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Daily English News: March

March 31, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. G-8 foreign ministers agreed to increase pressure on Iran’s government for refusing to comply with U.N. Security Council demands regarding its nuclear program.

2. Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama faces a leadership test as his government enters the final stage of talks with the U.S. on the relocation of a Marine air base in Okinawa.

3. Representatives from more than 100 countries are expected to discuss ways to rebuild quake-stricken Haiti as a U.N. donors’ conference in New York on Wednesday.

4. Russian police have released photographs of two terrorist suspects from the North Caucasus region who attacked the Moscow subway system.

March 30, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Foreign ministers of the Group of Eight nations begin global security talks in Canada, focusing on nuclear disarmament and issues related to Iran and North Korea.

2. Japan’s foreign minister assures U.S. defense secretary that his government intends to resolve the issue of where to move a U.S. base in Okinawa by the end of May.

3. French President Nicolas Sarkozy tells an audience at Columbia University in New York on Monday that the U.N. Security Council needs Japan as a permanent member.

4. Thai prime minister and anti-government protesters fail to reach an agreement to a demonstration in the capital Bangkok.

March 29, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. U.S. President Barack Obama makes a surprise visit to Afghanistan, his first visit there since taking office in January 2009.

2. Arab leaders meeting in Libya have adopted a joint statement criticizing Israel’s illegal expansion of settlements in occupied Palestinian areas.

3. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama says he will remain accountable for a political funding scandal involving his former secretary whose trial got underway on Monday at the Tokyo District Court.

4. The leader of the Social Democratic Party is rejecting a government plan to transfer the functions of a U.S. Marine corps air base in Okinawa as well as outside the prefecture.

March 28, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. Japan’s Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada has left for Washington to meet Defense Secretary Robert Gates and other U.S. officials.

2. Chinese investigators say a suspect in the poisoning of frozen dumplings that sickened people in Japan two years ago has confessed to mixing insecticides into food products.

March 28, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. Japan’s Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada has left for Washington to meet Defense Secretary Robert Gates and other U.S. officials.

2. Chinese investigators say a suspect in the poisoning of frozen dumplings that sickened people in Japan two years ago has confessed to mixing insecticides into food products.

March 27, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. The United States and Russia have agreed to sign a new nuclear arms reduction treaty on April 8 in Prague.

2. In Iraq’s March 7 general election, a secular block led by former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi has won the most parliamentary seats, but no blocks won an overall majority.

3. Chinese media have provided modest coverage of a suspect in the alleged poisoning of frozen dumplings that sickened people in Japan and China two years ago.

March 27, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. Chinese police have detained a suspect who allegedly poisoned dumplings that sickened people in Japan and China.

2. The United States and Russia have agreed to sign a new nuclear arms reduction treaty on April 8 in Prague.

3. In Iraq’s March 7 general election, a secular block led by former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi has won the most parliamentary seats, but no blocks won an overall majority.

March 26, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Yuka Matsumoto

1. Defense Minister Toshimi Kitagawa says Japan’s government is studying the option of relocating the functions of the U.S. Futenma Air Station in Okinawa to more than one location.

2. Japan’s Diet has enacted a law to give benefits to families with children through junior high school for the next fiscal year starting in April.

3. A United Nations report says deforestation has slowed globally over the past decade but continues at an alarming rate mainly in Africa and South America.

March 26, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Japan’s foreign minister meets with the U.S. ambassador to Japan to convey where the government now stands in its search for a new relocation site for a U.S. base in Okinawa.

2. A two-week meeting on the world’s endangered species has ended in Doha, Qatar, where all proposals to restrict trade in marine species were voted down.

3. Key member countries of the United Nations have renewed their call for Myanmar’s military government to allow all opposition groups to take part in a general election planned for some time this year.

4. A plan is agreed for aiding debt-strapped Greece, which would involve the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.

March 25, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Miwa Gardner

1. Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force units in Haiti have begun removing rubble from buildings in the capital Port-au-Prince that collapsed in January’s devastating earthquake.

2. Japan’s Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has told new Chilean President Sebastian Pinera that Japan will provide medical and other aids to the quake-hit country.

