It's a Wednesday evening here in Japan.
I'm James Tengan in Tokyo. This is NHK Newsline.
Turbulent Weather Brings Heavy Rain and Storm Risks Across Japan
People across Japan are grappling with another spell of turbulent weather.
Authorities say downpours could trigger landslides and flooding.
The meteorological agency says atmospheric conditions are unstable in eastern and western Japan.
Some parts of the Tokai region could see 50 millimeters of rain per hour on Wednesday night. The unstable conditions are expected into Thursday.
Heavy rain is also forecast for the Kanto-Koshin, Izu Islands, Kyushu and Kinki regions.
Authorities say lightning strikes, strong winds and tornadoes are possible.
US Report Cites Munitions Shortfall After Iran Operation
A new report says the US military has a munitions inventory shortfall because of the operation against Iran. But President Donald Trump paints a rosier picture.
Officials from the Defense Department and other agencies submitted the report to Congress on Monday. It covers the period from April through June.
The report points to strategic inventory shortfalls and bottlenecks for resupply.
It also says significant lead time is needed to expand production capacity.
The report also says five fighter jets and seven refueling aircraft were damaged or destroyed and as many as 30 drones were wiped out.
Hundreds of buildings and facilities at US bases in the region were also damaged.
Trump appeared to brush it off on Monday.
He said via social media he had received a report about the US "producing more exquisite and elite weapons than at any time in our history."
And he said they're being delivered to the Middle East on a daily basis.
Iran Conflict: Iran Official: No Talks with US Until Conditions Met
Meanwhile, the senior Iranian official has reiterated his country will not negotiate with the US until its conditions are met.
Mossein Rezai is secretary of the Supreme National Security Council.
He said in a social media post on Tuesday people should not get distracted by the US president's mixed signals. He also said the stakes around oil and the straits have changed.
This comes amid reports that Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have seized control of key areas around the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait.
This is a vital waterway at the mouth of the Red Sea serving as an alternative route to the Strait of Hormuz.
Raza's post in English also said, Damage control won't stop what's coming.
No talks until Iran's conditions are met, period.
Reuters news agency says the Houthi advance down the Red Sea coast came with direct guidance from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
It also says Iran promised the Houthis more funding and weapons.
Iran Conflict: UNSC Discusses Hostilities in Bab al-Mandeb Strait
The UN Security Council has held an emergency meeting to discuss the developments in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
Speaking at the meeting on Tuesday, Yemen's ambassador to the UN said, Yemenis are standing on the front lines of defense of an international corridor in which the entire world's interests hinge.
The ambassador called on the council to halt the flow of weapons and funding to the Houthis, and to back Yemen's government, military and other institutions.
The US representative expressed support for the Yemeni government and demanded the Houthis halt their attacks and withdraw from seized territories.
The US also called on Iran to end its support for the rebels.
Russia's envoy called on the UN to take the initiative by reviving political dialogue among all parties including the Houthis.
China's representative called for an immediate halt to hostilities and the resumption of diplomatic talks.
China also expressed hope that the Gulf countries will play a mediating role.
Ioto Residents Get Virtual Replica of Former Home
Ioto Island was the site of one of World War II's worst battles.
The island's residents were forced to evacuate, and over 80 years later, they still can't go home for good.
But as our next story shows, a new technology is letting them roam the island from afar once again.
00:04:47 話者 2/Reporter: Sekiya Satoshi/Narrator: Kitadai Hiroko
About 1,200 kilometers south of central Tokyo lies Ioto, a remote island in the Pacific Ocean.
Near the end of World War II, fierce fighting broke out here between Japanese and American forces. Nearly 30,000 people from both sides lost their lives.
Before becoming a battlefield, Ioto was home to hundreds of people, many of whom made their living through sugar production, coca farming and fishing.
The island was teeming with life. But in 1944, that prosperity came to a sudden end.
The Americans were coming, and the islanders were forced to leave.
Morishita Kayoko was one of them. She is now 92 years old.
She lived on Iwoto with her siblings until she was 10.
00:05:48 話者 13/Morishita Kayoko
We had a massive banyan tree near my home that we used to climb.
Back then, we didn't have the kind of toys that kids have today, so we played using things we found in nature.
00:06:03 話者 2
Morishita had an older brother, Rikio, who was a deeply responsible person.
He would even scold her for not doing her chores.
