June 23, Friday, 2017 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradhan and Ms. Mariko Kojima

1. Candidates for the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly are kicking off their official campaigns for an up-coming election.
2. Japan’s southern prefecture of Okinawa on Friday marks 72 years since an extremely fierce and bloody ground battle toward the end of World War II.
3. U.S. government officials say North Korea has carried out combustion tests for rocket engines that could be used in an intercontinental ballistic missile.