October 1, Thursday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms. Hiroko Kitadai
1. Russia’s Defense Ministry says the country’s military has launched airstrikes against the Islamic State militant group in Syria.
2. Media in China are reporting an explosion in an apartment building in the country’s southern region, where a series of blasts killed 7 people on Wednesday.
3. The foreign ministers of Japan and South Korea have agreed to work closely together for a 3-way summit with China.
October 2, Friday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Mariko Kojima and Ms. Sarah McDonald
1. Ministers from 12 countries taking part in the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade negotiations have agreed to extend their talks, in the hope of reaching an agreement.
2. North Korea has again hinted that it is ready to launch what it refers to as a satellite.
3. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has stressed that his nation’s airstrikes in Syria are targeting Islamic State militants and other terrorist groups.
October 3, Saturday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Mr. Jeff Adolf
1. Ministers from 12 countries negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade talks have agreed to continue their talks on pending issues, aiming to conclude the discussions on Saturday.
2. Russia’s Defense Ministry says its military forces have carried out air strikes in Syria and destroyed over 10 Islamic State militant bases.
3. U.S. President Barack Obama has criticized Russia, saying its attacks are eliminating moderate Syrian insurgents and only strengthening Islamic State militants.
October 4, Sunday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki and Ms. Keiko Kitagawa
1. Trade ministers from 12 countries participating in the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade talks have sat down together for last-minute negotiations.
2. U.S. President Barack Obama has pledged a thorough investigation into a U.S. airstrike that hit a hospital in northern Afghanistan. Dozens of people have been killed or injured in the incident.
3. Officials at the embassies of Japan and of other countries in Bangladesh are calling on their compatriots to be on the alert after a Japanese man was killed allegedly by a militant group.
October 5, Monday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Emma Howard and Mr. Raja Pradan
1. Ministers from 12 countries were close to reaching a broad agreement on Sunday, the 5th day of negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade pact.
2. Russia’s Defense Ministry says its airstrikes against Islamic State militants have destroyed ten more targets.
3. China will send a leading Communist Party member to North Korea for the anniversary of the founding of the country’s ruling party.
October 6, Tuesday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Mick Corliss and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. Twelve countries taking part in talks on a Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade deal has struck a broad agreement.
2. People in Africa were happy to hear that Japanese researcher Satoshi Omura is sharing this year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
3. The U.S. government is set to designate facilities where scientists developed the atomic bomb during World War II as a new national park.
October 7, Wednesday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Yuka Matsumoto and Ms. Fumiko Konoe
1. The lineup of the reshuffled Cabinet of Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has just been announced.
2. The leaders of Japan and Sri Lanka have agreed to strengthen cooperation on maintaining maritime security in the Indian Ocean.
3. A group claiming to be Islamic State militants says it has carried out a series of suicide bombings in Yemen, targeting both the government and Shia insurgents.
October 8, Thursday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Ms. Yuka Matsumoto
1. Japan’s top diplomat is set to resume stalled talks with Russia on a bilateral peace treaty on Thursday.
2. The Chinese yuan became the fourth most-used payment currency in August, overtaking the Japanese yen for the first time.
3. Japan’s national medical expenses for the year through March 2014 topped 40 trillion yen for the first time.
October 9, Friday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Maxwell Powers and Ms. Mariko Kojima
1.In their peace treaty talks senior diplomats from Japan and Russia have failed to narrow differences over a territorial dispute.
2. Medical Charity Doctors Without Borders says 33 people are still missing after a U.S. airstrike on the group’s hospital in northern Afghanistan.
3. Syrian government forces have launched a massive offensive against insurgents as Russian forces expand their air attacks in the country.
October 11, Sunday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki and Ms. Keiko Kitagawa
1.A rally of pro-Kurdish and leftist-activists near Ankara Station in Turkey was the site of a deadly bomb attack.
2. A joint panel of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund has called on the 2 global financial institutions to support efforts to address the refugee and migrant crisis.
3. Informed sources say the Chinese authorities have detained a Japanese woman since June on suspicion of spying. That brings the total number of Japanese being kept in detention in the country to 4.
