月: 2022年10月

1.An online petition has been launched to call on Japanese authorities for a court order to “disband” the former Unification Church under the Religious Corporations Act. The campaign, which started on Monday, is organized by 39 individuals and groups, including supporters of former followers and their families, children of the members of the religious group, scholars and journalists.
2.The Ukrainian government says the country’s capital of Kyiv has come under attack by so-called suicide drones. Multiple explosions were heard on Monday morning. The chief of Ukraine’s presidential office, Andriy Yermak, said Russia carried out attacks using unmanned aerial vehicles.
3.Chinese President Xi Jinping has expressed his commitment to achieving the goal of building China into what he calls a “great modern socialist country” by mid-century. Referring to Taiwan, Xi said that China “will continue to strive for peaceful reunification with the greatest sincerity and the utmost effort.” But he added that China “will never promise to renounce the use of force.”

1.Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno Hirokazu says a government analysis showed that North Korea fired one ballistic missile early Friday. Matsuno told reporters that Pyongyang’s repeated launches of ballistic missiles can never be tolerated.
2.The Japanese government says the actual cost of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s state funeral last month was over 1.2 billion yen, or more than 8 million dollars. Chief Cabinet Secretary Matsuno Hirokazu said on Friday that the actual cost was about 400 million yen lower than the previous estimate of 1.66 billion yen.
3.Japan’s government has adopted a new set of suicide prevention guidelines that include more support for women. The guidelines note that the number of women who kill themselves has been on the rise since 2020. The coronavirus pandemic is cited as a factor behind the trend.

1.Two of Japan’s industrial giants Sony Group and Honda Motor launched a joint venture on Thursday that aims to deliver advanced electric vehicles by 2026. The new company is called Sony Honda Mobility. Mizuno Yasuhide, Chairman and CEO of Sony Honda Mobility said “We will try to offer high-value-added products and services that overturn conventional ideas, and build new relationships with customers.”
2.The Japanese government’s coronavirus advisory panel has come up with measures to respond to a possible double outbreak of COVID-19 and influenza. The expert panel met on Thursday to discuss how to reduce the burden on designated fever clinics if a simultaneous outbreak occurs this winter.
3.The Japanese government plans to abolish health insurance cards in the fall of 2024 by integrating them into “My Number” ID cards. Digital Transformation Minister Kono Taro said My Number cards will serve as something like a passport to the creation of a new digital society.

1.Russian missiles continue slamming into cities across Ukraine despite a wave of condemnation from abroad. Troops launched multiple attacks on Ukrainian cities for the second day in a row.
2.The International Monetary Fund is warning of grim times ahead for the global economy. It has downgraded its growth forecast for next year, citing inflation and other factors. The IMF released its latest World Economic Outlook on Tuesday. Chief Economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said, “The worst is yet to come, and for many people, 2023 will feel like a recession.”
3.The coronation of Britain’s King Charles III will be held in May of next year. King Charles ascended to the throne on September 8 following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.

1.Russia is facing mounting criticism from the international community over its massive attacks on Kyiv and other parts of Ukraine on Monday. Russian missiles hit th4e Ukrainian capital Kyiv, the western region of Lviv and others, with targets including not only energy facilities but also a park and a museum in the capital. The Ukrainian State Emergency Service said 14 people were killed and 97 others were injured in the attacks.
2.The UN General Assembly has begun debate on a draft resolution to condemn Russia for its unilateral declaration to annex four Ukrainian regions. The draft demands that Moscow immediately reverse the move. The General Assembly convened an emergency session on Monday.
3.Foreign visitors arriving at Narita Airport, near Tokyo, have been saying they welcome Japan’s lifting of most of its COVID-19 border controls. People who arrived from other countries were heading to immigration counters at the airport on Tuesday morning after showing proof of vaccination or a negative test result.

1.South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency says North Korea appears to have used its recent missile launches to demonstrate progress in its tactical nuclear weapons development. Yonhap said the test firings may be an attempt by the North to show it can mount small nuclear warheads on various missiles.
2.A series of explosions rocked the center of Ukraine’s capital Kyiv on Monday morning. Authorities say at least 9 people died. Russian President Vladimir Putin said he has retaliated for Saturday’s explosion on a key bridge linking Russia and Crimea. Kyiv’s mayor says the explosions occurred in two districts of the capital, and that one of them is only about a kilometer from the presidential office.
3.Three US-based economists have won this year’s Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences. They include the US Federal Reserve’s former chair Ben Bernanke. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said on Monday that they are being recognized for their research on banks and financial crises.

1.Sweden’s security agency says leaks from two undersea gas pipelines linking Russia and Germany were caused by detonations. The Swedish Security Service said on Thursday investigations were analyzing material to determine who was behind the leaks from the Nord Stream pipelines.
2.French President Emmanuel Macron has seen the Russian invasion of Ukraine threaten security, energy and food. In May, he pitched the idea of a community stretching across the continent. Now, leaders of what’s being called the European Political Community met for the first time in Thursday in Prague. Officials from the 27 countries in the European Union welcomed those from 17 others including Ukraine, which is waiting to join the EU.
3.A former police officer went on a rampage at a daycare center in Thailand on Thursday. Thirty-five people were killed, including more than 20 children. About 10 others were injured.

1.Atomic bomb survivors and anti-nuclear NGOs have urged senior officials at Japan’s foreign ministry to take concrete measures toward abolishing nuclear weapons. Kawasaki Akira, a leader of the Japan NGO Network for Nuclear Weapons Abolition, told officials that action is urgently needed to abolish nuclear weapons amid the tensions over Ukraine and North Korea’s missile launches.
2.Spain and Portugal say they will bid with Ukraine to jointly host the 2030 FIFA World Cup. The Spanish Football Federation and the Portugal Football Federation said on Wednesday that the aim is to help rebuild Ukraine.
3.The Japanese Defense Ministry says North Korea launched two more ballistic missiles on Thursday morning, but this time, they are believed to have landed in the Sea of Japan. Defense officials think both projectiles fell outside of Japan’s exclusive economic zone. This is the 6th North Korean launch in 12 days.

1.Indonesia’s professional soccer association says officials from FIFA are expected to inspect the site of Saturday’s deadly stadium stampede in East Java. The incident occurred after a professional soccer league match in Malang city. Fans of the team that lost entered the pitch and created chaos.
2.Italy’s right-wing leader Giorgia Meloni, who will shortly become the country’s prime minister, expressed her support for Ukraine in a telephone conversation on Tuesday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Sources say Meloni pledged full support for the freedom of the Ukrainian people. She also said Russia’s annexation of four Ukrainian regions holds no legal or political weight.
3.Japanese electronics giant Sony has developed a device to measure an individual’s sense of smell. The company hopes it will eventually be used at hospitals as olfactory measurement could help with the elderly detection of dementia.

1.The chief of the UN nuclear watchdog says the head of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has been released. International Atomic Energy Director General Rafael Grossi wrote that he has received confirmation that Ihor Murashov, director general of the Zaporizhzhia plant, “has returned to his family safely.”
2.The Japanese government says a North Korean missile has flown over Japan and fallen into the ocean. Officials believe the ballistic missile passed over the country’s northeast before falling outside Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone.
3.McDonald’s Japan says it will stop offering plastic straws and cutlery to customers. It is switching to tableware made of paper or wood in an attempt to reduce plastic waste. The hamburger chain said Tuesday it will provide paper straws and wooden spoons and forks at its roughly 2,900 restaurants across Japan starting from Friday.