Tokyo, 21 December, /AJMEDIA/
Moderna says COVID booster shows effectiveness against Omicron
WASHINGTON – U.S. biotechnology firm Moderna Inc. said Monday that a third shot of its coronavirus vaccine has been shown in a laboratory test to significantly increase antibodies that would fight off the highly transmissible Omicron variant.
As the United States is seeing another surge in coronavirus cases, the U.S. capital said the same day it is reinstating its indoor mask mandate beginning Tuesday.
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G-7 expresses “grave concern” over democracy erosion in Hong Kong
WASHINGTON – The Group of Seven industrialized nations on Monday expressed their “grave concern” over what they view as an erosion of democracy in Hong Kong after pro-Beijing members swept the territory’s Legislative Council election.
Chinese and Hong Kong authorities should “restore confidence in Hong Kong’s political institutions” and “end the unwarranted oppression of those who promote democratic values and the defense of rights and freedoms,” the foreign ministers of the G-7 countries, including the United States and Japan, said in a statement.
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Suspect in Osaka clinic fire may have copied animation studio arson
OSAKA – The suspect in a fatal fire at a mental health clinic in Osaka last week might have intended to copy a deadly 2019 arson at an animation studio in Kyoto, which also involved a purchase of gasoline before the incident, investigative sources said Tuesday.
Morio Tanimoto had left in his presumed living quarters in Osaka’s Nishiyodogawa Ward a newspaper page with reporting on the animation studio fire that claimed 36 lives, prompting police to believe he might have decided to use a similar method after reading the article, the sources said.
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Figure skating: Kihira to miss Olympics, Hanyu returning at nationals
TOKYO – Japan’s Rika Kihira is set to miss the Beijing Winter Olympics after she failed to recover from a right ankle injury in time for this week’s qualifying event, the national championships, a source close to the matter said Monday.
Yuzuru Hanyu, Japan’s two-time Olympic gold medalist in the men’s event, is set to return from an injury layoff, sources close to the matter said.
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U.S. urges Japan not to join nuclear ban treaty meeting: sources
WASHINGTON – The United States has urged Japan not to attend as an observer the first meeting of signatories to a U.N. treaty banning nuclear weapons, according to U.S. government sources, reflecting Washington’s opposition to the pact.
The Japanese government has suggested it will come into line with the United States and take a cautious approach to the issue, the sources said. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told a parliamentary committee on Thursday that Tokyo has no “concrete plans” to attend the meeting as an observer.
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Philippine death toll from Typhoon Rai soars to 375
MANILA – The death toll from Typhoon Rai in the Philippines rose sharply to 375 late Monday, with 56 others still missing days after one of the country’s deadliest storms in recent years, according to local media.
The reports said the latest Philippine National Police figures also show that some 500 people were injured by the typhoon, which hit late last week and caused widespread landslides and flooding.
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Japan to up 5-yr budget for hosting U.S. troops to 1.05 tril. yen
TOKYO – Japan and the United States have agreed to increase Tokyo’s contribution for hosting U.S. military forces to 1.05 trillion yen ($9.2 billion) over the five-year period from fiscal 2022 starting April, government sources said Monday.
The roughly 5 percent increase in so-called host nation support, equivalent to 211 billion yen per fiscal year, came in response to calls from the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden for the Japanese government to foot more of the costs, given the need for the U.S. forces to deal with China.
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Tokyo Games costs down at 1.45 tril. yen, no extra funds needed
TOKYO – The total costs for hosting the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics this summer are expected to be 1.45 trillion yen ($12.8 billion), down 191 billion yen from the previous estimate, with no additional burden to be placed on taxpayers, a games source said Monday.
The cutback was due to streamlining measures surrounding the games and because most events were held without spectators amid the COVID-19 pandemic, said the source. In December last year, the cost was estimated at 1.64 trillion yen.
