Tokyo, 31 December, /AJMEDIA/
N. Korea fires 3 ballistic missiles toward Sea of Japan
TOKYO – North Korea fired three ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan on Saturday, Japan’s Defense Ministry said, in the latest of a flurry of weapons tests that have raised regional tensions.
The missiles, launched around 8 a.m. from the outskirts of the capital Pyongyang, flew about 350 kilometers at a maximum altitude of around 100 km before falling near the east coast of the Korean Peninsula, the ministry said.
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Xi seeks dialogue to resolve Ukrainian crisis in talks with Putin
BEIJING – Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday called for a dialogue in resolving the Ukrainian crisis as he held online talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, saying Beijing will “play a constructive role” for its peaceful settlement, state-run media said.
“The road to peace talks will not be smooth, but as long as the efforts are not given up, the prospect of peace will always exist,” Xi was quoted as telling Putin by China Central Television.
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Death toll from Cambodia casino fire rises to 27
PHNOM PENH – The number people who have died from a fire at a casino hotel near Cambodia’s border with Thailand has risen to 27, with many foreigners included among the casualties, Cambodian authorities said Friday.
The blaze, which injured many others, started around midnight on Wednesday at the Grand Diamond City Casino and Hotel in Poipet, known as a casino town in the northwest.
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2 missing in landslide in northeastern Japan
YAMAGATA, Japan – A landslide occurred Saturday in northeastern Japan, destroying or damaging about 10 buildings and leaving two people missing, police and firefighters said.
Police requested that the Self-Defense Forces conduct search and rescue operations for the missing people who, according to some accounts, are in their 70s to 80s.
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Myanmar’s deposed leader Suu Kyi now faces 33 yrs in prison
YANGON – A special court set up in military-ruled Myanmar sentenced deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi to an additional seven years in prison on Friday over corruption charges, legal sources said, bringing the total time she faces behind bars to 33 years.
The 77-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate and icon of opposition to the brutal military rule was tried on five counts of corruption at the court set up inside the prison compound in Myanmar’s capital Naypyitaw.
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FOCUS: More Indonesians in Japan’s foreign trainee program amid weak yen
TOKYO – The number of Indonesian technical trainees in Japan is rising as the recent slide of the yen against the U.S. dollar and other currencies has discouraged trainees from some other countries to come to Japan.
The demographic shift in Japan’s foreign technical trainee program has also come about as the result of the differing costs for trainees to come to Japan. Indonesians pay less than those from Vietnam and other nations, for example, according to experts on foreign workers.
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Japan ranks 41st in attracting talent in 2022: Swiss survey
TOKYO – Japan ranked 41st out of 63 economies in 2022 in attracting and retaining talent, down two spots from a year earlier and the fourth straight year of decline, according to a survey by a Swiss institute.
Switzerland topped the list, followed by Sweden, Iceland, Norway and Denmark. Of Indo-Pacific economies, Singapore was 12th, Hong Kong 14th, the United States 16th, Australia 18th, China 40th, Thailand 45th and Indonesia 51st.
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Soccer: Schalke promote Japanese attacker Kozuki to 1st team
TOKYO – German first-division soccer club Schalke said Friday they have signed a professional contract with Japanese attacker Soichiro Kozuki, who was with their Under-23 team.
The contract for the 22-year-old is through to the end of the 2024-25 season and includes an automatic extension based on a certain number of appearances. Japan captain and defender Maya Yoshida is also on Schalke’s first team.
