The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Biden, Xi agree to communicate amid tension, but no breakthrough
WASHINGTON - U.S. President Joe Biden agreed Monday with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to maintain communication to ensure that tense relations between the world's two major powers will not lead to conflict, but they remained loggerheads over security strains surrounding the Taiwan Strait.
No specific deliverables were reported from the governments of the two nations following their first face-to-face meeting, though in a virtual format, which lasted about three and a half hours, amid rifts on issues ranging from trade to human rights and Taiwan.
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Stable U.S.-China ties important for international community: Japan
TOKYO - The United States and China maintaining stable relations is "extremely important" for the international community as a whole, Japan's top government spokesman said Tuesday following closely watched talks between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
"Japan will continue to cooperate with our ally the United States based on our strong relationship of trust, while calling on China to fulfill its responsibilities as a major power," Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told a press conference.
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Japan to lift spectator cap in easing of COVID-19 restrictions
TOKYO - A Japanese government panel on the novel coronavirus response gave the green light Tuesday for the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, including scrapping the cap on spectators at events under certain conditions.
The government's subcommittee on the COVID-19 response approved the proposed relaxation of restrictions based on a system to check whether people have been vaccinated or tested negative for the virus.
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Baseball: Slugging outfielder Seiya Suzuki to be posted by Hiroshima Carp
TOKYO - The Hiroshima Carp have accepted slugging outfielder Seiya Suzuki's request to enter the posting system for a chance to move to the majors, officials with the Central League club said Tuesday.
Widely recognized as one of the country's top players, the 27-year-old led the CL in batting and on-base percentage this season, his ninth in Nippon Professional Baseball.
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South Korea's police chief visits islets disputed with Japan: source
SEOUL - The head of South Korea's police on Tuesday visited a pair of South Korea-held islets in the Sea of Japan claimed by Japan, a source close to the police said.
Kim Chang Yong, commissioner general of the National Police Agency, flew to the territory, known as Dokdo in South Korea and Takeshima in Japan, in what local media said was the first visit by an incumbent police agency chief in 12 years.
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Japan's LDP to make new lawmakers donate 1 mil. yen allowance
TOKYO - Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party said Tuesday it will make new lower house members donate the 1 million yen ($8,800) monthly transportation and communication allowance they received for October despite being elected on the last day of the month.
The policy comes amid growing criticism over the full amount paid out of the national coffers to those who won seats in the House of Representatives in the general election on Oct. 31 and follows a similar move by an opposition party.
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Areas near Tokyo await arrival of floating pumice mass, damage feared
TOKYO - Coastal areas surrounding Tokyo are expecting the arrival of a mass of floating pumice stone created by a huge underwater volcanic eruption in August, with the material already having blanketed dozens of fishing ports and impacted marine life in the country's southwest.
According to a supercomputer-assisted forecast by the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, the volcanic stones are expected to reach waters off the coasts of Chiba and Kanagawa prefectures in late November.
