Tokyo, 26 April, /AJMEDIA
North Korea holds military parade in Pyongyang to mark key anniversary
BEIJING/SEOUL – North Korea held a military parade on Monday night to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of the country’s army, a South Korean military source said, amid fears it would conduct provocations directed against the United States on the day.
The United States, Japan and South Korea strengthened surveillance on North Korea as concern mounted that Pyongyang might launch an intercontinental ballistic missile or carry out its seventh nuclear test on the occasion of the anniversary.
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Japan, Russia sign salmon, trout fishing deal despite sanctions
TOKYO – Japan and Russia have inked a deal on Tokyo’s fishing quota for salmon and trout spawned in Russian rivers, Japan’s Fisheries Agency said Monday, in an agreement that comes despite Japan’s economic sanctions against Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.
The two countries agreed on a quota of 2,050 tons within Japan’s exclusive economic zone for 2022, the same level as last year, and payment to Russia of a “cooperation fee” of between 200 million yen ($1.5 million) and 300 million yen, depending on the actual catch.
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U.S. to return diplomats to Ukraine, says Russia “failed” in war
WASHINGTON – Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Monday the U.S. government will return its diplomats to Ukraine starting this week with a new ambassador set to be nominated for the post, while assessing that Russia has “failed” in its war against the East European country.
He made the remarks in Poland after visiting Kyiv with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin a day before, the first such trip by high-level officials in the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in late February.
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Japan’s March jobless rate falls to 2.6%
TOKYO – Japan’s unemployment rate fell to 2.6 percent in March from 2.7 percent in February, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said Tuesday.
The job availability ratio improved to 1.22 from 1.21 in the previous month, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said separately. The ratio means there were 122 job openings for every 100 job seekers.
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Tesla CEO Elon Musk to acquire Twitter for $44 billion
NEW YORK – Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk will acquire Twitter Inc. for around $44 billion as the social media app’s board said Monday it has agreed to sell it to the U.S. billionaire.
“Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated,” Musk said in a statement announcing the deal, vowing to improve the platform so as to “increase trust.”
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Fatalities from missing boat rise to 11 after girl confirmed dead
SAPPORO – A child believed to be a 3-year-old girl was confirmed dead Monday, taking the death toll to 11 after a tourist boat with 26 passengers and crew aboard went missing in rough waters over the weekend off a World Heritage site on Japan’s northernmost main island of Hokkaido, the coast guard and local officials said.
Having dispatched aircraft and vessels, the Japan Coast Guard and Self-Defense Forces are continuing to search for the remaining 15 people following Saturday’s incident involving the 19-ton Kazu I.
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S. Korea’s Moon shows hope for achieving prosecution reforms
SEOUL – Outgoing South Korean President Moon Jae In expressed hope Monday his government can achieve reforms of the country’s prosecution system by earning public understanding and support, at what is expected to be his final press conference in office.
Moon’s remarks came as fierce debate is ongoing over the ruling Democratic Party’s move to pass a bill on stripping prosecutors of their investigative powers at parliament before he leaves office on May 9 to hand over the top job to President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol, a former prosecutor general.
