The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan to launch domestic travel subsidy program on Oct. 11
TOKYO - Japan will launch a new subsidy program to boost domestic tourism on Oct. 11, the same day it plans to remove its daily cap for overseas arrivals as part of easing COVID-19 border control measures.
The "National Travel Discount," which Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced Thursday in New York, will replace the "Go To Travel" subsidy program and expand similar existing programs operating at the prefectural level.
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Japan, Brazil, Germany, India repeat call for U.N. reform
NEW YORK - Japan, Brazil, Germany and India on Thursday reiterated their call for United Nations reform given the world body's "inability" to address global conflicts, amid Russia's protracted war in Ukraine.
The foreign ministers of the Group of Four nations seeking to become permanent members of the U.N. Security Council said the inability of that body to effectively tackle global challenges demonstrates the "urgent need" for its reform to better reflect realities, according to a joint statement issued after their meeting in New York.
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Rare footage of Beatles' iconic visit to Japan in 1966 to be screened
NAGOYA - Rare footage of The Beatles' 1966 visit to Japan recorded by police will be screened on Saturday after a legal battle for the release of the video documenting the legendary rock band's iconic trip.
The footage of the band's first visit to Japan will finally be seen, but with the faces of fans and police officers obscured, after a Nagoya-based nonprofit organization lost a lawsuit seeking the release of the uncensored footage.
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Kishida condemns "referendums" in Moscow-held regions
NEW YORK - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Thursday condemned what Russia calls "referendums" in Moscow-controlled regions of Ukraine and said Russia must never use or threaten to use nuclear weapons, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.
Kishida's remarks came during a meeting with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal in New York ahead of the start of voting Friday in the Luhansk, Kherson and partly Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions -- an act Western officials and analysts believe Russia will use to justify the annexation of the areas.
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Russia's war in Ukraine prevents joint communique at G-20 trade talks
JAKARTA - A two-day meeting of trade ministers from the Group of 20 major economies on the Indonesian resort island of Bali ended Friday without a joint communique after they failed to reach a consensus on a paragraph regarding Russia's war in Ukraine.
During the talks, the trade, industry and investment ministers pledged to address the World Trade Organization reform and equality in sustainable investment agendas, among others.
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Japan, U.S., S. Korea oppose change of status quo amid Taiwan tension
NEW YORK - The top diplomats of Japan, the United States and South Korea on Thursday said they oppose any attempts to change the status quo of territories by force amid China's growing assertiveness in the Asia-Pacific region, while showing their resolve to resolutely respond to any nuclear test by North Korea.
The meeting of Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin was held in New York on the margins of the U.N. General Assembly's annual session. It came amid concerns that North Korea may carry out its first nuclear test in years.
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U.S. aircraft carrier in S. Korea for joint drills to deter N. Korea
BUSAN, South Korea - A U.S. aircraft carrier arrived in the South Korean port city of Busan on Friday for the first time in nearly five years to join naval exercises in a show of strength amid concern North Korea may conduct what would be its seventh nuclear test and first since September 2017.
The arrival of Ronald Reagan, with nearly 5,000 crew on board, and warships from its accompanying strike group comes after North Korea adopted legislation detailing its policy on the use of nuclear weapons earlier this month.
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Young women in Japan want fewer than 2 children, 1st time since 1940
TOKYO - Most young women in Japan who are hoping to get married want only one child or none at all, the first time in postwar history that the average number of desired births has fallen below two, according to a survey, adding to concern about the country's rapidly graying population.
The National Institute of Population and Social Security Research also found in the survey conducted in 2021 that interest in marriage had declined significantly among young adults since its last poll in 2015, although more than 80 percent still wanted to tie the knot.
