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Children make a bonfire in the Okinawa Prefecture village of Kunigami on April 28, 2022, the 70th anniversary of the San Francisco Peace Treaty that restored Japan’s sovereignty after its defeat in World War II. People in Okinawa view April 28, 1952, as “a day of humiliation” as the southern island prefecture continued to remain under U.S. occupation until May 15, 1972. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Missing tourist boat found underwater off Hokkaido
SAPPORO – A tourist boat that went missing six days ago with 26 people aboard was found underwater off Hokkaido on Friday, the Japan Coast Guard said.
The 19-ton Kazu I was located after the Maritime Self-Defense Force conducted a search with an underwater camera off the Shiretoko Peninsula. So far the bodies of 14 people have been found since contact with the boat was lost on April 23.
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Travelers crowd trains, airports as Japan’s Golden Week holiday begins
TOKYO – Travelers wearing masks crowded train stations and airports across Japan as the Golden Week holiday began Friday without the issuance of a coronavirus state of emergency for the first time in three years.
Transportation reservations have increased sharply compared with those a year earlier, although they have not recovered to pre-pandemic levels.
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Ex-U.S. envoy John Roos among Japan’s spring decorations recipients
TOKYO – Former U.S. Ambassador to Japan John Roos is one of the 112 foreigners recognized in this year’s spring decorations for their notable contributions to relations with Japan, the government said Friday.
Roos, who served in the post from 2009 to 2013, will be among those receiving the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun, the highest honor to be given to foreign nationals in this spring’s commendations.
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U.S., Japan, EU push for open internet amid rise of authoritarianism
WASHINGTON – The United States, Japan and the European Union on Thursday endorsed a declaration to promote an open and free internet amid concerns over what they view as “digital authoritarianism” seen in countries such as Russia and China.
According to the U.S. government, some 60 partners around the world, including the Group of Seven industrialized nations, Australia, Taiwan and Ukraine, joined the launch of the initiative, which opposes the use of digital tools to repress freedom of expression and deny other human rights and fundamental freedoms.
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Taiwan statement meant to signal U.S. commitment to Asia: ex-Japan PM Suga
TOKYO – A 2021 Japan-U.S. joint statement that referred to the Taiwan Strait for the first time in 52 years was meant to signal Washington’s commitment to the security of Asia amid China’s increasing assertiveness, former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said recently.
In an interview with Kyodo News about one year after his April summit with U.S. President Joe Biden, Suga said that while the two countries committed to enhance deterrence under a “functioning” alliance, they also tried to send out a message that Tokyo and Washington were seeking strategic dialogue with Beijing.
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Japan, Germany leaders to launch panel to reinforce security ties
TOKYO – Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz agreed Thursday to set up an intergovernmental panel involving the two leaders to further beef up their security ties, as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine poses new security challenges to the West.
Kishida told a joint press conference after their meeting in Tokyo that they confirmed plans to hold the panel’s first meeting next year. They pledged to oppose unilateral attempts to alter the status quo by force in the East and South China seas, where China has been intensifying maritime assertiveness.
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South Korea to allow taking masks off outside from May 2
SEOUL – South Korea to allow people to take masks off outside from next Monday amid a decreasing trend in the number of daily COVID-19 cases, Prime Minister Kim Boo Kyum said Friday.
“The government has decided to adjust preventive measures (for the coronavirus) given the decreasing trend that has been continuing for the past six weeks,” Kim said in his regular COVID-19 response meeting.
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Death row inmate seeks retrial over 2016 care home mass murder
YOKOHAMA – A 32-year-old Japanese man on death row over the mass murder in 2016 of 19 mentally impaired residents of a care home near Tokyo is seeking a retrial, Yokohama District Court officials said Friday.
The death sentence for Satoshi Uematsu, a former caretaker at the Tsukui Yamayuri En facility in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, who also injured 26 people in the rampage, was finalized in March 2020.
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