Glad to have you with us on NHK Newsline. I'm Yuko Fukushima.
Russian President Vladimir Putin declared an Easter ceasefire from Saturday at 6 p.m. Moscow time. The truce will last until the end of Sunday. The unilateral 30-hour ceasefire proposal comes after President Donald Trump indicated that the US may walk away from the negotiating table.
Putin had earlier said he assumed Ukraine would follow Russia's lead and he called for leaders in Kyiv to stop fighting temporarily. In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the ceasefire declared by Putin has not been kept by Russia. Zelenskyy released a statement on social media saying his country continued to come under Russian attacks. In the first six hours of the ceasefire period, Russia insists that it has called. He says there were 387 instances of shelling and 19 assaults by Russian forces. He said drones were used by Russia 290 times.
But Zelenskyy added that Ukraine's proposal to extend the ceasefire for 30 days after midnight on Sunday remains on the table. In January 2023, Putin also declared a 36-hour ceasefire in honor of Orthodox Christmas, but fighting continued.
The UN Children's Agency says 6.3 million people are estimated to be in urgent need of assistance more than three weeks after a powerful earthquake struck central Myanmar. The country's military says the disaster has left more than 3,700 people dead and over 120 unaccounted for. The UN Children's Fund, or UNICEF, says children and women in particular are facing significant health risks due to extreme heat, limited access to safe water and other conditions. UNICEF adds malnutrition remains an ongoing concern, especially for children under five as well as pregnant and breastfeeding women.
The March 28 earthquake severely affected the Sagayin region near the epicenter, Myanmar's second largest city of Mandalay. And other locations. UN agencies and volunteer groups are continuing their relief efforts in the affected areas. UNICEF is calling for continued support from the international community. Many people are still living outdoors. Concern is growing that the health situation could deteriorate in a prolonged evacuation.
Investigative authorities in Thailand say they've arrested an executive of the Chinese state-owned company in charge of the construction of the high-rise building that collapsed in the Myanmar center quake. The building was being built in the Thai capital, Bangkok, when the quake struck last month. 47 people have been confirmed dead. More than 40 are still unaccounted for. The construction was a joint venture between a major Thai construction firm, and the Chinese state-owned company's local subsidiary. The Department of Special Investigation of Thailand's Justice Ministry said on Saturday the man, a Chinese national, was arrested on suspicion of illegally using names of Thai nationals to run the Chinese firm.
Investigators have also searched locations related to the company executive. They will investigate whether any illegal activity was involved in the collapse. On April 11, investigators searched a Chinese manufacturer that supplies steel for the building because some products used in the construction did not meet strength standards.
Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigedo says Japan and the United States should bring about a solution to the tariff issue that is desirable for both nations.
Ishiba appeared on an NHK talk show program on Sunday. He mentioned the ongoing bilateral negotiations on US tariffs on Japanese imports.
I and President Trump will make a final decision. I will visit the United States when the time is right and do all I can to reach the best possible outcome. Ishiba spoke of tariffs on Japanese auto imports. He said US vehicles on its roads. He said he presumes this issue bothers Americans deeply. Ishiba referred to Japanese automobile safety standards, which Washington regards as a non-tariff barrier. He said the safety of Japanese consumers needs to be considered and the government will closely examine the standards so they cannot be called unfair. Washington has called for increasing imports of US farm produce, but. Ishiba stress zero tolerance for reduced food safety standards. He said the government will ensure the safety of Japanese people. He also said security is a separate issue from trade, which should be discussed separately from the tariff negotiations.
The World Expo in Osaka opened just one week ago, and visitor numbers have already topped 600,000.
Organizers are working to make sure lines don't get too long. The Expo officially kicked off last Sunday with 158 countries and regions participating.
This Sunday, people were already flocking to the site in the early morning.
Organizers say in the first seven days, half a million ticket holders were admitted. When staff members are included, the figure topped 610,000.
Now that comes to a daily average of 88,000 visitors. The total that organizers project for the six-month event means a daily average of 150,000. Still, there have been problems with crowds. On the first day, there was major congestion at the main gates. Some pavilions do not accept reservations and many have long lines.
Pavilions with reservation systems also have separate entrances for people who have not booked, and these have long waiting times. While organizers want to see more visitors, they also need to dress crowd size, especially as summer brings the risk of heat stroke.
The United States and Iran say they have agreed on Saturday to hold another round of talks on Tehran's nuclear program within a week. US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araji met in Rome on Saturday. Iranian Foreign Ministry said Araji and Witkov held indirect talks mediated by Oman's foreign minister, as they did in the first round of talks in Oman one week earlier. The US seeks to limit Iran's nuclear program to prevent it from developing nuclear weapons. Iran maintains that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes and is demanding that the US lift sanctions. After the meeting, the Iranian foreign minister told state-run television that the two sides, quote, managed to attain better understanding on a number of principles and targets.
Araji said they are set to hold expert meetings on Wednesday in order to work out a framework for a potential agreement. He added that negotiators will then meet again on the coming Saturday for another round of high-level talks.
Iran's state-run news agency reported that the issue of a complete halt of Iran's nuclear program was not raised during Saturday's negotiations.
Meanwhile, a senior US government official said, quote, Over four hours in our second round of talks, we made very good progress in our direct and indirect discussions. The focus of attention is on how far Washington seeks to limit Iran's nuclear development.
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Those were the main stories for this hour. This is NHK News Line.
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And that's it for this hour on NHK Newsline. I'm Yuko Fukushima. Stay tuned to NHK World.
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