at 18:30 (JST), September 26

Asian View

"Asian View" is a five-minute news segment broadcast by NHK WORLD-JAPAN. It features the latest news and deep analysis from Japan and the rest of Asia. Listen to "Asian View" and get the latest information from a region that's playing an increasingly important role in the world.

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20220926183000_english_1.mp3


Key words : dignitaries arriving about 700
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220926_29/

Foreign dignitaries have been arriving in Japan for the state funeral of former prime minister Abe Shinzo on Tuesday.

Jordan's King Abdullah and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen are among the guests who flew in to Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Monday.

Other dignitaries, including the Indian and South Korean Prime Ministers, Narendra Modi and Han Duck-soo, are due to arrive on Tuesday.

About 4,300 people from Japan and abroad are scheduled to attend the funeral to be held at the Nippon Budokan arena in central Tokyo. About 700 of them are foreign nations' government officials or their ambassadors and diplomats stationed in Japan.

Security has been tight at the airport. Coin-operated lockers and trash cans will remain closed off at the terminals until Wednesday.

Traffic will be restricted on roads near the airport.
Airlines are cautioning passengers that they will need more time than usual coming to the airport.

Key words : Kishida schedule including
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220926_10/

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio is holding a series of separate talks with foreign dignitaries visiting Japan for Tuesday's state funeral of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo.

About 40 meetings are scheduled over the three days through Wednesday.

On Monday, Kishida will meet more than 10 dignitaries, including US Vice President Kamala Harris and Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc. A dinner with Harris is also planned.

Kishida will meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Tuesday, and South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Wednesday.

These meetings demonstrate that Kishida is taking up the mantle of Abe's diplomatic legacy.

About 4,300 people are expected to attend the funeral. Security has been tightened at and around the venue, Nippon Budokan, in the capital. Traffic restrictions are scheduled.

Key words : canadian
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220925_14/

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced that he will not be attending the state funeral of former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo. Trudeau said he will instead stay in Canada to respond to the devastation caused by powerful storm Fiona.

Prime Minister Trudeau was the only incumbent G7 leader scheduled to attend the state funeral which is to be held on Tuesday.

Trudeau said he is committed to support the people affected by the storm.

Former Prime Minister Abe was fatally shot in July.

When Abe passed away, Trudeau put out a statement saying "The world has lost a great man of vision and Canada has lost a close friend."

Key words : security 20,000 deploy
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220925_22/

Tokyo police have tightened security as many foreign dignitaries are arriving in Japan to attend the state funeral of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo on Tuesday.

Roughly 20,000 police officers will be deployed to ramp up security for the funeral at Nippon Budokan in central Tokyo.

About 4,300 people are expected to attend the ceremony. Some 700 of them will be government officials and other dignitaries from overseas and ambassadors based in Tokyo.

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio is scheduled to hold separate meetings with more than 30 foreign dignitaries from Monday through Wednesday.

He will meet US Vice President Kamala Harris and Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Monday; Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Tuesday; and South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Wednesday.

Key words : and south joint drill criticize
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220926_01/

The United States and South Korea are set to begin joint military exercises in the Sea of Japan on Monday, with the participation of a nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier.

The drills, involving a strike group led by the USS Ronald Reagan, will continue through Thursday.

The US highlighted the carrier's deployment near the Korean Peninsula as part of its efforts to boost deterrence against North Korea in a meeting of senior foreign and defense officials from Washington and Seoul earlier this month.

The South Korean government stressed that Seoul and Washington will strengthen their joint defense capabilities and reconfirm their strong resolve to neutralize any forms of missile provocations by Pyongyang.

North Korea criticized South Korea for working with the US to beef up deterrence. Pyongyang said on a state-run website on Sunday that plots for war provocations will only create dreadful destruction.

North Korea on the same day launched a short-range ballistic missile toward the Sea of Japan from an area in or around Thaechon, North Phyongan Province. The missile is estimated to have landed outside Japan's exclusive economic zone.

