The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan to administer COVID vaccine soon to children aged under 12
TOKYO - Japan plans to expand the scope of COVID-19 inoculation to children under 12 years old at an early date to cope with another wave of infections amid the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday.
The government will reopen mass inoculation centers run by the Self-Defense Forces to administer third shots to the elderly at a faster pace and begin the booster program for others in March, earlier than previously planned, Kishida told reporters.
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North Korea conducts 2nd missile test in less than a week
TOKYO/SEOUL - North Korea fired a suspected ballistic missile Tuesday morning, the Japanese and South Korean governments said, with the second missile launch in less than a week coming after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un pledged late last year to strengthen the nation's defenses.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the projectile flew at least 700 kilometers at an altitude of about 60 km at 10 times the speed of sound and appears to be an advanced version of a ballistic missile Pyongyang launched last Wednesday.
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Tokyo court tosses suit by 3 Taiwanese to restore Japan nationality
TOKYO - A Tokyo court dismissed Tuesday a lawsuit filed by three Taiwanese men born in Taiwan during Japan's colonial rule seeking to have their Japanese nationality reinstated after they automatically lost it following World War II.
According to the suit filed with the Tokyo District Court, all three plaintiffs, including Yang Fu-cheng, 99, are in their 80s or 90s and were born to parents of Taiwanese origin.
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Japan further extends entry ban until end of Feb.
TOKYO - The Japanese government will further extend an entry ban on non-resident foreigners until the end of February, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday.
The ban has been in place since Nov. 30 after the country confirmed its first case of the highly transmissible Omicron variant of the coronavirus.
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Toyota, SoftBank Group among top-tier firms in Tokyo bourse shakeup
TOKYO - Toyota Motor Corp. and SoftBank Group Corp. are among the 1,841 firms that will be placed in the highest trading tier when the Tokyo Stock Exchange implements its reorganization plan on April 4, the bourse operator said Tuesday.
The restructuring by Japan Exchange Group Inc., known as JPX, is aimed at improving market availability and luring foreign investment.
The current four trading sections will be reorganized into three -- "Prime," "Standard" and "Growth."
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Gymnastics: Two-time all-around Olympic champ Kohei Uchimura retires
TOKYO - Japanese artistic gymnast "King" Kohei Uchimura, a two-time Olympic men's all-around gold medalist and six-time individual all-around world champion, announced Tuesday via his management that he is retiring.
Considered one of the best male gymnasts of all time, the 33-year-old's international career has been hampered by injuries and he missed the podium at both of gymnastics' major events in 2021, the Olympics and world championships.
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Mizuho hit by issues with online business banking services
TOKYO - Mizuho Bank said Tuesday its business customers are experiencing troubles using its online banking services, in yet another system failure to hit the major Japanese bank.
The clients have been faced with problems when attempting to log in to their online accounts since 8 a.m. with the bank saying it has instead asked customers to make transactions using ATMs.
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U.S. floats idea of limiting military drills in talks with Russia
WASHINGTON - The United States on Monday told Russia it is open to discussions on setting reciprocal limits on military exercises and missile deployments as it seeks to de-escalate tensions with Moscow over Ukraine, but no major breakthroughs were announced following their talks in Geneva.
The dialogue was part of a series of engagements taking place this week in Europe amid heightened concerns that Russia may further invade Ukraine as it amasses troops on the border.