3. Chinese diplomats joined a conference call with their counterparts on Wednesday to discuss further U.N. sanctions on Iran over the nation’s nuclear program.

March 25, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Israeli authorities announce a plan for the construction of new settlements in the West Bank as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in Washington for talks with U.S. President Barack Obama.

2. Chinese diplomats joined their counterparts from other world powers to discuss further U.N. sanctions on Iran over that nation’s nuclear program.

3. Japan’s government plans to help widows in Iraq become financially independent in a joint project with the United States and non-government organizations.

4. Japanese business leaders express readiness to create a framework that promotes tie-ups between smaller firms in Japan and China.

March 24, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Keiko Kitagawa

1. Japan’s Diet has enacted a record 92 trillion yen budget – roughly one trillion dollars – for the fiscal year starting in April.

2. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama says the government has not given up on the idea of moving the U.S. Marine Corps Futenma Air Station out of Okinawa Prefecture.

3. The Japanese government has drawn up bills to totally review the postal privatization program initiated by the previous Liberal Democratic Party administration.

March 24, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama says the government has not given up on the idea of moving a U.S. air station out of Okinawa Prefecture.

2. Japan’s foreign minister has talked with his Iranian counterpart and urged the Iranian leaders to suspend the nation’s uranium enrichment activities.

3. Japan’s government is set to work jointly with Australia’s to call for nuclear disarmament at the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty review conference in May.

4. Delegates at a U.N. conference on endangered species in Doha, Qatar, decide a type of shark will be placed on a protective list.

March 23, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroki Kitadai

1. Google has stopped censoring Internet search results in China. The world’s largest search engine shut down its China website and is redirecting users to its uncensored Hong Kong site.

2. The Japanese prime minister and four of his Cabinet members will meet on Tuesday to discuss the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps’ Futenma Air Station in Okinawa.

3. An international wildlife convention has rejected a proposal to allow one-time exports of ivory.

March 23, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. The world’s largest search engine Google has shut down its China website and is redirecting users to its uncensored Hong Kong site.

2. Japan’s prime minister and four of his Cabinet members will meet on Tuesday to discuss the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps’ Futenma Air Station in Okinawa.

3. Delegates attending a convention on Global Trade in Endangered Species turned down a request by Tanzania and Zambia to allow sales of ivory harvested from elephants that died of natural causes.

4. The U.S. secretary of state again accuses Israel’s government of undermining peace talks by announcing new settlements in occupied East Jerusalem.

March 22, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki

1. The U.S. House of Representatives has passed landmark healthcare legislation that is designed to sharply expand health insurance coverage, which one in six Americans lack.

2. An international conference in Egypt raises 850 million dollars for the safe return of 2.5 million people displaced by the war in Sudan’s Darfur Region.

3. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon urges Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to ease his nation’s blockade of the Gaza Strip.

March 22, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. An international conference in Egypt raises 850 million dollars for the safe return of 2.5 million people displaced by the war in Sudan’s Darfur Region.

2. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon urges Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to ease his nation’s blockade of the Gaza Strip.

3. The House of Representatives has passed landmark healthcare legislation that is designed to sharply expand health insurance coverage, which one in six Americans lack.

4. French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s center-right party seems likely to suffer a major defeat in Sunday’s regional elections.

March 21, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada has said Japan is willing to consider additional aid for the quake-ravaged Haiti to help its longer-term reconstruction.

2. Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has expressed hope that the United States will be flexible on relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture.

March 21, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. Japan’s Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada says Japan will stay in close contact with other countries to study additional aid to quake-hit Haiti.

2. Red and pink coral are now in the spotlight at an international wildlife convention in Doha, the Qatari capital.

March 20, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. Memorial services have been held at a subway station in Tokyo to mark the 15^th anniversary of the sarin gas attacks on the subway system by cult members.

2. Saturday marks the seventh anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq. Attention is focused on whether a new Iraqi government will be able to build an independent and stable Iraq overcoming sectarian confrontation.

3. Middle East peacemakers have called on Israel to freeze all settlement activity.

March 20, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. A mermorial service has been held to commemorate the sarin gas attacks that targeted at the Tokyo subway system in 1995.

