Japan, China agree on requirements for resuming Japanese seafood imports
Japanese fish may soon be back in Chinese supermarkets. The two countries came to an agreement to resume imports of Japanese seafood. Beijing had suspended them after the Fukushima Daiichi treated and diluted water release.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi Yoshimasa made the announcement at a meeting of relevant cabinet ministers on Friday. He said exports will resume once export-related facilities are re-registered with China. However, other imports are still in limbo. Beijing has stopped imports of food products from 10 Japanese prefectures, including Fukushima, Miyagi and Tokyo. That will remain in place. Hayashi asked those ministers to continue their work in the hopes China may lift the ban.
The two governments have been holding working-level talks on the seafood issue for months. Last September, China said it would resume Japanese marine imports that meet specific requirements and standards.
The treated and diluted water release began in August 2023. Water used to cool molten fuel at the Fukushima plant has been mixing with rain and groundwater. The accumulated water is being treated to remove most radioactive substances, but it still contains tritium. Before releasing the treated water into the ocean, the plant's operator dilutes it to reduce the tritium level to about 1/7 of the World Health Organization's guidance level for drinking water.
Now we bring you an update from the Gaza Strip, where health authorities say 67 were killed on Thursday. The conflict's death toll is now more than 54,000.
But there may be a glimmer of hope. The US Middle East envoy has expressed optimism about a new proposal for a ceasefire in the region.
I have some very good feelings about getting to a long-term resolution, temporary ceasefire, and a long-term resolution, a peaceful resolution of that conflict.
Multiple Israeli media reported that the new proposal includes the release of 10 living Israeli hostages in two stages in exchange for a 60 day ceasefire.
White House press secretary Caroline Levitt told reporters on Thursday that Israel had signed off on the proposal.
Discussions are continuing and we hope that a ceasefire in Gaza will take place so we can return all of the hostages home.
The United Nations has criticised the US-led operation on humanitarian grounds as it forces residents to relocate to receive aid. UN officials are calling for the expansion of deliveries through the world body.
Analysis: Russia used over 90 N.Korean-made missiles in attacks on Ukraine
Ukraine's military intelligence is shedding light on Russia's use of North Korean ballistic missiles in its ongoing invasion. It says some struck civilian targets, killing 20 people and injuring more than 150 over an 18-month period.
NHK obtained the analysis from Ukraine's military intelligence source. The analysis found that Moscow used 95KN23 and KN24 ballistic missiles produced by Pyongyang. They've hit parts of eastern and central Ukraine, as well as the capital. That includes a strike last August which destroyed a residential building in the Kiev region, killing a man and his four-year-old son.
A senior Ukrainian security official says the accuracy of North Korean missiles is improving, raising their threat potential. The analysis comes after a multinational group monitoring North Korea says it unlawfully delivered at least 100 ballistic missiles to Russia last year. The 11-nation team, which includes Japan, the US and South Korea, has been keeping an eye on UN sanctions against North Korea since last year. It was established after a Security Council panel of monitors ceased activities due to a Russian veto. Its latest report says Pyongyang has also supplied Moscow with anti-tank missiles and other weapons, violating Security Council resolutions. And it places the number of North Korean troops deployed to Russia last year at over 11,000, followed by more than 3,000 in the first three months of this year.
Meanwhile, the report says Moscow provided Pyongyang with air defence and electronic warfare systems, including jammers, and that Russia supplied North Korea with refined oil without notifying a UN sanctions committee. The report says that Russian flag vessels were used to ship artillery shells to meet rising demands following the start of military operations in Ukraine. The team says it will work with the Security Council to identify additional individuals, entities and vessels that have helped North Korea evade sanctions.
Putin meets widow of former Japanese Prime Minister Abe in Moscow
Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Abe Akiye, widow of the late Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo in Moscow.
The meeting took place at the Kremlin on Thursday. It's not clear what brought Abe to the capital to meet the Russian leader. Abe mentioned Putin's visit in 2016 to Yamaguchi Prefecture in western Japan for summit talks with her husband.
The prefecture was the former prime minister's home constituency.
Russia is a very important neighbor for Japan, and I would be delighted if cultural exchanges and human contacts between our countries continued to develop.
Putin said Russia remembers the late Prime Minister's contribution to the development of Russian-Japanese cooperation.
I know that his dream, which he sincerely aspired to, was to conclude a peace treaty between our countries. We made serious progress with him on this path.
Abe visited the US last December and met Donald Trump shortly before he took office. She later gave a speech and said she would like to serve as a bridge with other countries.
Mahathir Mohamad talks tariffs, conflict prevention
The Giant of Asia, as he's called, is visiting Japan, Mahathir Mohamad. He served as Malaysia's prime minister for about a quarter of a century.
He's known for pushing his Look East policy, through which Malaysia learned from Japan's technology and work ethic.
