The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan's Kishida visits areas hit by 2011 disaster for 1st time as PM
RIKUZENTAKATA, Japan - Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Saturday visited Japan's northeastern region for the first time since taking office to check on the progress of reconstruction in areas devastated by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
Kishida, who became prime minister earlier this month, offered flowers and prayed at a tsunami memorial park in the coastal city of Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture, the first stop on his visit to the region to also hold discussions with local people.
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ASEAN to exclude Myanmar's military leader from Oct. summit
SINGAPORE - ASEAN foreign ministers agreed to invite a nonpolitical representative from Myanmar to the regional group's summit later this month, said Brunei, this year's chair, on Saturday, effectively excluding Myanmar's military leader.
The ministers made the unprecedented decision at an emergency online meeting Friday, amid a lack of cooperation from the junta, especially its failure to accept the visit by a special ASEAN envoy on Myanmar.
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U.S. to require COVID vaccination for foreign travelers from Nov. 8
WASHINGTON - The United States will require coronavirus vaccination for foreign travelers entering the country by air or land, with the measure set to take effect Nov. 8, the White House said Friday.
The announcement marks a shift from current bans limiting entry for non-U.S. citizens from China, Europe and some other countries to a vaccine requirement for all foreign air travelers.
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Japan calls for developing world natural gas projects to be funded
WASHINGTON - Japan on Friday called on international financial institutions to continue supporting natural gas projects in developing countries if they are deemed in each case to be the most effective means to reduce greenhouse emissions.
The proposal was made during a virtual meeting of the Development Committee, a joint panel of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, according to the Japanese government.
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Woman stabbed to death in western Japan, suspect on run
KOBE - A 28-year-old woman was stabbed to death on Friday in the compound of her apartment in the western Japan city of Amagasaki with a suspect apparently fleeing on a motor scooter, police said.
Sayaka Morimoto was found lying face-down with multiple stab wounds in her back near a bicycle parking area, an investigative source said, adding she and the suspect are believed to have known each other. A delivery man called an ambulance at around 8:20 p.m. saying that "a man possibly in his 20s or 30s is stabbing" the woman.