October 12, Monday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Yoshi Ogasawara and Ms. Emma Howard
1. The Turkish government has intensified its crackdown on Kurdish militant groups and the Islamic State group.
2. Doctors Without Borders is demanding that an international commission conduct a probe into the U.S. military’s bombing of a hospital in Afghanistan.
3. An international human rights group ahs claimed Russian-made cluster bombs were used in an airstrike in Syria.
October 13, Tuesday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Mick Corliss and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. The governor of Okinawa has revoked a permit to reclaim coastal land in the prefecture for the relocation of a U.S. military base.
2. A Russian intelligence agency says several people, including Islamic State members, have been detained on suspicion of planning an attack on public transport in Moscow.
3. U.S.-led coalition forces have airdropped weapons to armed groups fighting the Islamic State militants in Syria.
October 14, Wednesday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Ms. Yuka Matsumoto
1. The Turkish government is taking heavy-headed measures to subdue criticism that it failed to prevent the deadly attacks on a peace rally in capital Ankara.
2. The Islamic State militant group has vowed to attack Russia in retaliation for its air campaign against the militant group in Syria.
3. Japanese Foreign Minister Fumiko Kishida and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani have agreed that the 2 sides will try to arrange Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit to Iran.
October 15, Thursday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms. Hiroko Kitadai
1. A nuclear reactor in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, has gone back online. It is the second such restart under new regulations set up after the Fukushima nuclear accident.
2. Japan’s Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida is calling for the early conclusion of an investment treaty with Qatar to encourage Japanese companies to invest more in that country.
3. Police in Israel shot dead a Palestinian man who stabbed an Israeli woman at a bus terminal in central Jerusalem.
October 16, Friday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms. Mariko Kojima
1. South Korean President Park Geun-hye has expressed her willingness to hold her first bilateral summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the sidelines of a 3-way summit with China early next month.
2. Japan has won a non-permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council for the 11th time, the most of the global body’s member countries.
3. U.S. President Barack Obama has announced his decision to scrap a plan to withdraw troops from Afghanistan by the end of next year.
October 17, Saturday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Mr. Jeff Adolf
1. Officials from Japan and South Korea are fine-tuning plans to hold the first one-on-one meeting between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Park Geun-hye.
2. U.S. President Barack Obama has asked South Korean President Park Geun-hye to speak out against China when it fails to abide by international norms and rules.
3. A group monitoring the civil war in Syria says more than 250,000 people have been killed since the turmoil started in March 2011.
October 18, Sunday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki and Ms. Yuka Matsumoto
1. Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force vessels are taking part in joint exercises with the navies of India and the U.S. in the Indian Ocean.
2. The South Korean Navy is holding a fleet review for the first time in 7 years, showcasing its latest vessels and conducting various exercises aimed at dealing with provocative acts by North Korea.
3. Swiss prosecutors say they are confident they will indict FIFA President Sepp Blatter on alleged misappropriation of the world soccer body’s funds.
October 19, Monday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Emma Howard and Mr. Raja Pradan
1. Analysts of China’s National Bureau of Statistics have released GDP data for the third quarter period. They suggested the economy has lost momentum.
2. An international deal to limit Iran’s nuclear development has officially taken effect on Sunday after the U.N. Security Council adopted a resolution on the issue.
3. Delegates from more than 190 countries and territories will open their last working- level talks on Monday ahead of a U.N. climate change conference next month.
October 20, Tuesday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Mick Corliss and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. NATO has started its biggest military exercise in 13 years amid increasing instability in some regions.
2. Japan’s defense minister is paying a visit to South Korea for the first time in 4 years.
3. Opponents of Japan’s newly enacted national security laws had rallied on Monday evening in front of the Diet building one month after the legislation was enacted.
October 21, Wednesday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Yuka Matsumoto and Ms. Fumiko Konoe
1. The United States and Russia have agreed to take measures to minimize the risk of incidents in the skies of Syria.
2. International negotiators have begun discussions on a revised draft for a framework to fight global warming.
3. Japan and China are expected to hold a meeting soon to discuss marine issues, including a pledge to set up a security hotline for emergencies.
