June 27, Wednesday, 2018 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Michael Reese and Ms. Mariko Kojima

  1. Japan’s space agency says its probe, Hayabusa 2, reached its destination asteroid, Ryugu, at 9:35 A.M. on Wednesday, Japan Time.
  2. The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld President Donald Trump’s travel ban on people from several predominantly Muslim countries, overturning lower court decisions that deemed it unconstitutional.
  3. The United States is urging Japan and others to completely stop importing crude oil from Iran within months.

June 26, Tuesday, 2018 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Ms. Hiroko Kitadai

  1. Japan’s foreign minister says his country is ready to dispatch experts for a possible inspection of North Korean nuclear facilities.
  2. Japan’s defense minister says he will meet his U.S. counterpart in Tokyo on Friday to discuss North Korea and other regional issues.
  3. U.S. treasury secretary says China is not the only target of investment restriction the Trump administration is to announce.

June 24, Sunday, 2018 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamakai and Ms. Keiko Kitagawa

  1. OPEC members and non-member oil producing countries have agreed to jointly increase production in a bid to prevent crude oil prices from rising further.
  2. Voters in Turkey will cast their ballots in presidential and parliamentary elections on Sunday. All eyes are on incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is hoping to win a majority of the votes to secure his reelection.
  3. Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono has announced that Japan will help train Bhutanese administrative officers.

June 23, Saturday, 2018 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Ms. Risa Shimizu

  1. Japan’s southwestern prefecture of Okinawa on Saturday marked 73 years since the end of a fierce ground battle in the closing days of World War II.
  2. U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis says his country will indefinitely suspend another 2 military exercises with South Korea.
  3. OPEC member countries have agreed to increase oil output in an apparent attempt to stem a further rise in crude prices but failed to announce a clear target.

June 22, Friday, 2018 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Emma Howard and Mr. Raja Pradhan

  1. U.S. President Donald Trump says the repatriation of the remains of U.S. soldiers who fought in the Korean War is already underway.
  2. Japan’s chief cabinet secretary says the government will be suspending civilian evacuation drills against potential ballistic missile launches.
  3. An inter-Korean Red Cross meeting is underway to discuss reunions of families separated by the Korean War.

June 21, Thursday, 2018 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradhan and Ms. Hiroko Kitadai

  1. Several member states of the U.N. Human Rights Council are voicing concern about the United States’ decision to withdraw from the body.
  2. North Korea’s state-run media has reported on leader Kim Jong Un’s visit to China for a second day, highlighting the close links between the 2 countries as the North begins talks with the United States.
  3. A Japanese scientist says fresh strain is believed to have built up along active faults in Japan’s western prefecture of Osaka after Monday’s major earthquake.

June 20, Wednesday, 2018 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradhan and Ms. Mariko Kojima

  1. The United States says it is withdrawing from the United Nations Human Rights Council because of what it calls the organization’s chronic bias against Israel.
  2. North Korean leader Kim Jong un reportedly wants denuclearization to be carried out in stages, with the backing of China.
  3. On the 6th day of the FIFA World Cup in Russia, Japan beat its group’s favorites Colombia 2 to 1, becoming the first Asian team to defeat a South American squad at the World Cup.