The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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North Korea fires apparent submarine-launched ballistic missile
SEOUL/TOKYO - North Korea on Saturday fired what is presumed to be a short-range, submarine-launched ballistic missile into the sea off its eastern coast, South Korea's military said, three days before President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol's inauguration.
The apparent SLBM was likely launched from waters near North Korea's eastern port city of Sinpo at around 2:07 p.m., according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff.
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Japan PM Kishida eyes attending int'l security forum in June
TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is set to attend a major international security forum next month in Singapore, Japanese government sources said Saturday.
If realized, the attendance of a Japanese prime minister at the annual meeting from June 10 to 12 will be the first since 2014, when his predecessor Shinzo Abe took part in the Asian security summit, known as the Shangri-La Dialogue.
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Yoshinoya refused to let "foreign" student attend recruitment event
TOKYO - The Yoshinoya "gyudon" beef bowl restaurant chain refused to allow a university student to attend a recruitment event after assuming the student was a foreign national, an official of the chain's holding company said Friday.
A recruiter at Yoshinoya Co. based the assumption on background information provided by the student, and told the student that foreign nationals face difficulty in obtaining work visas, according to the official.
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North Korea could complete nuclear test preparation this month: Japan
TOKYO - North Korea could complete its preparation by the end of this month to conduct a nuclear test, Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said Saturday.
Kishi said Japan's Defense Ministry has shared such a view with the United States.
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Japan, Fiji confirm beefing up ties amid concerns over China clout
TOKYO - Japan and Fiji confirmed Saturday they will continue closely cooperating for peace and stability in the Pacific region as they shared concerns over a recent security deal between China and the Solomon Islands, the Japanese government said.
At a meeting in the Fijian capital Suva, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and Fijian Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama, who doubles as foreign minister, affirmed the goal of realizing a "free and open Indo-Pacific," amid China's increasing military and economic clout in the region.
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Rugby: COVID-19 cases force cancellation of League One matches
TOKYO - Japan's League One announced the cancellation of Saturday's clash between Black Rams Tokyo and Red Hurricanes Osaka shortly before kickoff following multiple COVID-19 cases among players and staff from the team based in Osaka.
Thirteen people associated with the team returned positive tests Monday, but after follow-up tests over the next two days, the league initially determined the regular season final-round match could still be played.