2. Marking the seventh anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq, attention is focused on whether a new government will be able to build an independent and stable Iraq overcoming sectarian confrontation.

3. Middle East peacemakers have called on Israel to freeze all settlement activity.

March 19, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Yuka Matsumoto

1. Fisheries Minister Hirotaka Akamatsu says Japan will exercise leadership in efforts to manage tuna stocks.

2. A retired foreign ministry official says the ministry may have destroyed some documents on a secret nuclear pact between Japan and the United States.

3. Israeli military aircraft struck the Gaza Strip on Friday, in apparent retaliation for the previous day’s deadly rocket attack on Israel.

March 19, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Delegates attending an international conference in Doha, Qatar, has overwhelmingly voted down a proposal to ban the trade of Atlantic and Mediterranean bluefin tuna.

2. Fisheries Minister Hirotaka Akamatsu says Japan’s government will exercise leadership in efforts to manage tuna stocks.

3. Japan’s transport ministry is considering the mandatory installation of a brake override system for all of the nation’s vehicles in the wake of massive car recalls by Toyota in the United States.

4. France’s foreign minister says the EU is considering taking unilateral sanctions against Iran’s government as it tries to get the support from the U.N. Security Council.

March 18, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. An international conference on endangered species begins discussions in Qatar on a proposed ban on the international trade in Atlantic and Mediterranean bluefin tuna.

2. The Japanese government tries to increase its flexibility as it studies several possible sites for the planned relocation of a U.S. Marine air station in Okinawa.

3. OPEC has agreed to maintain the current level of crude oil production and strictly comply with the decision to maintain stable prices.

March 18, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. An international conference on endangered species begins discussions in Qatar on a proposed ban on the international trade in Atlantic and Mediterranean bluefin tuna.

2. The Japanese government tries to increase its flexibility as it studies several possible sites for the planned relocation of a U.S. Marine air station in Okinawa.

3. OPEC has agreed to maintain the current level of crude oil production and strictly comply with the decision to maintain stable prices.

4. The International Atomic Energy Agency is holding a meeting here in Japan to discuss safety at nuclear power plants during earthquakes.

March 17, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Keiko Kitagawa

1. Japanese auto maker Nissan and its French partner Renault are in talks with German auto giant Daimler to form a comprehensive tie-up.

2. Major Japanese electronics and car makers gave their replies on Wednesday to labor unions in the annual wage negotiations.

3. The Bank of Japan has decided to inject more funds into the financial market to stem deflationary pressure and support the domestic economy.

March 17, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Japanese auto maker Nissan and its French partner Renault are in talks with German auto giant Daimler to form a comprehensive tie-up.

2. Leading Japanese electronics and auto manufacturers are set to accept labor unions demands for annual wage increases in the annual spring wage negotiations.

3. A senior U.S. official says a meeting is being arranged for later this month between Japan’s foreign minister and the U.S. secretary of state.

4. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama says Japan will send several Self-Defense Forces officials to East Timor to assist with U.N. peacekeeping activities.

March 16, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura

1. Japanese Cabinet ministers have expressed both satisfaction and concern about their performances in the six months since the Democratic Party-led coalition took over last September.

2. A senior U.S. government official who was to arrive in Japan this week has canceled his visit and will return to the United States.

3. At the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species now underway in Qatar, Japan is stepping up its fight against a proposed trade ban on Atlantic bluefin tuna.

March 16, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. A senior U.S. government official who was to visit Asian nations such as Japan and Thailand this week has canceled his trip and is returning to the United States.

2. Japan’s foreign minister is trying to arrange a meeting with the U.S. secretary of state leader this month to discuss the Futenma Air Station relocation issue.

3. Japanese Cabinet ministers are both satisfied and concerned about the Democratic Party-led coalition that took over governing the nation last September.

4. As the Japanese economy continues to recover, the Bank of Japan is expected to discuss further monetary easing to halt deflationary pressure.

