Tokyo, 9 February, /AJMEDIA/
Chinese military unit involved in balloon operation: sources
TOKYO – The Chinese military unit in charge of outer space and cyber warfare was involved in the operation of a balloon that flew over the continental United States before being shot down by U.S. forces, several Chinese sources said Thursday.
Beijing has so far maintained the airship was used for civilian weather research purposes. The Chinese military failed to notify the Foreign Ministry about its entry into U.S. airspace, prompting the leadership of President Xi Jinping to call for enhanced communications, the sources said.
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Japan, Philippines to boost economic, security ties amid China rise
TOKYO – Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. agreed Thursday that the two countries will further bolster economic and security cooperation, warning against China’s growing presence in the Indo-Pacific region.
During their talks in Tokyo, Kishida pledged to provide a support package worth 600 billion yen ($4.6 billion) to the Philippines over the two years through March 2024 from Japan’s public and private sectors.
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Japan NPO head arrested for unauthorized organ transplant mediation
TOKYO – The head of a Japanese nonprofit organization has been arrested on suspicion of mediating an organ transplant performed overseas without government permission, in the first such case in Japan, investigative sources said Thursday.
Police have filed a case against the Association for Patients of Intractable Diseases with prosecutors following the arrest of Hiromichi Kikuchi for allegedly violating the organ transplant law.
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Zelenskyy calls on Britain and allies to provide combat fighter jets
LONDON – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday appealed to international allies for combat fighter jets to defend his country from Russia’s invasion during his trip to Britain, including in talks with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
Making his first visit to Britain since the Russian invasion began nearly a year ago, Zelenskyy inspected the training of Ukrainian personnel at a British military base in Dorset county ahead of a meeting with Sunak.
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Japan to ease COVID-19 border controls on Chinese travelers: source
TOKYO – Japan is considering easing COVID-19 border controls on travelers arriving from China by the end of this month, a government source said Thursday, with the rate of arrivals testing positive for the virus dropping recently.
Instead of requiring testing of all visitors from China, the government under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida plans to adopt a selective approach to testing arrivals, the source said.
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Toyota net profit falls 18% to 1.9 tril. yen in April-Dec.
TOKYO – Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday its net profit in the nine months through December fell 18.0 percent to 1.9 trillion yen ($14.5 billion) from a year earlier as rising material costs eroded its profit margin.
Operating profit slid 17.1 percent to 2.1 trillion yen, on sales of 27.5 trillion yen, up 18.0 percent, the Japanese automaker said.
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Gold bars worth over 500 mil. yen donated to quake-hit Japan village
MORIOKA, Japan – Gold bars worth over 500 million yen ($3.8 million) have been donated to a northeastern Japan village by an individual who expressed hope that the proceeds from their sale would be spent for the good of the municipality, devastated by the March 2011 earthquake-tsunami disaster.
The municipal government of Tanohata in Iwate Prefecture said it was considering using the proceeds from the sale of the 120 bars, weighing 60 kilograms, for child-rearing support and the rebuilding of the decades-old village office. The donor has asked not to be identified.
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North Korea shows ICBMs, tactical nuke unit in military parade
BEIJING – North Korea staged a military parade featuring intercontinental ballistic missiles and a tactical nuclear unit to mark the 75th anniversary of the founding of its army, state-run media reported Thursday.
The official Korean Central News Agency said leader Kim Jong Un attended the event Wednesday evening with his wife Ri Sol Ju and a “beloved” child, believed to be his daughter Kim Ju Ae who is around 10 years old.
