The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan to resume accepting foreign tourists on June 10: Kishida
TOKYO - Japan will resume accepting foreign tourists from June 10, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Thursday, as the country continues to ease its COVID-19 border controls.
Kishida's announcement was made during an international event in Tokyo and came ahead of Japan's move to double the current cap on daily entries to 20,000 from next Wednesday. To reduce the potential spread of infections, tourism arrivals will initially be limited to guided tour groups.
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Japan, Thailand eye bolstering regional ties through new U,S,-led framework
TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his Thai counterpart Prayut Chan-o-cha began talks Thursday in Tokyo in which they are expected to agree on enhancing regional ties through a U.S.-led Indo-Pacific economic framework launched earlier in the week.
Kishida is also expected to express Japan's cooperation for a successful Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit meeting to be held in November in Bangkok chaired by Thailand.
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Japan PM Kishida sees need for dialogue with China's Xi
TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Thursday that keeping a dialogue with Chinese President Xi Jinping is important in maintaining "constructive" bilateral ties and cooperative relations despite persisting challenges between the Asian neighbors.
Speaking in a parliamentary session, however, Kishida said no specific date has been fixed for his summit meeting with Xi. No in-person talks have been held since Kishida became prime minister last October.
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China foreign minister arrives in Solomon Islands amid security deal
SYDNEY - Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived in the Solomon Islands on Thursday, at a time when concerns are mounting over China's increasing military clout in the region following a controversial security pact signed by the two countries last month.
Hours after Wang touched down in Honiara, leaked documents reported by the Australian Broadcasting Corp. revealed that China is seeking a region-wide agreement with almost a dozen Pacific island countries, covering areas including security, trade and data communication.
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Japan confirms drill with U.S. fighters after North Korea missile tests
TOKYO - Japan and the United States conducted a joint exercise involving fighter jets over the Sea of Japan, the Defense Ministry said Thursday, a day after North Korea test-fired three ballistic missiles.
The flight of four F-15s from the Japan Air Self-Defense Force's Chitose base in Hokkaido and four F-16s from the U.S. Air Force base in Misawa, Aomori Prefecture, on Wednesday was meant to confirm the two forces' "readiness posture," the ministry said.
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G-7 ministers meet in Berlin with focus on when to end coal power
BERLIN - The Group of Seven major developed countries began a two-day meeting of environment ministers Thursday in Berlin, with the utmost attention on whether they can set a specific time frame to phase out coal-fueled energy.
Germany, serving as the chair of G-7 meetings this year, has proposed that the ministers stipulate the goal of phasing out coal power generation by 2030 in a post-meeting joint statement, and other European countries and Canada have backed the idea, officials said.
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Ex-minister convicted for receiving bribes from egg producer
TOKYO - Former Japanese farm minister Takamori Yoshikawa was sentenced Thursday to two years and six months in prison, suspended for four years, for receiving bribes from an egg production company while in office.
The Tokyo District Court ruled that Yoshikawa received a total of 5 million yen ($39,000) from the then head of Akita Foods Co. between November 2018 and August 2019 when he was farm minister while being aware of the company head's intention to seek favors.
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Pair of Hokkaido melons fetch 3 mil. yen at year's 1st auction
SAPPORO - A pair of premium melons in Japan's northern main island of Hokkaido fetched 3 million yen ($23,550) at the year's first auction on Thursday, exceeding last year's winning bid by 10 percent.
The auction record for a pair of Yubari melons, a signature product of the city of Yubari, was 5 million yen in 2019. The winning bid at the first auction last year was 2.7 million yen.