It led to significant economic growth. He also made headlines for becoming the oldest leader in the world. A long career and a long-standing message of peace, something he spoke about with NHK World's Kitai Genki. Here's that report.
Mahathir Mohamad, this day's lecturer at Kyoto University. Fresh faces in the crowd, but a timeless warning.
We live in a situation where the potential for violence, for wars is very real.
That is why, more than ever, we need to have some ways of diffusing tensions by less violent means.
Mahathir knows a lot about tension having navigated numerous political and economic crises, including the Asian financial crisis of the 1990s.
He remains actively engaged in global affairs, regularly sharing his insights, including on a major topic the world is watching. Do you think Trump's tariff policy will lead the US to success?
I don't think it would be a success. you know He will have to give up on this high tariff because it cannot be sustained. Many of their products use microchips, which are produced in China, in India, in Malaysia.
If they raise the tariff rate on imports, it means that the imported chips would be very expensive, and they cannot produce unless they import.
A lot of the focus has been on the tit-for-tat tariffs between the US and China. Mahathir says increasing economic pressure won't work.
Any idea about uh defeating China or stopping China is not something that is possible. China will continue to expand, and maybe China will become number one in place of the US.
One of Mahathil's most pressing concerns is over the territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
He emphasizes that accidental conflicts that escalate into something bigger don't always lead the victor to a true win.
War is very destructive. It doesn't achieve anything. You can achieve the same thing by negotiation, by peaceful means, with no damage, no no killing. So, as you see in the Second World War, yes, the Western Alliance win. but they didn't get get everything for winning. We see that the loser countries, like Germany, like Japan, did much better than the the winners, the victors.
Though he admits not all mechanisms of negotiation work the way they should, he shares his great concern that the United Nations has become disfunctional.
General Assembly should make decision, not the Security Council. What is happening now is that the General Assembly makes a decision, but the Security Council, with one of the veto powers there, would negate the decision of the the Assembly.
Mahathir Mohamad, among sharing a message,And at 99 years of age, he's not slowing down. Kitae Genki, NHK World.
Now let's see what's happening in the world of business. Here's Ramin Melegaard from the Biz Desk.
Thank you very much indeed.
Japan's smaller retailers start applying for stockpiled rice
Now, Japan's agriculture ministry has begun accepting applications from small and mid-sized retailers to buy government stockpiled rice. A total of 80,000 tons harvested in 2021 are up for sale through no bid contracts. The ministry says 60,000 tons are available to the small and mid-sized retailers. The remainder will go to rice shops equipped with polishing facilities. Agriculture Minister Koizumi Shinjiro has projected that with distribution cost included, the retail price before tax will be around 1,800 yen or $12.50 per 5 kilograms. That's less than half the current supermarket price. Recently, consumers have seen the price of Japan's staple grain hiked to over 4,000 yen. In the meantime, large retailers are beginning to receive their shipments.
The operator of discount chain Don Quixote plans to start selling the rice in Tokyo from early June and then expand the number of stores across the country.
Aeon says it will start selling at some of its stores from Sunday and Monday. The retail giant has bought 20,000 tons, the largest amount among retailers. A five kilogram bag will be priced at about 2,100 yen, including tax. The bags are limited to one per family.
Prices in Japan for more than 1,900 food items to rise in June
Japan's leading business lobby gets new chairman
Keidanren will aim to fulfill its responsibility to future generations by embracing mid- and long-term perspectives, as well as viewpoints of the whole of Japan.
Tsutsui said he thinks the nation's tax and Social Security systems should be reformed. He said he wants to clarify the structure of payments and burdens in order to lessen the financial strain on working people.
Now, Tsutsui also touched on the issue of the government selling stockpiled rice directly to retailers, which are offering it for reduced prices. He said the prices need to drop in the short term, but he added that Keidanren needs to convey that agricultural food policies have structural issues.
Let's take a look at the topics we'll track in the week ahead. On Saturday, China's National Bureau of Statistics will release its Purchasing Managers Index for May. It's an indicator of sentiment in manufacturing and services. Now, manufacturing activity dipped below the expansion contraction line in April for the first time in three months. Hefty tariffs between China and the US hampered exports. Economist Ke Long believes that despite a dramatic reduction in those levies, the figure for May will also come in under 50.
This is because, although tariffs have been significantly reduced, 30 percent tariffs still remains for manufacturing of a medium and the low value added products in particular, even 30 percent tariff will make it difficult to continue doing business.Key economic indices for April show slower growth in both factory output and retail sales.
The problem facing the Chinese economy is an imbalance between supply and demand, namely insufficient demand and excess supply to rebalance it, it is necessary to improve employment as 12.2 million university students are going to graduate. So employment pressure remains very, very high.Therefore, the most important factor to determining whether the Chinese economy will recover is the employment situation.
