June 3, Thursday, 2021 (1:30 p.m.) Newsline read by Ms. Keiko Kitagawa

1. Israel’s opposition parties say they have agreed to form a coalition government. If approved by parliament, they could unseat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Yair Lapid, the leader of the largest opposition party Yesh Atid, made the announcement on Wednesday – about 30 minutes before the deadline for him to form a majority coalition.
2. The European Union expects an agreement will be reached at the next round of nuclear talks between the United States and Iran, but it is unclear if that will happen. The U.S. and Iran have been holding indirect talks intermittently in Vienna since early April, through the E.U. and other mediators, with the hope of reviving the 2015 nuclear deal. 3. U.S. President Joe Biden has declared a “national month of action” on coronavirus vaccinations. He says he wants Americans to celebrate their independence from the virus on the national July 4 holiday. Sixty-three percent of American adults have received at least one dose of a vaccine. Biden wants to increase the rate to 70 percent.