March 15, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki

1. Japan and South Korea have agreed to oppose a proposed ban on the trade of bluefin tuna from the Atlantic Ocean.

2. The Thai government has rejected an ultimatum to dissolve Parliament, defying demands by supporters of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

3. Japan has upgraded its monthly assessment of the economy for the first time in eight months.

March 15, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Anti-government demonstrations in Thailand say they will expand their protest if Prime Minister Abhisit Vajjajiva does not resign today.

2. At the close of the 10-day annual National People’s Congress in Beijing, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao stresses that the government will try to curb inflation to prevent social instability.

3. Business leaders from 11 Asian economies are meeting here in Tokyo to discuss ways for Asian businesses to help revitalize the global economy.

4. The Japan International Cooperation Agency announces a plan to agriculturally develop a savanna in Mozambique together with the Brazilian government.

March 14, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. China’s parliament has concluded by adopting an economic policy designed to focus on the country’s rural areas and narrow the income gap.

2. Japan’s Coast Guard says a member of an anti-whaling group who was arrested for allegedly intruding on a Japanese whaling ship, had a memo in Japanese asking to let him meet with the ship’s captain.

March 14, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. China’s parliament has concluded by adopting an economic policy designed to focus on the country’s rural areas and narrow the income gap.

2. At least 27 people were killed in a series of explosions in southern Afghanistan.

3. A proposed trade ban on bluefin tuna is high on the agenda at an international conference in Doha, Qatar.

March 13, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. A proposed trade ban on bluefin tuna is high on the agenda at an international conference due to open shortly, with the focus of attention being how much support Japan can drum up for its opposition to the ban.

2. The Winter Paralympics opened in Vancouver, Canada, on Friday, with over 500 athletes from 44 countries and all-time record competing in 64 events.

3. In Somalia, at least 40 people have been killed in fierce fighting between interim government forces and Islamic insurgents.

March 13, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. The Winter Paralympics opened in Vancouver, Canada, on Friday, with over 500 athletes from 44 countries and all-time record competing in 64 events.

2. A proposed trade ban on bluefin tuna is high on the agenda at an international conference due to open shortly, with the focus of attention being how much support Japan can drum up for its opposition to the ban.

3. In Somalia, at least 40 people have been killed in fierce fighting between interim government forces and Islamic insurgents, while in Pakistan a fresh suicide attack has killed at least 39 people and wounded more than 90.

March 12, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Yuka Matsumoto

1. The Japanese government has approved an anti-global warming bill that outlines its basic strategies to curb greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent.

2. The Japan Coast Guard has arrested a member of the anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd on suspicion of boarding a Japanese ship without permission.

3. A U.N. report reveals that half of the food sent to Somalia under the World Food Program is not reaching the people for whom it was intended.

March 12, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Japan’s government halts importation procedures for about 10 percent of recent shipments of Atlantic bluefin tuna because of incomplete documentation.

2. Japan’s Coast Guard arrests a member of the anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd as a Japanese ship carrying the man arrived at the port of Tokyo.

3. The leaders of Afghanistan and Pakistan have agreed to work together to bring peace and stability to both countries.

4. In Greece, riot police clash with thousands of protesters during a massive demonstration against the government’s austerity measures.

March 11, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Miwa Gardner

1. The European Union has decided to support a proposal by Monaco to prohibit the international trade in bluefin tuna.

2. The Japanese government has revised downward the nation’s economic performance figures for the October to December period.

3. A militant group has attacked the office of a U.S.-based aid agency in northwestern Pakistan, killing six employees.

March 11, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. The Japanese government has revised downward the nation’s economic performance figures for the October to December quarter.

2. The Hatoyama administration is considering a new site within Okinawa other than Nago City for relocating a U.S. air base.

3. China’s government will ask developed nations to provide funds and technology to tackle climate change issues at an international meeting in Mexico later this year.

4. Japan’s Fisheries Ministry says the Chilean earthquake-triggered tsunamis caused nearly 50 million dollars in damage to the Japanese fishery businesses.

March 10, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Keiko Kitagawa

1. Japan’s Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada says he will strictly enforce a ministry rule to ensure diplomatic documents are basically made public thirty years after their creation.

2. Myanmar’s military government has announced a law effectively barring pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from the country’s first general election in 20 years.