North Korea also appears to be preparing to fire a submarine-launched ballistic missile, or SLBM, in the city of Sinpho in the eastern province of South Hamgyong.

Washington and Seoul remain on alert for possible further missile launches and other provocations by Pyongyang as North Korea is expected to sharply react to the US-South Korea joint drills.

Key words : toyota first
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220924_04/

Toyota Motor has become the first Japanese automaker to end production in Russia since the start of the crisis in Ukraine. Officials made the announcement on Friday.

Operations at the firm's plant in St. Petersburg have been suspended since March due to supply chain disruptions. The officials say they had fully retained the workforce in case they were able to restart.

The firm will now provide assistance to about 2,000 employees. The officials also say they will not sell new car products in the country, but will continue providing after-sales service to existing customers.

The factory manufactured about 80,000 units a year.

Operations at the Russian plants of Nissan, Mazda and Mitsubishi are currently suspended.

Key words : thailand
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220924_05/

Authorities in Thailand will lift most coronavirus restrictions on October 1, including a state of emergency imposed since March 2020.

Officials made the announcement on Friday, citing the rising vaccination rate and declining number of serious cases.

They say overseas arrivals will no longer need proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test.

They also say a visa-free period of stay from countries and territories including Japan will be extended from 30 days to 45 days.

Thailand had about 40 million foreign tourists a year before the pandemic. The figure last year was down to about 400,000.

Health authorities are urging people to continue taking anti-infection measures, such as wearing face masks in crowded places.

Key words : chinese court
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220924_01/

A Chinese court has sentenced a former vice minister of public security to death, with a two-year reprieve. The charges against Sun Lijun include bribery.

China Central Television says the court, located in the northeastern province of Jilin, ruled on Friday that Sun took 646 million yuan, or about 91 million dollars, in bribes between 2001 and 2020.

He was also convicted of illegally possessing two firearms.

Observers say the government is purging former senior police and judiciary officials who have been critical of President Xi Jinping. The move is seen as an attempt to consolidate power ahead of the Communist Party National Congress in October.

Three former police chiefs of Shanghai, Chongqing and Shanxi province were convicted on charges including corruption earlier this week. All were allegedly members of Sun's political group.

And on Thursday, former justice minister Fu Zhenghua was also given the death sentence with a two-year reprieve on charges including corruption.

Key words : hong kong journalist
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220924_12/

A survey shows 97 percent of journalists in Hong Kong believe press freedom has regressed in the Chinese territory since the introduction of a national security law in 2020.

The survey on press freedom covering 2021 was conducted by the Hong Kong Journalists Association and others.

The results show out of 169 journalists that responded, 97 percent said press freedom has declined.

Ratings of the press freedom index by the journalists stood at 26.2 out of 100 -- a drop of 5.9 points from 2020 and the lowest since 2013 when the survey began.

Only about 20 percent of those surveyed responded.

The association says some cited fears of possible retaliation by authorities.

Many respondents said self-censorship was spreading in the media.

The association says less information of public interest is now available, and the information that remains accessible has become more homogenous than diverse.

China's national security law for Hong Kong went into effect in June 2020.

The increased media crackdown has since forced the Apple Daily newspaper, known for its critical stance toward Beijing, to close.

Key words : pakistan
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220926_05/

In flood-stricken Pakistan, restoration work is now underway at the ancient ruins of Mohenjo Daro, which were damaged by record rain.

The archaeological site in the southern Pakistani province of Sindh is believed to have been built about 4,500 years ago. It's ruins of an ancient city of brick structures representing the Indus civilization.

Mohenjo Daro is also designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Heavy rain since June has killed more than 1,600 people across Pakistan.

Damage from the disaster, such as collapses of brick walls, has been found at about 200 locations at the Mohenjo Daro site.

Local authorities launched repair work on Friday with archaeologists and officials checking damage and putting bricks back where they had been.

The authorities say restoring the site could take time as they are unable to get necessary materials in the wake of the flooding.

A local official said there could be more damage if rain starts again.