October 22, Thursday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Ms. Yuka Matsumoto
1. Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has departed for a touir of Mongolia and 5 Central Asian countries to talk with the nations’ leaders to boost economic ties.
2. Sumitomo Corporation is expected to become the first Japanese company to win a deal to build a thermal power plant Turkmenistan.
3. Trade ministers from Japan, China and South Korea are likely to meet later this month for the first time in about 3 and a half years.
October 23, Friday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Mariko Kojima and Ms. Hiroko Kitadai
1. The Japanese government has disclosed trading rules of the broad Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement reached by 12 countries earlier this month.
2. A representative from developing nations has said financial assistance from industrialized nations should be obligatory to cope with global warming.
3. Japan and South Korea are arranging bilateral foreign ministerial talks ahead of a possible one-on-one meeting between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Park Geun-hye next month.
October 24, Saturday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Jeff Adolf and Ms. Fumiko Konoe
1. Japan, China and South Korea will issue a joint statement after a trilateral summit in Seoul on November 1st. The document is likely to demand that North Korea abandon its nuclear development and return to denuclearization talks.
2. The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant will complete the construction of underground walls in an attempt to block the leakage of radioactive water into the ocean as early as Monday.
October 25, Sunday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki and Ms. Keiko Kitagawa
1. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrived in Uzbekistan on Sunday from Tajikistan.
2. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says Israel and Jordan have agreed to take new steps to ease tensions at the holy site of Jerusalem.
3. The government of Germany has imposed stricter rules on asylum-seekers in a bid to curb the influx of refugees and migrants into the country.
October 26, Monday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Emma Howard and Mr. Yoshi Ogasawara
1. Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who is touring Mongolia and 5 Central Asian countries, is scheduled to arrive in Kyrgyzstan on Monday.
2. The governor of Ehime Prefecture in western Japan has decided to approve the restart of a nuclear reactor in his prefecture.
3. NHK has learned that UN High Commissioner for Refugees will visit Japan next month to call for more Japanese support to address the movement of millions of migrants.
October 27, Tuesday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Mick Corliss and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe plans to pledge economic support for Kazakhstan when he meets the President Nursultan Nazarbayev on Tuesday.
2. U.S. media and other media have reported that a U.S. naval vessel has begun patrolling within 12 nautical miles of artificial islands built by China in the South China Sea.
3. A powerful earthquake has killed more than 200 people in northern Afghanistan.
October 28, Wednesday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Ms. Yuka Matsumoto
1. The United States has confirmed that a military vessel sailed within 12 nautical miles of one of the artificial islands built by China in the Spratly Island Chain.
2. The Japanese government and Okinawa Prefecture are likely to face each other in court as their standoff over a U.S. base relocation continues to escalate.
3. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and South Korean President Park Geun-hye will hold their first summit on November 2nd in Seoul.
October 29, Thusday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms. Hiroko Kitadai
1. The navy chiefs of the U.S. and China plan to hold a video conference to defuse tensions over the sailing of a U.S. naval vessel in disputed waters in the South China Sea.
2. A local bureau of Japan’s Defense Ministry has begun landfill work for the relocation of a U.S. base in the southern prefecture of Okinawa amid local opposition.
3. Japan has won gold in men’s team gymnastics at the world championships for the first time in 37 years.
October 30, Friday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms. Mariko Kojima
1. China says it will abolish the decades-old one-child policy and allow all couples to have 2 children.
2. The navy chiefs of the U.S. and China have agreed to continue dialogue to try to avoid escalation of tension over the sailing of a U.S. naval vessel in disputed waters in the South China Sea.
3. An investigator with the United Nations says North Korea has exploited and forced work on as many as 50,000 of its nationals abroad in order to earn foreign currencies.
October 31, Saturday, 2015 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Mr. Jeff Adolf
1. Foreign ministers from 17 countries have agreed to increase diplomatic efforts to end the conflict in Syria. But they failed to narrow their differences on the fate of President Bashar al-Assad.
2. Islamic State militants in Syria have reportedly killed three captives by tying them to ancient Palmyra ruins before blowing up the structures.
3. Two boats carrying migrants and refugees have capsized in the Aegean Sea off the Greek coast, leaving dozens of them dead by Friday morning.