3. Toyota Motor and U.S. traffic safety regulators are examining a Prius that sped out of control for twenty minutes on a California freeway on Monday.

March 10, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. A Japanese government panel investigation concludes there was an unspoken agreement that allowed nuclear-armed ships to make port calls in Japan.

2. The U.S. ambassador to Japan holds a private meeting with his Japanese counterpart in Washington to discuss the relocation of a U.S. Marine base in Okinawa Prefecture.

3. Japan’s chief delegate to the six-party talks on North Korea’s nuclear program exchanges views with his Chinese counterpart in an attempt to restart the suspended negotiations.

4. In New York, the United Nations staff have paid a tribute to their fellow workers who died in the massive January earthquake in Haiti.

March 9, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai

1. A Japanese government panel has concluded that several secret agreements on nuclear arms and other issues were reached between Japan and the United States during the Cold War.

2. The Japanese government is considering new proposals offered by its junior coalition partners on the issue of where to relocate a U.S. air base in Okinawa.

3. Japan’s Sony will start selling TV sets with 3D capability in June this year.

March 9, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Japan’s government is considering new proposals offered by its junior coalition partners on the issue of where to relocate a U.S. air base in Okinawa.

2. An NHK poll shows that the approval rate for the Cabinet of Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has fallen to 38 percent, a drop of nine percentage points from February.

3. Myanmar’s military government passes five election laws in preparation for the country’s first general elections in 20 years.

4. China’s government says it is planning to strengthen measures to combat soaring real estate prices which could lead to social unrest.

March 8, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki

1. The municipal assembly of Nago, Okinawa says it won’t allow a helicopter runaway to be built within a U.S. Marine base in the city.

2. An earthquake struck eastern Turkey early on Monday, killing at least 41 people.

3. The United States and South Korea have started their annual joint military drill amid angry reactions from North Korea.

March 8, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Amid tight security, Iraqis vote in parliamentary elections that have ended on schedule despite attacks by insurgents that left 38 people dead.

2. North Korea’s military warns that it will increase the nation’s nuclear deterance in protest of joint South Korea-U.S. military drills that began on Monday.

3. China’s foreign minister says pressure and sanctions won’t solve the stand-off over Iran’s nuclear program.

4. Faced with falling approval rates, Japan’s prime minister says the government should find ways to respond to criticisms by the people but he says he won’t reshuffle his Cabinet.

March 7, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. Iraqi voters are casting ballots in a parliamentary election under tight security with 325 seats up for grabs.

2. People in Chile are still living in shelters one week after a major tsunami hit the country’s coastal area following a powerful earthquake on Saturday last week.

March 7, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. People in Chile are still living in shelters one week after a major tsunami hit the country’s coastal area following a powerful earthquake on Saturday last week.

2. Iraqi people are voting in a parliamentary election on Sunday.

March 6, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. U.S. President Barack Obama says his government will seek a new strategy to reduce the nuclear arsenal to achieve the vision of a world without nuclear weapons, while Russia President Dmitry Medvedev says Russia should keep its nuclear arsenal as it allows the country to pursue independent policies.

2. A senior U.S. official has said a delay in settlement of where to relocate the U.S. Marine Corps Futenma Air Station in Okinawa beyond the May deadline would affect Japan-U.S. cooperation not only in security but other areas as well.

3. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon has called on the international community to support quake-ravaged Chile.

March 6, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Madoka Kanai

1. A senior U.S. official has said a delay in settlement to relocate a U.S. base in Okinawa beyond the May deadline would affect Japan-U.S. cooperation not only in security but other areas as well.

2. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon has called on the international community to support quake-ravaged Chile.

3. A government survey has found that China has overtaken Japan as the best country for global companies to set up a base for their Asian operations.

March 5, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Yuka Matsumoto

1. Japan’s Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada says the issue of Iran’s nuclear program is reaching a crucial stage.

2. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao says China will seek to achieve an economic growth of around eight percent this year through active fiscal policies and efforts to expand consumer demand.

3. Toyota Motor President Akio Toyoda has reported his U.S. congressional testimony on vehicle recalls to the firm’s employees and clients.

