月: 2018年2月

1. Japan’s foreign minister says he is not ruling out having contact with North Korean officials but only if it is to send the message that the country must denuclearize before negotiations can begin.
2. India and Iran have agreed to cooperate in a port project in Iran, while China presses ahead with port development in India’s neighbors.
3. In the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, Japan’s men’s curling team has won its third victory, beating the United States.

1. Japan’s Foreign Minister Taro Kono says the international community should beware of being blinded by North Korea’s “charm diplomacy”.
2. U.S. Special Council Robert Mueller says his office has indicted 13 Russians and 3 Russian companies for interfering in the 2016 presidential election.
3. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is considering imposing high tariffs on imported steel.

1. The Japanese government has submitted a proposal to a Diet committee to reappoint Haruhiko Kuroda as the Bank of Japan governor.
2. Japan’s foreign minister and the chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency have agreed to work together to persuade North Korea to accept IAEA inspections.
3. The Japanese government has decided to extend the mission of 4 Ground Self-defense Force personnel as U.N. peacekeepers in South Sudan for 3 months, until the end of May.

1. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says he and U.S. President Donald Trump believe irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula is a premise of meaningful dialogue with North Korea.
2. Police in the southern U.S. state of Florida say 17 people were killed in a high school shooting incident on Wednesday.
3. The latest government data shows Japanese companies have been spending a lot less on upgrading their equipment.

1. Officials of Japan’s Cabinet Office says the economy expanded for an 8th straight quarter.
2. At the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, American snowboarding legend Shaun White has taken gold in the halfpipe—just pipping teenage sensation Ayumu Hirano.
3. South Korea has indicated easing tensions with North Korea won’s affect its commitment to the international efforts to deal with Pyongyang’s nuclear development.

1. Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has disclosed he has strongly urged South Korean President Moon Jae-in to abide by the bilateral agreement on those referred to as comfort women.
2. North Korean media say leader Kim Jong Un has told a high-level delegation to take practical steps to improve inter-Korean ties.
3. The U.S. secretary of state says it is up to North Korea to decide when talks with his country should be held.

1. North Korea’s state-run newspaper says sending a high-level delegation to South Korea was meaningful in improving bilateral ties.
2. Russian investigative authorities say all 71 people on board a plane that crashed near Moscow on Sunday have been killed.
3. Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani has admitted that his administration has failed to have sufficient dialogue with the Iranian people.

1. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence has urged South Korean President Moon Jae-in to be wary of North Korea’s “charm offensive.”
2. The unified women’s ice hockey team from North Korea and South Korea has lost to Switzerland at the PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games.
3. Search and rescue workers in Taiwan have found another victim in a building damaged by the strong earthquake this week.

1. Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has spoken briefly with North Korea’s ceremonial head of state, Kim Yong Nam, at a pre-Olympic reception in South Korea.
2. South Korean President Moon Jae-in has held a meeting with a high-level delegation from North Korea.
3. In the PyeongChang Olympic Games, athletes from 92 countries and territories are taking part. That’s a record for the Winter Games.

1. Tokyo’s Nikkei average briefly fell more than 700 points on Friday.
2. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and China’s State Councilor Yang Jiechi have confirmed they will keep pressing North Korea to scrap its nuclear and missile programs.
3. The opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics will take place on Friday.