1. Yahoo Japan and Softbank Group and messaging app Line are negotiating toward a tie-up, according to sources close to the matter.
2. U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper says he will urge South Korea to maintain an intelligence-sharing pact with Japan, which is set to expire next week.
3. The top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine has indicated he believes President Donald Trump requested the European country to investigate a firm linked with the son of former vice president Joe Biden.