March 5, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. The administration of Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama is bracing for tough negotiations this month in its effort to finalize an alternative site for a U.S. air base in Okinawa.

2. A panel set up by Japan’s foreign minister to investigate allegations of secret Japan-U.S. deals allowing the entry of nuclear arms vessels is expected to release its report next week.

3. Mexico’s chief negotiator on climate change warns it won’t be easy to come up with a new framework on mitigating global climate change at the next U.N. conference.

4. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao is delivering his policy speech before the National People’s Congress on the opening day of its annual meeting.

March 4, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Joseph Quini

1. Frustrations are mounting among survivors of the massive earthquake and tsunami in Chile.

2. China says it plans to increase its military spending this year by 7.5 percent.

3. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell will visit Japan this month to help settle the issue of relocating the U.S. Marine Corps Futenma Air Station in Okinawa.

March 4, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Continuing aftershocks and a new tsunami alert have brought a panic among residents along Chile’s earthquake-stricken coast.

2. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has provided Chilean President Michelle Bachelet that Japan will provide aid to the quake-hit nation.

3. Japan’s Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada is planning to visit Haiti this month to review his country’s aid activities in the quake-hit Caribbean nation.

4. Japanese government officials have briefed the U.S. ambassador on the current status of discussions on the planned relocation of the U.S. Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture.

March 3, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Keiko Kitagawa

1. Survivors of the earthquake and tsunami that hit Chile on Saturday are suffering from shortages of food and other necessities.

2. Japan’s Lower House Foreign Affairs Committee decided on Wednesday to summon former senior Foreign Ministry officials to clarify past secret agreements with the United States.

3. Toyota Motor executives have testified at a U.S. Senate hearing and reaffirmed their company’s commitment to improve quality and prevent further recalls of their vehicles.

March 3, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. The death toll from last weekend’s earthquake in Chile has risen above 790, while many survivors prefer to stay outdoors out of fear.

2. Toyota Motor executives testify at a U.S. Senate hearing and reaffirm their company’s commitment to improve quality and prevent further recalls of their vehicles.

3. The U.S. government remains unchanged in its position that the U.S. Marine Corps Futenma Air Station in Okinawa should be relocated according to the existing plan.

4. Five NATO member countries propose a nuclear-free Europe as they call for changing the current strategy that is based on nuclear weapons.

March 2, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Kaori Nimura

1. In Chile, a shortage of basic supplies and assistance is causing confusion to spreading areas hard hit by Saturday’s powerful earthquake.

2. Japan’s state budget for fiscal 2010 passed the Lower House budget committee on Tuesday with the largest ever spending allocation.

3. Japan’s unemployment rate fell to 4.9 percent in January, while the ratio of job offers to job seekers also improved.

March 2, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Chile’s government struggles with the extensive damage caused by Saturday’s massive earthquake and tsunami, and is now urgently calling for international aid.

2. The new head of the International Atomic Energy Agency again expresses concern over Iran’s nuclear program and urges the country’s leader to allow inspections of nuclear sites.

3. A U.N. conference calls on governments around the world to prevent violence against women in conflict areas and to reduce maternal mortality rates.

4. Japan’s state budget for fiscal 2010 passes the Lower House budget committee with the largest ever spending allocation amounting to about a trillion dollars.

March 1, 2010 (6:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki

1. The death toll is rising and reports of damage are increasing in Saturday’s enormous earthquake in Chile.

2. The Vancouver Winter Olympics have wrapped up after 17 days of breath-taking and record-breaking events.

3. Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada has called for active discussions to create a framework to combat climate change at an international meeting in Tokyo.

March 1, 2010 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Mr. Robert Jefferson

1. Chile’s president says more than 700 people died in Saturday’s powerful earthquake and the damage is widespread and reconstruction will take a long time.

2. Japan’s prime minister says his government will quickly determine what can be done to help Chile rebuild, and it is already decided to send a medical team.

3. Delegates from 28 nations are here in Tokyo for two days of discussions on ways to make this year’s U.N. climate change conference a success.

4. South Korea’s president gives a speech south of Seoul to mark the 100th anniversary of Japan’s annexation of the Korean Peninsula.