Rikio was among the dozens of men from Iyoto who were ordered to stay behind to fight when the Americans invaded. He was killed in the war at the age of 22.
00:06:28 話者 13
Someone told us he had been shot while trying to flee north.
When I was a child, I opened the urn that was returned to us.
Inside was just a single piece of paper with the words Spirit of Yamamoto Riko.
00:06:44 話者 2
She can still remember seeing her brother standing on the shore, watching as the evacuation ship carrying his family left the island.
His remains have never been found.
Morishita used to go back to Ioto to pray, but she's getting older.
She does not know when or if she will be able to visit the island again.
00:07:12 話者 13
What I really wish is that we could live there again, but it's an island where people can't live no matter how much they want to. All I can do is think about it from afar.
00:07:29 話者 2
Morishita isn't alone daydreaming about her childhood home.
But now, these former residents no longer have to use just their imaginations.
These students at a college in Tokyo recreated the island virtually.
They revealed the digital museum earlier this month at a reunion of Ioto residents.
They hope the project will let the islanders reconnect with a place that's hard to return to.
00:08:13 話者 14
Many people take pride in Yoto and had their own lives there.
I want to share not only the details of how they lived, but also their personal memories.
00:08:29 話者 2
Guided by the students, Morishita is able to travel through her virtual hometown.
She can visit underground tunnels and places where homes once stood.
It's real enough to trigger a flood of emotion.
She sees the memorial for islanders who died during the war. And she finds Rikio.
00:08:56 話者 13
My brother never left Ioto even once.
Seeing his name here, I felt as if I had met him again.
Analysis: Why Ioto Locals Can't Return Home
00:09:04 話者 1
For more on this, NHK World's Sekiya Satoshi is here with us in the studio.
Satoshi, it's clear that some of the residents want to return home, but what's keeping them from going back and living on Ioto?
00:09:17 話者 4/Sekiya Satoshi
The Japanese government won't let them live on the island permanently.
However, what's notable is that there is no specific law that explicitly prohibits that.
A Japanese minister told reporters last year that the island isn't safe because of ongoing volcanic activity, making permanent settlement difficult.
So the policy right now is that nobody besides the self-defense forces or government workers can leave on or even visit the island, except for official trips a few times a year.
But there are some other perspectives on why this policy exists.
Professor Ishihara Shun of Meiji Gakuin University has spent many years researching Ioto.
He argues that the government's explanation about volcanoes may not tell the whole story he says the real reason may be related to national security concerns.
00:10:25 話者 15/Ishihara Shun
This is a training base that the Self-Defense Forces can easily access.
It's also very convenient for aircraft takeoff and landing drills in the vast Pacific airspace.
So I think the government is hoping to secure it as a strategic military outpost.
00:10:45 話者 1
So Satoshi Iyoto still has significant military value today.
00:10:50 話者 4
If it does, Japan is in the middle of a security environment that's only getting more complex.
And the country's defense minister has come out and said that Ioto's location in the Pacific can help address a gap in Japan's defense coverage.
It appears the major concern is China's military activities in the Pacific, which seems to be ramping up.
And while national security is important, it can be argued that that shouldn't prevent people from returning.
For the former residents, the island isn't just a military base or a strategic outpost.
It's their hometown.
And right now, it doesn't seem likely they will get the chance to move back.
00:11:45 話者 1
Thanks very much for that report. That was NHK World's Sekiya Satoshi.
♪
War in Ukraine: Energy Truce Tested by New Strikes
US President Donald Trump has been touting an agreement between Ukraine and Russia.
He says they pledged not to attack each other's energy facilities.
But strikes have continued on both sides.
The mayor of Kyiv posted on social media that two gas stations were hit by drone strikes, and the Russian side reported damage to an industrial facility in the central region of Samara.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described that attack as a retaliatory measure.
He says Russian forces are continuing strikes on the energy sector and critical infrastructure, and he warned that Ukraine's response would be visible.
The exchanges came one day after Trump announced the agreement.
Japan's Lower House Speaker Addresses Ukraine Parliament
The speaker of Japan's lower house has condemned Russia's invasion in an address to the Ukrainian parliament. Mori Eisuke delivered the speech in Kyiv on Tuesday.
00:13:09 話者 21/Mori Eisuke
Russia's actions are atrocities that fundamentally undermine how the international community functions and the values it upholds that were developed from overcoming countless tragedies.
00:13:27 話者 1
Mori said unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force should never be tolerated.
