Kyodo News Digest: June 10, 2025
KYODO NEWS - 2 hours ago - 20:00 | All, World, Japan
The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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G7 leaders may skip joint declaration, 1st since 2014: Japan source
TOKYO - The Group of Seven nations are likely to skip a joint statement at the end of an upcoming three-day summit in Canada, a Japanese government source said Tuesday, marking the first time since 2014 the meeting would conclude without a consensus document.
The move is apparently aimed at preventing the G7, known for its unity in tacking global challenges, from exposing internal divisions as leaders gather for their first in-person meeting since U.S. President Donald Trump took office in January.
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Japan ruling bloc OKs campaigning on cash handouts in summer election
TOKYO - Japan's ruling parties agreed Tuesday to include cash handouts for households hit by rising prices in their platforms for this summer's House of Councillors election, senior lawmakers said.
The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, the main opposition force, unveiled its election pledges Tuesday, highlighting a proposal to suspend the 8 percent consumption tax on food for at least one year, in sharp contrast with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which opposes tax cuts.
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Japan urges Iran not to "miss opportunity" for nuke deal with U.S.
TOKYO - Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya on Tuesday urged his Iranian counterpart not to "miss the opportunity" to reach a nuclear deal with the United States, as Japan seeks to help advance what appears to be delicate bilateral negotiations.
During their phone talks, Iwaya was also quoted by his ministry as telling Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi that Japan will continue to make "utmost diplomatic efforts" toward a peaceful resolution, while they agreed to keep close communication.
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China's Xi urges new S. Korean leader Lee to improve bilateral ties
BEIJING - Chinese President Xi Jinping urged new South Korean President Lee Jae Myung to promote a bilateral strategic cooperative partnership in their first telephone conversation on Tuesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.
In a veiled reference to high U.S. tariffs imposed under President Donald Trump, Xi called for China and South Korea to "jointly safeguard multilateralism and free trade" and "ensure the stable and smooth functioning of global and regional industrial and supply chains," the ministry said.
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Toyota, Daimler ink Japanese truck units merger deal for April 2026
TOKYO - Toyota Motor Corp. and Daimler Truck Holding AG said Tuesday they concluded an agreement to merge their Japanese truck subsidiaries under a new holding company, aiming to boost competitiveness and better respond to challenges posed by energy transition and technological innovation.
Hino Motors Ltd., a subsidiary of Toyota Motor, and Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corp., a unit of Daimler, will operate under the holding company to be set up in April 2026 and listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's Prime Market, with the parent companies each holding a 25 percent stake in the new firm.
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4-meter-long sinkhole appears in southwestern Japan, no one injured
FUKUOKA - A 4-meter-long sinkhole opened near a busy shopping district in central Fukuoka on Tuesday morning, forcing a closure of the area, though no injuries were reported.
Police received an emergency call at 9:50 a.m. reporting a collapsed sidewalk along a major road in the city. The hole, which spanned both the road and the sidewalk, measured about 2 meters wide and 2 meters deep, they said.
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Ex-Taiwan ruling party members indicted over spying for China
TAIPEI - Four former members of Taiwan's ruling party were indicted Tuesday over spying for mainland China in violation of the self-ruled island's security laws.
The Taipei District Prosecutors Office said the four male suspects, including a former aide to former Foreign Minister Joseph Wu, had collaborated to gather and provide confidential government information to Chinese intelligence agents.
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Over half obtain political news via mass media in Japan: survey
TOKYO - Over half of respondents said they obtain news about elections and politics from the mass media, while about 10 percent rely on social media, according to a survey released Tuesday by a think tank affiliated with an internet news app company.
Although the mass media has recently been criticized for lacking neutrality and objectivity, 68.7 percent said the information they provide is "reliable," with 9.0 percent rating it "very reliable" and 59.7 percent "relatively reliable."
