreement to partner with Taiwan.
He added that the United States sent a patrol ship to waters near the Galapagos Islands last year to deter a fleet of Chinese fishing boats operating in the area.
Biden said, "The Coast Guard will be an increasingly central element in our engagement in the Indo-Pacific to protect lives, to preserve the environment, to safeguard sovereignty throughout the region." He noted that Washington is fielding requests from other nations in the region that are eager to partner with the US Coast Guard.
The US Coast Guard has deployed a new type of vessel in Guam and sent patrol vessels in the western Pacific to counter China's increasing maritime presence.
Biden also said, "The Coast Guard is rapidly growing in strategic importance" in the Arctic. He pointed out that every country should respect international norms.
Key words : passenger ship
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210520_13/
A Japanese start-up has teamed up with a Swiss counterpart to develop a passenger vessel powered by the hydrogen fuel cell system.
Almatech, a Swiss ship developer, and e5 Lab, a Japanese firm funded by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Mitsubishi Corporation and others, signed a memorandum at the Swiss Embassy in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Almatech is set to develop a zero-emission electric passenger ship powered by the hydrogen fuel cell system.
The hull will be made of carbon and other lightweight materials. The firm says the vessel will lift up as it accelerates to save energy.
The ship will have a higher cost than standard vessels. e5 Lab will play a role in mediating between Almatech and companies that are interested in using the ship for routes around Japan.
Japan's transport ministry says this will be the first passenger vessel powered solely by hydrogen to be operated in Japan.
e5 Lab President Ichida Tomoaki says energy transformation is needed to realize a carbon-free society for the next generation.
The International Maritime Organization has set a target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from ships to zero as early as possible in this century.
Key words : myanmar japanese companies
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210519_22/
The political turmoil in Myanmar is having a growing impact on Japanese companies operating in the country. Major retailer Aeon has decided to postpone work on a new shopping mall there.
Aeon intends to develop the facility in the outskirts of Yangon together with a local firm. It had planned to start construction by around the summer of this year.
Sources say Aeon hasn't decided on a new schedule but has no intention of cancelling the project, as it sees considerable growth potential in Myanmar.
The decision comes as Myanmar's military continues a crackdown on anti-coup protests after it seized power in February.
Aeon has already brought two employees involved in the project back to Japan.
Key words : china space
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210520_08/
China's space agency has released photos captured by the country's Mars probe Tianwen-1, which landed on the Red Planet last weekend. The images were taken by its rover Zhurong.
Tianwen-1 is the country's first probe that successfully landed on Mars.
China's National Space Administration published on Wednesday what it describes as Zhurong's first successful transmission of images from Mars to Earth.
The photos show rocks of different sizes scattered on the surface. Officials say the photos provide clear images of the surface and information about the planet's topography.
One photo shows the rover's antenna and solar panels, indicating that the rover is ready for further exploration. It will travel the surface of the planet to survey the terrain.
China will become the second country after the United States to successfully survey the surface of Mars.
Key words : 80 years radio
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210519_28/
A ceremony has been held to mark 80 years since the start of radio service at Japan's only station broadcasting programs overseas on shortwave bands.
The KDDI Yamata Transmitting Station in Koga City in Ibaraki Prefecture, north of Tokyo, is used by NHK World Radio Japan.
About 50 officials from NHK, KDDI and other entities took part in the ceremony on Wednesday.
The chief of the communications ministry's Kanto Bureau of Telecommunications, Tsubaki Yasufumi, said remotely at the event that he honors the station's 80 years of stable operations. He also said he hopes for continued efforts so that programs from Japan can be broadcast overseas.
Terada Kenji of the NHK Engineering Administration Department said shortwave broadcasting served as a lifeline on many occasions such as the 2014 coup in Thailand. He said he wants to express gratitude to all the people involved in shortwave broadcasting.
After the ceremony, the head of the station, Saito Toshimitsu, said it plays an important role in providing information from Japan. He added that he will keep working hard so that the station will be passed down to younger generations.
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