He added that the security of the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific is interconnected.
The speaker also expressed Tokyo's intention to continue supporting Kyiv.
Mori met with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy.
After the meeting, Zelensky expressed his gratitude for the Japanese delegation's visit in a social media post, calling it an expression of true respect.
Japanese officials say this is the first visit to Ukraine by a lower house speaker since Russia began its invasion.
Takaichi Names New LDP Executive Lineup
Japan's Prime Minister Takeichi Sanae named her Liberal Democratic Party's executive lineup on Wednesday. This comes ahead of a cabinet reshuffle scheduled for Thursday.
The new lineup became official at an extraordinary General Council meeting at LDP party headquarters in Tokyo.
Several key members remained in their posts, including Vice President Aso Taro.
Secretary General Suzuki Shunichi, Policy Research Council Chairperson Kobayashi Takayuki, and Election Strategy Committee Chairperson Nishimura Yasutoshi.
Others were given new jobs. Kajiyama Hiroshi, who served as Diet Affairs Committee Chief, was appointed to chair of the General Council.
And former Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Murai Hideki was appointed to chair of the LDP Diet Affairs Committee instead.
00:15:01 話者 33/Takeichi Sanae
The party and government will work together to overcome these difficulties.
Our policies will open a path forward, so everyone can feel the wealth and peace of mind that comes with economic growth.
00:15:14 話者 1
As for the Cabinet reshuffle on Thursday, Takaichi is considering keeping several members in place.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara Minoru, Finance Minister Katayama Satsuki, Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu and Defense Minister Koizumi Shinjiro will likely remain in their posts.
She's also reportedly considering bringing in a member from the LDP's coalition partner Japan Innovation Party.
Secretary-General Nakatsuka Hiroshi will likely be brought in to the cabinet.
Takaichi is believed to be prioritizing expertise and abilities.
It suggests she hopes to build a team that can promote key policies.
Business
Ramin Mellegard from our business desk joins us to break down the latest in finance and the markets. Ramin.
00:16:05 話者 6/Ramin Mellegard
Thank you very much indeed.
Nvidia CEO: No Need for New Laws on AI
Now, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has spoken out against curbing the development of artificial intelligence. He says there is no need for new laws or regulations on AI.
Huang expressed the view after Anthropic CEO Dario Amadei on Saturday called for slowing AI's development.
Now, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Tesla CEO Elon Musk also expressed similar sentiments. At an event in San Francisco on Tuesday, Huang appeared to disagree.
00:16:44 話者 46/Jensen Huang
We don't need any new laws, we don't need new regulations, we just need companies to decide that when it's you know run as fast as they can I think Innovation speed and safe products are not it's a false choice. You could definitely have both at the same time, so run as fast as you can.
00:17:05 話者 6
US media outlet CNBC says that the AI boom has made Nvidia the world's largest chip maker it pointed out that slowing the development of more capable models could pose a risk to the company's growth.
Japan Land Prices Rise for 5th Straight Year
Now government data shows average land prices across Japan rose for the fifth consecutive year as of July 1.
The increase reflects demand for housing and commercial properties related to the surge in overseas visitors.
The annual survey by the land ministry shows prices rose 1.5 percent from last year.
The report released on Tuesday contained data from more than 21,400 locations across the country.
Now, the price of residential land grew 1 percent, the fifth straight year of gains.
The biggest increase were seen in major metropolitan areas.
Greater Tokyo prices rose 4 percent, while the comparable in Osaka climbed 2.3%.
Both represent faster gains than last year.
Demand for high-priced condominiums remained strong.
Average prices for commercial land rose 2.9%, also gaining for the fifth straight year.
This was attributed to demand for retail stores and hotels as tourist numbers increase.
Also, vacancy rates at office buildings have declined, leading to higher rents.
However, residential land prices fell in around half of the country's 47 prefectures.
Commercial land prices slid in roughly a quarter of them.
Now the declines were seen in locations with shrinking and aging populations.
Rising Interest Rates Slow Japan Condo Sales
The increase in land prices has supported Japan's real estate market, but there are now signs higher interest rates are affecting condominium sales.
Some condo sellers in central Tokyo are lowering their asking prices, and one reason is housing loan rates.
This nine-year-old condominium unit in Tokyo's Minato Ward is up for sale.
It's within a 10-minute walk of a train station on the Yamanote line.
