Tokyo, 17 September, /AJMEDIA/
Japan’s Abe rejected N. Korea proposal on abductee’s return
TOKYO – Japan under then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe rejected a North Korean proposal to return two Japanese men, including a victim of abductions by Pyongyang, in around 2014 and 2015, sources involved in the negotiations said Friday.
Tokyo turned down the proposal by Pyongyang, fearing that the nuclear-armed country could try to end the long-standing issue of abductions of Japanese nationals by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s, according to the sources.
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FOCUS: Japan loses way to solve N. Korea’s abduction issue for past 20 years
TOKYO – No signs have emerged that Japan can resolve the long-standing issue of North Korea’s abductions of Japanese nationals, although Saturday marked the 20th anniversary of the signing of a landmark agreement between the two Asian countries.
For the past two decades, North Korea has accelerated nuclear and ballistic missile development, while boosting relations with its powerful neighbors China and Russia, which have apparently supplied Pyongyang with military technologies and resources.
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Japan gov’t ordered to pay 1.65 mil yen over death of Cameroonian man
MITO, Japan – A Japanese court on Friday ordered the government to pay 1.65 million yen ($11,500) in damages to the bereaved family of a Cameroonian man who died while being detained in an immigration control facility in eastern Japan.
The mother of the man, who died aged 43 in the Higashi-Nihon Immigration Center in Ushiku, Ibaraki Prefecture, in March 2014, had demanded that the government pay 10 million yen in damages, alleging that immigration officials failed to send him to a medical institution despite his claims of ill health.
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Figure skater Hanyu to attend Japan-China 50th anniversary event
TOKYO – Figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu, a star in China, will attend an event to be held in Tokyo later this month to mark the 50th anniversary of the normalization of Japan-China diplomatic ties, the head of the organizer said Friday.
Japan’s double Olympic champion Hanyu, who retired from competition in July, is also popular in China. During the Beijing Olympics earlier this year, the country’s media repeatedly reported about Hanyu fever at home.
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Japan floats issuance of gov’t bonds for more defense spending
TOKYO – The Japanese government is considering issuing special bonds to achieve a substantial increase in defense spending with an eye to hiking taxes in the future to pay back the debt, sources familiar with the plan said Friday.
For the repayment of the borrowed money, raising the corporate or tobacco taxes would be among the options to ensure higher revenue, the sources said. Such bonds are treated differently from others because the government decides in advance how it will repay them.
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U.N. OKs Zelenskyy’s video address in next week’s debate
NEW YORK – The U.N. General Assembly on Friday approved a plan to play a video message by Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in next week’s general debate as an exception to the in-person participation format.
The plan proposed by Ukraine and others in the 193-member body was approved with 101 votes in favor. Russia was among seven members that opposed the move, while 19, including China, abstained.
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S. Korea’s Yoon, top China legislator discuss regional peace in talks
SEOUL – South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol discussed his peace initiatives on the divided Korean Peninsula with top Chinese legislator Li Zhanshu in a meeting in Seoul on Friday, his office said.
Li’s visit to South Korea, the first by a chairman of China’s National People’s Congress Standing Committee in seven years, comes as the two countries marked this year the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties.
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Sumo: Tamawashi, Hokutofuji stay perfect as Terunofuji falls again
TOKYO – No. 3 maegashira Tamawashi and No. 8 Hokutofuji remained unbeaten through six days at the Autumn Grand Sumo Tournament on Friday, when yokozuna Terunofuji suffered his third defeat.
Tamawashi went head-on with Takakeisho (4-2) before moving slightly to his right and swiftly slapping the ozeki down at Ryogoku Kokugikan, continuing the best start of his career in the top-tier makuuchi division.
