The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Operator of missing Hokkaido boat apologizes for "wrong judgment"
SHARI, Japan - The operator of a tour boat that disappeared off Hokkaido last weekend with 26 people aboard publicly apologized Wednesday for causing the fatal accident, admitting its decision to give the green light to depart despite the chance of bad weather was inappropriate.
"I made the final decision to depart on the condition that the captain make the decision to turn back if the seas got rough," Seiichi Katsurada, the president of Shiretoko Yuransen, said in his first press conference since the 19-ton Kazu I went missing Saturday. "In retrospect, my judgment was wrong."
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Japan's ruling LDP asks gov't to double defense budget
TOKYO - Japan's Liberal Democratic Party on Wednesday asked Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to consider doubling the country's defense budget to an amount on par with 2 percent or more of its gross domestic product, citing the region's increasingly complex and severe security environment.
A set of proposals finalized by the ruling party last week, calling also for the development by the Self-Defense Forces of counterstrike abilities aimed at disabling enemy weapons, will serve as a basis for the government to update the National Security Strategy by the end of the year.
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Toyota FY 2021 domestic output hits near half-century low
TOKYO - Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday its domestic output in fiscal 2021 fell 5.4 percent from the previous year to 2,760,843 vehicles, the lowest level in 45 years, due to supply chain disruptions amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Global output expanded to 8,569,549 vehicles, a 4.7 percent increase, helped by a solid performance in North America and Asia. It was the first increase in output in three years.
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Guterres, Putin agree on U.N. help in evacuation amid Ukraine war
NEW YORK - U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday agreed "in principle" on the involvement of the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross in the evacuation of civilians from a besieged steel plant in Mariupol, amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.
It was the secretary general's first visit to Moscow since the Russian invasion began on Feb. 24. Putin said recently that Russian forces had effectively seized Mariupol, a key port city in southeastern Ukraine, but the United States has expressed doubt about the claim.
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Japan protests South Korea's plan to survey disputed islets
TOKYO - Japan has lodged a protest with South Korea over its plan to survey islets controlled by Seoul and claimed by Tokyo, the top government spokesman said Wednesday.
"The plan is unacceptable and extremely regrettable," Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said at a press conference, noting that the islets, called Takeshima, are an "inherent territory of Japan in light of historical facts and international law."
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Japan to limit 4th COVID vaccine to elderly, those with conditions
TOKYO - A Japanese health ministry panel approved Wednesday a plan to initially administer fourth COVID-19 vaccine shots only to the elderly and people with underlying medical conditions.
The fourth shots of Moderna and Pfizer vaccines will be available five months after a person received their third shot, according to the plan.
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China's leading drone maker suspends business in Russia, Ukraine
BEIJING - China's world-leading drone maker SZ DJI Technology Co. has said it will suspend all business activities in both Russia and Ukraine, with fears mounting that Moscow is using the company's products to attack the neighboring country.
The move came after Ukraine's Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov said in a Twitter post last month that Russian troops are using DJI products to navigate their missiles to kill "civilians."
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Anime "My Neighbor Totoro" to be adapted into stage play in Britain
TOKYO - Studio Ghibli's classic animation film "My Neighbor Totoro" will be adapted into a stage play at Britain's prestigious Royal Shakespeare Company from October, Nippon Television Network Corp., one of the collaborators, said Wednesday.
The 1988 film directed by Oscar-winning Japanese anime creator Hayao Miyazaki will be turned into a live production under British playwright Tom Morton-Smith and director Phelim McDermott, with famed Japanese composer Joe Hisaishi providing the music.
