1. Defense authorities in Japan have started maritime reclamation work in Okinawa in order to relocate a U.S. air base.
2. A candidate backed by the governor of Tokyo has won a mayoral election for a central district of the capital.
3. A massive protest in Romania has spread across the country over an order of decriminalizing corruptions by politicians and government officials.
February 5, Sunday, 2017 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki and Ms. Keiko Kitagawa
1. U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration is appealing the ruling by a federal district court that suspends his controversial travel ban.
2. Ukraine’s presidential office says President Petro Poroshenko and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump have agreed on the need to immediately halt the fighting in eastern Ukraine.
3. Japan’s Defense Ministry says it has successfully test-fired at sea a new interceptor missile jointly developed with the United States.
February 4, Saturday, 2017 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. Japanese Defense Minister Tomomi Inada and U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis have confirmed the importance of the bilateral alliance to peace and stability of the Asia-Pacific region.
2. A U.S. federal court in the state of Washington has placed a nationwide block on President Trump’s executive order banning the nationals from 7 countries from entering the country.
3. The Trump administration has announced new sanctions against Iran in response to its recent ballistic missile test.
February 3, Friday, 2017 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms. Yoshi Ogasawara
1. U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis has arrived in Japan from South Korea. He will pay a courtesy call on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe later on Friday.
2. At least 2 passengers have been found to have given up boarding Japanese flights bound for the United States earlier this week, due to a temporary U.S. entry ban.
3. The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is examining if it can go ahead with a plan to deploy a robot into one of the damaged reactors at the facility.
February 2, Thursday, 2017 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms. Hiroko Kitadai
1.U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis is set to start a tour toward South Korea and Japan on Thursday.
2. Japan and Russia have agreed to hold the first round of bilateral talks on joint economic activities on 4 Russian-held islands in Tokyo in March.
3. A Japanese engineer has been chosen as one of the winners for this year’s Queen Elizabeth Prize for engineering. The recipient has been recognized for the development of digital technology.
February 1, Wednesday, 2017 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Emma Howard and Ms. Yuka Matsumoto
1. U.S. President Donald Trump has lashed out at Japan and China, saying they devalue their currencies. It was his first direct criticism of Japan’s currency policy since his inauguration.
2. U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly has described President Donald Trump’s order to bar people from 7 Middle Eastern and African countries from entering the United States is a “temporary pause” to allow a review of the existing immigration system.
3. Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has requested that Pope Francis visit the country to help realize a world without nuclear weapons.
January 31, Tuesday, 2017 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Risa Shimizu and Ms. Fumiko Konoe
- U.S. President Donald Trump has blamed protesters for the growing chaos at U.S. airports after he signed an executive order to tighten anti-terrorism measures.
- Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says he plans to tell U.S. President Donald Trump at their upcoming summit that Japanese firms are contributing to the U.S. economy.
- Honda Motor and General Motors will jointly fuel cell power systems for next-generation eco-friendly vehicles.
January 30, Monday, 2017 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Mick Corliss and Mr. Yoshi Ogasawara
- Protests have spread to many cities across the United States against President Donald Trump’s order to ban the entry of citizens of 7 countries in the Middle East and Africa .
- Reouters news agency says gunmen have opened fire at a mosque in Quebec City, eastern Canada.
- France’s major leftwing group led by the ruling Socialist party has chosen former education minister Banoit Hamon as their candidate for the coming presidential election.
January 29, Sunday, 2017 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki and Ms. Keiko Kitagawa
- The governments of Japan and the United States have agreed that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Donald Trump will hold their first summit in Washington on February 10th.
- The U.S. and Russian leaders have agreed to cooperate in fighting terrorism and defeating the Islamic State group in Syria.
- Protests have erupted at airports across the United States after local media reported at least 30 people were denied entry, following President Donald Trump’s order to suspend refugees’ admission.
January 28, Saturday, 2017 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Risa Shimizu and Ms. Fumiko Konoe
- U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to temporarily suspend the admission of all refugees in a bid to better protect against terrorism.
- U.S. President Donald Trump and his Mexican counterpart Enrique Pena Nieto have agreed to resolve their differences on the proposed construction of a wall on their border through discussion.
- A U.S. research group says satellite imagery indicates North Korea has restarted operation at a reactor that produces plutonium for use in nuclear weapons.