Tokyo, 15 May, /AJMEDIA/
Okinawa marks 50 years since reversion from U.S. rule as bases remain
NAHA, Japan – The southern island prefecture of Okinawa on Sunday marked 50 years since its reversion to Japan from U.S. rule as residents’ frustrations continue over a weak local economy and ever-present U.S. military bases despite decades of protest.
Top officials from the central and prefectural governments, including Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Gov. Denny Tamaki, are slated to attend a commemoration ceremony held at a convention center near U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, whose proximity to a densely populated area has made it a symbol of the burden long assumed by Okinawans.
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G-7 pledges to tighten sanctions on Russia, unity to support Ukraine
WEISSENHAUS, Germany – Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven nations pledged Saturday to strengthen economic sanctions on Russia over its military aggression on Ukraine and to stand in unity to support the Ukrainian people.
In a joint statement issued after their three-day talks in Weissenhaus in northern Germany, the G-7 also agreed to take measures to ease the war’s repercussions such as energy and food supply disruptions and to speed up efforts to phase out their dependence on Russian energy resources.
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Kim says N. Korea facing upheaval as 21 new COVID-19 deaths confirmed
BEIJING – North Korea on Saturday reported 21 new deaths of those who were suspected of having been infected with the novel coronavirus, prompting leader Kim Jong Un to say that the nation is in the greatest upheaval since its founding in 1948.
The official Korean Central News Agency said more than 174,440 people had fever on Friday, underscoring that the virus has been drastically spreading since the country held nationwide events on the occasion of anniversaries in April, including a vast military parade.
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Girl who disappeared in Yamanashi confirmed dead after bone DNA test
KOFU, Japan – Police confirmed Saturday the death of a girl who went missing from a mountainside campsite in Yamanashi Prefecture in 2019, after DNA from a shoulder blade found nearby was confirmed to match hers.
Misaki Ogura was 7 when she disappeared shortly after arriving at the site in Doshi with family and friends in September 2019.
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Japan accepted 74 refugees in 2021, highest on record
TOKYO – Japan granted refugee status to 74 people seeking asylum in 2021, the highest level since it began recognizing refugees in 1982, the immigration agency said Friday.
While the number jumped from 27 in 2020, it remains significantly lower than in the West, where some countries accept more than 10,000 refugees annually.
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Football: China abandons plan to host 2023 Asian Cup
TOKYO – China has pulled out of hosting next year’s Asian Cup due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Asian Football Confederation said Saturday.
“Following extensive discussions with the Chinese Football Association (CFA), the AFC has been officially informed by the CFA that it would not be able to host the AFC Asian Cup,” a statement read.