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an hour ago
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Golden Dome is a glittering gamble — and a likely mistake
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Japan Times
an hour ago
- Japan Times
Leaders warn race for minerals could turn seabed into 'wild west'
World leaders on Monday called for strict rules to govern deep-sea mining and warned against racing to exploit the ocean floor in a thinly veiled rebuke of U.S. President Donald Trump. Growing anxiety over Trump's unilateral push to fast-track deep-sea mining in international waters shot to the surface at the opening of the U.N. Ocean Conference in southern France. "I think it's madness to launch predatory economic action that will disrupt the deep seabed, disrupt biodiversity, destroy it and release irrecoverable carbon sinks — when we know nothing about it," said French President Emmanuel Macron. Imposing a moratorium on seabed mining was "an international necessity," said Macron. The number of countries opposed to seabed mining rose to 36 on Monday, according to a tally kept by the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, an umbrella group of nongovernmental organizations. Trump was not among the roughly 60 heads of state and government in the seaside town of Nice but his specter loomed large as leaders defended the global multilateralism he has spurned. Of particular concern is his move to sidestep the International Seabed Authority (ISA) and issue permits directly to companies wanting to extract nickel and other metals from waters beyond U.S. jurisdiction. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called for "clear action" from the seabed authority to end a "predatory race" for deep-ocean minerals. "We now see the threat of unilateralism looming over the ocean. We cannot allow what happened to international trade to happen to the sea," he said. The deep sea, Greenland and Antarctica were "not for sale," Macron said in further remarks directed clearly at Trump's expansionist claims. The ISA, which has jurisdiction over the ocean floor outside national waters, is meeting in July to discuss a global mining code to regulate mining in the ocean depths. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he supported these negotiations and urged caution as countries navigate these "new waters on seabed mining." "The deep sea cannot become the wild west," he said, to applause from the plenary floor. Island nations also spoke out against seabed mining, which scientists warn could result in untold damage to ecosystems largely unexplored by humanity. "Here in Nice, we can feel that the looming threat of deep-sea mining, and the recent reckless behaviour of the industry is seen by many states as unacceptable," said Megan Randles from Greenpeace. Meanwhile, a flurry of last-minute signatures in Nice brought a treaty to protect 60% of the world's oceans outside national jurisdiction closer to law. Macron told reporters that 55 nations had ratified the high seas treaty, just five shy of the number required for its enactment. The president gave two thumbs up and a broad grin as he posed with the new signatories, and said the accord would come into force by Jan. 1, 2026. According to the U.N., 18 new ratifications took place on Monday, bringing the total to 50. Others could arrive in the coming days. "Today's surge of ratifications for the High Seas Treaty is a tidal wave of hope and a huge cause for celebration," Rebecca Hubbard, director of the High Seas Alliance, said. On Monday, the United Kingdom announced plans to extend a partial ban on bottom trawling in some of its protected marine areas, following a similar move by France at the weekend. Greece, Brazil and Spain took the opportunity Monday to announce the creation of new marine parks, following recent similar action from Samoa. And French Polynesia unveiled what will be the world's largest marine protected zone, said the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Just 8% of global oceans are designated for marine conservation, despite a globally agreed target to achieve 30% coverage by 2030. Macron said he hoped that coverage would grow to 12% by the summit's close on Friday. Environment groups say that for marine parks to be considered truly protected they need to ban trawling and other harmful activities, and be properly funded. Wealthy nations face pressure in Nice to commit money to make that level of ocean conservation a reality. Small island states are leading the charge for money and political support to better combat rising seas, marine trash and the plunder of fish stocks that hurt their economies. "We say to you, if you are serious about protecting the ocean, prove it," said President Surangel Whipps Jr of Palau, a low-lying Pacific nation.
Asahi Shimbun
an hour ago
- Asahi Shimbun
South Korea halts loudspeaker broadcasts along border with rival North Korea
A South Korean military vehicle with loudspeakers is seen in front of the barbed-wire fence in Paju, near the border with North Korea, on Feb. 15, 2018.(AP Photo) SEOUL--South Korea's military has shut down loudspeakers broadcasting anti-North Korean propaganda along the inter-Korean border, marking the new liberal government's first concrete step toward easing tensions between the war-divided rivals. The South resumed the loudspeaker broadcasts in June last year following a yearslong pause in retaliation for North Korea flying trash-laden balloons toward the South in a psychological warfare campaign. South Korea's Defense Ministry said Wednesday the move was part of efforts to 'to restore trust in inter-Korean relations and promote peace on the Korean Peninsula.' From May to November last year, North Korea flew thousands of balloons toward South Korea to drop substances such as wastepaper, cloth scraps, cigarette butts and even manure. The North said its balloon campaign came after South Korean activists sent over balloons filled with anti-North Korean leaflets, as well as USB sticks filled with popular South Korean songs and dramas. North Korea is extremely sensitive to any outside criticism of its authoritarian leadership and its third-generation ruler, Kim Jong Un. South Korea, in response to the North Korean balloons, reactivated its front-line loudspeakers to blast propaganda messages and K-pop songs toward the North. The Cold War-style psychological warfare campaigns added to tensions fueled by North Korea's growing nuclear ambitions and South Korean efforts to expand joint military exercises with the United States and strengthen three-way security cooperation with Japan. South Korea's new liberal president, Lee Jae-myung, who took office last week after winning a snap election to replace ousted conservative Yoon Suk Yeol, has vowed to improve relations with Pyongyang, which reacted furiously to Yoon's hardline policies and shunned dialogue.
