April 16, Friday, 2021 (1:30 p.m.) Newsline

1. A senior U.S. administration official says President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide are expected to discuss peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait at their summit on Friday and the subject could be included in their joint statement. This would be the first reference to Taiwan in a joint statement by the leaders of the two countries since 1969, when Japanese Prime Minister Sato Eisaku and U.S. President Richard Nixon issued one after they met. 2. Japan’s government has designated four more prefectures as areas where stricter anti-coronavirus measures should be taken without announcing an official state of emergency. 3. The president of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games organizing committee has once again ruled out the possibility that the events would be canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.