The initial asking price was about 180 million yen, but it was marked down by 10 million yen in July, or more than $64,000.
But the seller says customer inquiries are decreasing amid rising interest rates.
A further markdown is being considered.
A market research company says sales of new condominiums are also showing signs of slowing as rates rise.
Pork Prices Hit Record in Sep. as Meat, Eggs Stay Expensive
It is becoming more expensive to buy meat in Japan.
A government survey shows that beef and chicken prices are above average in September, with pork hitting a record level.
Japan's agriculture ministry surveys hundreds of stores across the country every month about the retail price of 100 grams of meat. It says pork loin was 293 yen, or about $1.90.
That's 7% above an average year, and the highest since the survey began in August 2003.
The ministry notes that as food prices rise, demand for pork grows due to its relative affordability. The price of imported beef loin was 442 yen, up 26% from an average year.
Domestic beef was 859 yen, up 30.
Now, chicken came in at 155 yen, down from a record in August, but 13% above average.
Meanwhile, egg prices also returned to a record high, hitting 309 yen for a pack of 10.
Officials say shipments have not yet recovered from bird flu outbreaks last season.
The ministry says it will keep a close watch on foreign exchange rates and animal feed prices going forward.
Markets
Okay, let's have a look at the markets.
♪
And that is it for business news.
00:22:33 話者 1
Ramin Mellegard with updates from our biz desk.
Sea Turtles Arrive in Mexico for Nesting
Thousands of sea turtles have been splashing ashore on a beach in southern Mexico for nesting season.
Footage from Reuters news agency shows the endangered olive ridley turtles landing at the sanctuary in the state of Oaxaca.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature designated them as vulnerable on its red list of threatened species in 2008.
They face many threats including overfishing and climate change.
The World Wildlife Fund says unusually warm temperatures can disrupt sex ratios, warmer seas can lead to the loss of foraging grounds, and increasingly strong storms and rising sea levels can destroy nesting beaches.
00:23:22 話者 55/Rafael Villanueva Alcazar/Playa Escobilla Sanctuary
Climate change is one of the strongest primary threats to this type of species.
Why?
Because rains are no longer occurring, temperatures are elevated, and consequently there is very low hatchling production.
00:23:41 話者 1
He says the hatching rate is about 40 percent, and that's much lower than other beaches.
♫～
World Weather
Well, we might end up seeing drier conditions spreading across Japan but we're also keeping an eye out on a developing tropical system to the south, our meteorologist Jonathan Oh has the details.
00:24:31 話者 7/Jonathan Oh
Hello we've been seeing still a bit of a wet day on Wednesday in Japan as we had the autumn front continue to hang over the country.
It looks like though that's going to be dropping a little bit toward the south and as it does so we're going to be seeing a bit of a drying pattern for portions of Japan.
It still looks like that the area closest to the front like for example the Kanto-Koshin region back toward the west may be still seeing a little bit more in terms of rain coming up on Thursday, but then we head toward Friday and things might be getting even drier as well as the front continues to move toward the south.
It's not a full picture but that's at least the picture for the next couple of days looking at the forecast here Tokyo looking at some rain Osaka looking at some sunshine coming back into the picture Friday looking generally dry except for areas like the Ogasawara Islands I'll talk about that in just a bit.
We head toward the weekend which is part of a longer holiday weekend looks at the rain might be coming back into picture by Sunday.
Here's the reason why, down to the south we have a developing tropical system this thing is having a hard time really gathering stuff together but it looks like they eventually will become a more developed system over the next few days.
So, people in the Mariana Islands already seeing the impacts of the winds picking up with this and then as it continues to develop and move toward the north and west, Ogasawara islands may be next.
Now, we're watching the different models and we've seen a bit of a wild shift in terms of where it's going to go.
So the key thing for you to remember is keep watching and keep looking at what's going to be happening over the next few days because the trend models have been more eastward, but again, a few days out In the meantime I just pay attention to it.
Looking what's happening across Europe we have a front that's pushing through into the north and west as it does so bringing some unstable weather some stormier weather in some locations and it looks like they were still seeing some rain coming up as we go through on Wednesday from Stockholm into Berlin down to the south also seeing some rain and bit of relief from the heat as we go throughout the day.
hope you have a good day wherever you are.
♫～ 3-Day Forecast ～♫
00:27:45 話者 1
More to come here on NHK World Japan, so stay with us.
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NHK World
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