North Korea: Medication offered as Covid fight continues
A North Korean army medic hands out medication to counter 'fever' -- a term Pyongyang often uses to refer to Covid -- and related sickness. The medic, Jong Jun Ho says the number of people receiving treatment for 'fever' has gone down in recent times. North Korea says its Covid-19 outbreak has been brought under control, but experts question the official numbers given the isolated country has one of the world's worst healthcare systems and likely no Covid-19 drugs or mass testing ability.
news.yahoo.comAlbanese elected Australia's leader in complex poll result
Australians awoke to a new prime minister in Anthony Albanese, the center-left Labor Party leader whose ascension to the nation’s top job from being raised in social housing by a single mother on a disability pension was said to reflect the country's changed fabric.
Japanese, Vietnamese leaders reject use of force in Ukraine
Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida discussed the war in Ukraine with Vietnamese leaders on Sunday and said they agreed on the respect for international law and rejection of the use of force. Japan has condemned Russia's invasion and joined Western nations in imposing sanctions against Moscow. Vietnam, like most other Southeast Asian nations, has avoided directly criticizing Russia and has called for restraint, the respect of the U.N. charter and dialogue to seek a peaceful solution to the conflict.
news.yahoo.com7 people from missing tour boat in Japan found
The Japanese Coast Guard said Sunday that rescue helicopters found seven of the 26 people from a tour boat missing in the frigid waters of northern Japan since the day before, but their conditions are unknown. Rescuers found four people near the tip of Shiretoko Peninsula earlier Sunday and then three more people in the same area a few hours later, but the coast guard said it could not confirm whether they were rescued alive. NHK public television said they were unconscious.
news.yahoo.comWhy Japan Will Struggle to Do Without Russian Energy
After reports of alleged war crimes in Ukraine by Russian forces, Japan said it will follow the European Union and Group of Seven countries and ban imports of Russian coal. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the country will secure alternative sources of energy in a speedy manner, although no time frame was given. But shifting away from Russian fuel will be easier said than done for resource-poor Japan.
washingtonpost.comJapan to invest $42B in India to strengthen economic ties
Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Saturday said his country will invest $42 billion in India over the next five years in a deal that is expected to boost bilateral trade. Kishida met his counterpart, Narendra Modi, in New Delhi during his maiden visit to India since assuming office. In a televised press statement, Kishida said the investment plan will bring huge benefits for several industries, from the development of urban infrastructure to green energy.
news.yahoo.comJapan to fully lift COVID-19 restrictions as infections slow
Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Wednesday announced plans to fully lift coronavirus restrictions on March 21 as new infections driven by the highly contagious omicron variant slow. The COVID-19 restrictions currently in place in 18 prefectures, including the Tokyo area, will end on Monday as planned, Kishida said at a news conference on Wednesday, as his government seeks to cautiously expand consumer activity to help the badly hurt economy get back on track. “This will be a transitional period so that we can return to our normal daily lives as much as possible by taking maximum precautions,” Kishida said.
news.yahoo.comIn S. Korea election, future of foreign policy up for debate
Ahead of the March 9 presidential election in South Korea, major candidates are embroiled in a heated debate over how to address a foreign policy challenges that include the U.S.-China rivalry, North Korea's nuclear threats and badly strained ties with Japan.
Russia-Ukraine live updates Rockets strike Kyiv amid invasion, Ukraine says; U.S. fears capital could soon fall
Biden administration officials told lawmakers late Thursday that they feared the capital would soon fall, with Russian mechanized forces that had crossed over from Belarus on its outskirts.
washingtonpost.comThe Latest: China's envoy calls for restraint, more dialogue
China has called for restraint and is encouraging every effort to find a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine crisis, saying Beijing believes all countries should solve disputes by peaceful means in line with the U.N. Charter. China’s U.N. Ambassador Zhang Jun called on the key parties in the Ukraine dispute “to continue dialogue and consultation and seek reasonable solutions." Zhang gave very brief remarks at an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Monday night called by Ukraine, the U.S. and six other countries following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s announcement that Russia will recognize the separatist areas in eastern Ukraine as independent states and is putting Russian troops into Luhansk and Donetsk as peacekeepers.
news.yahoo.comJapan mulls easing COVID border controls amid criticism
Japan is considering easing its stringent border controls amid growing criticism that the measures, which have banned most foreign entrants including students and business travelers, are hurting the country's economy and international profile. “I plan to look into easing the border controls,” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters Saturday. Kishida did not provide a timeline or other details and said he will make a decision based on a scientific assessment of the omicron variant, infection levels in and outside Japan and quarantine measures in other countries.
news.yahoo.comJapan border policy keeps thousands of foreigners in limbo
More than a year ago Sebastian Bressa finished his paperwork to become a language teacher in Tokyo and made plans to quit his job in Sydney. Japan has kept its door closed to most foreigners during the pandemic, and the 26-year-old Australian is one of hundreds of thousands denied entry to study, work or see their families. Japan has become one of the world's most difficult countries to enter and some are comparing it to the locked country, or “sakoku," policy of xenophobic warlords who ruled Japan in the 17th to 19th centuries.
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