Key words : voter in france
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220424_19/
Voting is underway in France's presidential runoff election between centrist President Emmanuel Macron and his far-right contender Marine Le Pen.
Macron and Le Pen garnered the most votes in the first round of voting on April 10. They faced off in the previous runoff five years ago.
About 70 thousand polling stations across France opened at 8 a.m. on Sunday.
At a polling station in Paris, voters began casting ballots one after another as soon as it opened.
Key issues in the campaign included how to deal with the situation in Ukraine and France's relationship with the European Union.
Macron maintains that the EU should stay united to seek a diplomatic solution to the Ukrainian issue, and he is calling for stepped-up sanctions against Russia.
Le Pen is appealing to those on low incomes by pledging to cut value-added tax in response to soaring fuel prices. She also opposes sanctions that would stop imports of natural gas and petroleum from Russia, saying this would further depress the economy.
In a poll taken on Friday, 55 percent of the respondents said they would vote for Macron, while 45 percent said they would vote for Le Pen. The difference is much smaller than in the last runoff election in which Macron had overwhelming support.
Vote counting will begin immediately after polling stations close at 8 p.m.
Key words : marks two months victory liberated
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220424_18/
Sunday marks two months since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine. Russian forces have apparently given up trying to seize the capital, Kyiv, at least for now. But they are intensifying attacks in eastern and southern Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed victory in the eastern port city of Mariupol, saying it has been "liberated."
A senior Russian commander says that the second phase of the military operation has just begun. Russian personnel are moving, apparently in preparation for massive attacks.
The Russian defense ministry says its missile strike on a military airstrip outside the southern city of Odesa destroyed weapons provided by Western nations.
The mayor of Odesa said on social media that the death toll from the missile attack had risen to at least eight, including a 3-month-old girl.
Ukraine appears ready to put up fierce resistance in the east and south, drawing on military assistance from the United States and European countries.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he will meet US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Sunday in Kyiv.
Zelenskyy says the meetings are very important and he expects the discussions will cover the list of weapons Ukraine needs and when.
Zelenskyy also stresses that he is prepared to continue negotiations with Russians.
He said he wants to end the conflict that would cause more casualties and that no leader should close the path to a diplomatic solution.
Key words : european digital services act
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220423_17/
The European Parliament and European Union member states have agreed on details of a proposed act that would require tech giants to more aggressively tackle illegal and harmful content on their platforms.
The EU on Saturday announced the agreement on the Digital Services Act, which aims to better protect internet users from illegal online goods, services or content.
The act will go into effect after it is approved by the European Parliament and EU member countries.
It would impose strict rules on online platforms and search engines that have over 45 million monthly users in the EU. Analysts say EU officials have US tech giants in mind, including Meta Platforms and Google's parent company, Alphabet.
The tech firms would be obliged to perform analyses every year to identify any systematic risks stemming from their services, and to take effective mitigation measures.
The obligation is aimed at preventing the spread of illegal content, misinformation that could adversely affect elections or public safety, and expressions that may aggravate discrimination.
The companies would also be banned from using personal data of minors for targeted advertising.
Any company that fails to comply would face a fine of up to six percent of its worldwide sales.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the latest agreement "historic." She said, "It gives practical effect to the principle that what is illegal offline, should be illegal online."
Last month, the EU reached an agreement on the Digital Markets Act to strengthen rules for tech giants in an aim to ensure fair competition.
Key words : delegation south policy
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220424_12/
A delegation of South Korea's President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol left for Japan on Sunday morning for policy consultations on a number of pending issues surrounding the two countries.
The seven-member delegation comprises lawmakers, former diplomats and academics.
During their five-day stay through Thursday, the delegates are scheduled to meet with officials from Japan's Foreign Ministry, Diet members, as well as representatives of the business community. They are expected to exchange views on how to respond to North Korea's accelerating nuclear and missile activities and some pending problems between the two nations, including the issue over wartime labor.
Source says the delegation carries a personal letter of Yoon.
Before their departure, the head of the delegation, National Assembly Deputy Speaker Chung Jin-suk, told reporters that his team will convey Yoon's intentions that the two countries should strive together to improve bilateral ties as early as possible. He added he is determined to do his utmost to build a foundation for a new bilateral relationship.
The delegation is the second the President-elect has dispatched, after one sent earlier to the United States, Seoul's ally.
Yoon apparently hopes to find a breakthrough in stalled efforts to improve soured ties, ahead of his inauguration on May 10.
Key words : searching Meteorological Agency life jacket
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220424_17/
The Japanese Coast Guard is searching for a sightseeing boat that went missing in waters off the country's northernmost prefecture.
The Coast Guard says they've found nine people believed to be from the 26 who were on board.
The officials say at least eight people were unconscious when they were sent to a hospital. They were spotted off the Shiretoko Peninsula in the eastern part of Hokkaido prefecture.
The search and rescue operation was launched on Saturday afternoon, after the Coast Guard received a distress call from the vessel. The boat was reportedly taking on water while cruising near the peninsula.
One person aboard the vessel reported that it was listing at an angle of about 30 degrees and could not move on its own. The individual indicated that the engine had stopped. Boats and aircraft from the Coast Guard and Self-Defense Forces were dispatched for the search.
The vessel, named the Kazu One, is a 19-ton tour boat. It was carrying 24 passengers, including two children.
It had two crewmembers. The operator says the vessel left its home port Saturday morning on a three-hour excursion.
The meteorological agency says waves were three meters high in the area at the time of the distress call. The agency had issued advisories for high waves and strong winds.
A crew member of another boat operator said, "We were aware of sea conditions getting worse, so I told the captain not to go. He said yes, but he just went ahead and left the port."
The skipper planned to cruise around Cape Shiretoko so the passengers could observe wildlife. The peninsula is a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site. Everyone onboard was reportedly wearing life jackets.
Key words : ten people
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220424_23/
Ten people from a tour boat missing off the coast of Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido have been confirmed dead.
The boat, called Kazu One, went missing on Saturday during a cruise off the Shiretoko Peninsula. It was carrying 26 passengers and crew members, including two children. The ship reported it was taking in water and about to sink before losing contact.
Japan Coast Guard and Self-Defense Forces personnel found 10 people in the water or on rocks around the tip of Cape Shiretoko on Sunday.
The Coast Guard says the 10 people were taken to hospitals and other locations but were later confirmed dead.
The victims comprise seven men and three women. Coast Guard officials are trying to identify them. Search operations for the remaining people are ongoing.
Key words : brazil dancer
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220423_15/
The famed Carnival in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro is reaching its climax with two nights of parades by the city's top samba teams, which got underway on Friday.
The annual summer event was canceled for the first time ever last year due to the coronavirus pandemic. This year's event, originally scheduled for late February, was postponed for two months due to the spread of the Omicron variant.
The 12 top samba teams, each comprising 2,500 to 3,600 members, took part in a contest on Friday night, with the colorfully-attired dancers making their way through the Sambodromo grounds on decorated floats.
Brazil has recorded around 660,000 deaths from the pandemic. Rio de Janeiro has been one of the hardest-hit areas.
Some of the teams have chosen pandemic-related themes for this year's event.
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