The latest data also shows the property slump isn't over. Investment in real estate development in the first four months of the year dropped from last year by more than 10 percent. Two-thirds of major cities in April saw prices for new houses decline.
Investment is declining because the real estate market remains in the state of oversupply. As the real estate slump drags on, it is highly likely that the local government debt will increase and banks will see sharply rise in the non-performing loan. To cover the local government debt and bad loans, the government is issuing long-term government bonds. However, I believe that unless demand is stimulated, the real estate slump will not go to an end.
Ke's long-term forecast is that the Chinese economy will gradually slow down. He thinks the jobless rate for young people will remain high, so the Xi Jinping administration won't be able to stimulate domestic demand, especially private consumption.
I'm Yanaka Marie, and that wraps it up for this week's Biz Picks.
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Richard Armitage memorial praises diplomat's contribution to Japan-US alliance
People have gathered to remember former US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, who played a key role in Japan-US relations. The high-ranking diplomat died in April at the age of 79. A memorial ceremony was held on Thursday at the US Naval Academy in the state of Maryland. About 400 participants attended, including diplomats from Japan and other countries.He knew that diplomacy was not an abstraction, but a very human business of building trust with allies and partners.
The passing of Richard Armitage, the greatest and most skilled craftsman in the history of the US-Japan alliance, is a profound loss to our countries.
Armitage worked under President George W. Bush. He was a top expert on Asian and Japanese affairs and called for strengthening the Japan-US alliance.Bangladeshi interim leader, Nobel laureate Yunus urges stronger ties with Japan
Muhammad Yunus, the interim leader of Bangladesh, says he hopes Japan can help fill research funding gaps in his country after the US administration's recent cuts. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate sat for an exclusive interview with NHK in Tokyo on Thursday. He said the sudden US move upended his country's institutions.But what pains us all is stopping financing to one of the healthcare research institutions called icddr,b, which has invented many cures for diarrheal diseases, many other diseases, and very popular, not only in Bangladesh, all over the world. So there are thousands of employees there, people who are working there. Their salaries have stopped, so we don't know what to do.
Yunus was named chief adviser to the interim government last August after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned in the wake of deadly student-led protests. Bangladeshi media reported last week that Yunus was considering stepping down from the position. They cited rising tensions with certain political parties and the military over the timing of a planned election. Yunus did not directly address those reports, but did say reform must come first.
So reform means we don't want to go back to the same structure, same policy, same judiciary, et cetera, which were used as a tool of oppression, tool of taking away people's rights, tool of silence people's opinions. So we have to go through all the processes that examine everything is in existence right now. and see if it is safe or if it's unsafe. If it's unsafe, reform it, change it. And once this is done, then we go into the next phase, election.
Yunus says he would like to see Japan support his country's young entrepreneurs.
My favorite thing is to promote the young people, young people to transform them into entrepreneurs. Japan can take a lead in that see how to encourage the young people to become entrepreneurs, how to create an institution to make it easy for them.
Tokyo's Shibuya Ward to tighten rules for street go-kart businesses
Tokyo's Shibuya Ward is planning to tighten rules for businesses that rent go-karts to tourists who want a driver's view of the Japanese capital.The small open vehicles are popular with inbound tourists, but there have been complaints about poor driving manners and the loud noise. The ward says it has decided to revise the related ordinance to ensure the safety and security of its residents. The revised draft calls for firms planning to open go-cart rental offices to notify the ward at least 30 days in advance and to provide details of their operations, such as business hours. Shibuya Ward says it will not set penalties for violating the ordinance. The ward says it plans to submit revisions of the ordinance to its assembly in June and hopes they'll take effect in July.
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the world weather
Time now for a check on the world weather. In the eastern Pacific, the first storm of the hurricane season has formed. Our meteorologist Yumi Hirano has the details.
Moving to South Asia, a deep deflation made landfall in Bangladesh and brought nearly 200 millimeters of rainfall to the capital. The system is also impacting northeastern India.
Flood water inundated many towns in Assam on Thursday, disrupting commuters. Dhaka, Bangladesh has also experienced flooding after receiving half the average monthly rainfall in May in only the past 24 hours.
Heavy rain warnings remains in place for parts of Bangladesh and northeastern India. The storm is weakening but still has enough power to bring additional downpours.
Indian officials have issued the highest level warning for heavy rainfall into Saturday. Finally, across East Asia, a frontal system is bringing heavy rain to central China. Due to a low pressure system, another round of wet weather is expected in central Japan on Saturday. Tokyo will have showers with a high of only 17. But warmer than usual conditions are expected to continue in Seoul and Beijing with with highs around 30.
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That wraps up this edition of NHK Newsline. I'm Kanako Sachno in Tokyo.Thanks very much for joining us.
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