The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
----------
Putin calls Russia's military operation in Ukraine "right decision"
KYIV - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday stressed the "special military operation" in Ukraine was the "only right decision" for his country during a speech at an annual event to mark the 77th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.
In a public address during Victory Day celebrations at Red Square in central Moscow, Putin justified sending troops into Ukraine as a "pre-emptive rebuff to aggression" from member countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, saying the security bloc had created an "absolutely unacceptable threat."
----------
Japan foreign minister in S. Korea for President Yoon's inauguration
SEOUL - Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi arrived in Seoul on Monday to attend the inauguration ceremony of South Korean President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol, with attention focused on whether his visit can help improve soured bilateral ties.
After attending Tuesday's ceremony, Hayashi is expected to meet with Yoon and hand him a personal letter from Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, according to Japanese governmental sources.
----------
Japan to slowly phase out Russian oil, keep interests in projects
TOKYO - Japan will slowly phase out oil imports from Russia while maintaining its interests in oil and gas projects in the Russian Far East, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Monday.
Kishida made the remarks as the nation balances the need to alleviate cost of living pressures while reducing its reliance on Russia in response to its war in Ukraine.
----------
G-7 voices "grave concern" over process of selecting Hong Kong chief
TOKYO - Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven major developed countries on Monday expressed "grave concern" over the process of selecting Hong Kong's new chief executive.
A day after John Lee, a former security chief of the city, was picked as its next leader in an uncontested election, they released a statement saying the "process and resulting appointment are a stark departure from the aim of universal suffrage and further erode the ability of Hong Kongers to be legitimately represented."
----------
Voting under way in Philippines to elect new president
MANILA - Voters in the Philippines went to polling stations across the country Monday to elect a new president, vice president, 12 senators, 316 congress members and over 17,000 local officials.
Recent pre-election surveys showed former senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the son and namesake of the late Philippine dictator, holding a wide lead over opposition candidate and Vice President Leni Robredo, a human rights lawyer.
----------
Nagasaki mayor to attend 1st U.N. nuclear ban meeting in June
NAGASAKI - Nagasaki Mayor Tomihisa Taue will attend the first meeting of parties to a U.N. treaty banning nuclear weapons in Vienna next month to rally the global community against the use of such armaments, the city government said Monday.
"We need to raise international public opinion on halting the use of nuclear weapons," amid drastic changes to the security situation following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Taue said during a meeting with city assembly members.
----------
CDPJ-linked ex-lawmaker nabbed for illegal shinkansen ticket receipt
NAGOYA - A former upper house lawmaker linked to the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan has been arrested for allegedly defrauding Central Japan Railway Co. out of first-class shinkansen bullet train tickets by claiming to be an incumbent member of parliament.
Yasuo Yamashita, a company executive of Gifu Prefecture, central Japan, who had served as an advisor to the Gifu prefectural chapter of the CDPJ, admitted to the allegation, according to police.
----------
Musk warns Japan will cease to exist if birthrate continues decline
TOKYO - Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk has warned that Japan will perish if it does not reverse its declining birthrate, responding to a tweet of a Kyodo News article that said the country's population saw its largest drop on record in 2021.
"At the risk of stating the obvious, unless something changes to cause the birth rate to exceed the death rate, Japan will eventually cease to exist. This would be a great loss for the world," Musk, who recently acquired Twitter Inc., said in a post on his account on Sunday.
