Kyodo News Digest: Aug. 22, 2023
Photo taken from a drone on Aug. 20, 2023, shows the Motherland Monument in Kyiv, with the Ukrainian trident insignia being installed on a shield in the statue's left hand and the Ukrainian national flag seen on the right. (Kyodo) The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan to begin contentious Fukushima radioactive water release Aug. 24
TOKYO - Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan will start releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea on Thursday, weather conditions permitting, despite concerns among local fishermen and persistent opposition from China.
The controversial decision was made at a ministerial meeting on Tuesday morning, as a significant amount of the water has accumulated at the site since the 2011 nuclear accident triggered by a devastating earthquake and ensuing tsunami.
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North Korea intends to launch "satellite" within week from Aug. 24
TOKYO - The Japanese government said Tuesday it has been notified that North Korea intends to launch a "satellite" between Thursday and Aug. 31 in what is believed to be a rerun of a failed attempt a few months ago.
Pyongyang tried to launch what it called a military reconnaissance satellite into orbit on May 31 but was unsuccessful.
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Activists rail against Japan gov't move to discharge Fukushima water
TOKYO - Anti-nuclear activists gathered outside the prime minister's office Tuesday to oppose a government decision to begin discharging treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant later this week.
Some 230 people joined the protest, according to an anti-nuclear campaign group, urging the government to "listen to the voices of fishermen" and not to discharge "contaminated water into the sea" after Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the release will begin as early as Thursday.
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SoftBank-backed chip firm Arm to list on Nasdaq in over $60 bil. IPO
TOKYO - SoftBank Group Corp.-backed British chip designer Arm said Monday it has filed to list its shares on the U.S. Nasdaq stock exchange, with its market capitalization estimated to exceed $60 billion in what could be the largest initial public offering this year.
The chip giant, whose technology powers most smartphones worldwide, is expected to go public in September, people familiar with the matter said, although it did not specify the timing of the listing or the offer price. SoftBank will continue to hold the majority of its shares.
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Cambodia's Hun Sen resigns, son Hun Manet endorsed as PM by assembly
PHNOM PENH - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen resigned Tuesday and his eldest son Hun Manet was endorsed as the new prime minister by Cambodia's National Assembly in a de facto hereditary power transfer following Hun Sen's rule for 38 years.
Hun Manet won the support of an overwhelming majority of the 125 members of the lower house. He graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and was commander of the Royal Cambodian Army. The assembly also approved Hun Manet's new Cabinet.
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No discussion on forex moves with Japan PM: BOJ chief
TOKYO - Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said Tuesday he had exchanged views with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida over economic and financial conditions "in general" but did not specifically discuss forex moves during their meeting.
The meeting came amid caution about the possibility of another currency market intervention by Japanese authorities as the yen has already slipped past the levels where they stepped in to stop the currency's sharp declines against the U.S. dollar last year.
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China, Russia jointly sought vapor release plan for Fukushima water
BEIJING - China and Russia, which oppose Japan's planned release from Thursday of treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea, jointly urged Tokyo last month to consider a vapor release disposal strategy instead, according to diplomatic sources.
Beijing and Moscow claimed in a document submitted to Tokyo in late July that vaporizing the water and releasing it into the atmosphere would have a smaller impact on neighboring countries compared with the ocean discharge plan. Japan has rejected their proposal, saying it is "impossible" to accept it, the sources said.
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North Korea resumes international passenger flights after COVID hiatus
BEIJING - North Korea resumed Tuesday international passenger flights following their suspension in early 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with a flight from Pyongyang arriving in Beijing in the morning.
North Korea's state-run carrier Air Koryo is set to operate a return flight to Pyongyang on Tuesday afternoon, according to the Beijing Capital International Airport.
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Video: Soviet emblem on Kyiv monument replaced
2 hours ago | KYODO NEWS