The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japanese cartoon "Oni: Thunder God's Tale" wins 2 prizes at Annies
LOS ANGELES - The Japanese anime "Oni: Thunder God's Tale," a story about a girl growing up in a world of gods and monsters, won two prizes in the TV/Media category at the annual Annies on Saturday.
The stop-motion animation directed by Daisuke Tsutsumi won the category's Limited Series and Production Design awards at the 50th Annie Awards.
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Foreign cruise ships' arrivals in Japan to near pre-COVID level
TOKYO - Arrivals of foreign-operated cruise ships to Japan are set to near the level seen before the coronavirus pandemic when their dockings to the country resume in March after a three-year hiatus, a Kyodo News survey showed Sunday.
Out of 42 major ports, a total of 89 arrivals are scheduled in March at 23 ports across 22 prefectures, while discussions by local governments and ship operators are progressing for arrivals at other ports, the survey showed. Before the pandemic in March 2019, Japan saw 125 dockings at the 42 ports.
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Japan PM rallies party members for victory in April local polls
TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Sunday rallied fellow members of his ruling Liberal Democratic Party to push for victory in nationwide local elections in April, in remarks made at a party congress in Tokyo.
Speaking on four by-elections for the House of Representatives planned for April 23, including one for the seat formerly held by slain former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Kishida pledged the LDP will aim to keep the seats previously under its control.
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Takichi Nishiyama, who uncovered secret pact in Okinawa return, dies
TOKYO - Former Mainichi Shimbun reporter Takichi Nishiyama, who was convicted in the 1970s after reporting on a secret pact between Japan and the United States over the 1972 return of Okinawa to Japanese rule, died of heart failure in Fukuoka Prefecture on Friday, his family said. He was 91.
As a political reporter for the major daily, Nishiyama suggested the existence of a secret bilateral pact in a newspaper article in 1971, a year before the island was returned to Japan after decades of U.S. administration.
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No joint statement but most G-20 nations condemn war in Ukraine
BENGALURU, India - Financial chiefs of the Group of 20 major economies concluded their meeting in India on Saturday without a joint statement, with Russia and China refusing to endorse references to the war in Ukraine.
Most of the group's finance ministers and central bankers, who could not issue a joint communique in their last three meetings, "strongly condemned the war in Ukraine and stressed that it is causing immense human suffering and exacerbating existing fragilities in the global economy," the chair's statement said.
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Japan researchers working to reduce climate impact of cow burps
TOKYO - Researchers in Japan are working to reduce the climate impact of cow burps by developing stomach sensors and using artificial intelligence to effectively administer feed that inhibits methane production.
The project led by Yasuo Kobayashi, a specially appointed professor in the Graduate School of Agriculture at Hokkaido University, aims to reduce cows' methane emissions by 80 percent by 2050.
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Athletics: Ethiopia's Hailemaryam Kiros wins Osaka Marathon
OSAKA - Ethiopia's Hailemaryam Kiros outsprinted Uganda's Victor Kiplangat over the final 200 meters to win the Osaka Marathon on Sunday.
The 26-year-old Kiros set a meet record of 2 hours, 6 minutes and 1 second, finishing just two seconds ahead of Kiplangat. Tanzania's Alphonce Felix Simbu settled for third place in 2:06:19.
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Basketball: Japan ends World Cup qualifiers with win over Bahrain
TAKASAKI, Japan - Japan cruised past Bahrain 95-72 on Sunday in its final match of Asian qualifying for the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup.
Joshua Hawkinson led with 22 points while Yutaro Suda added 20 for Japan, which will co-host the World Cup with the Philippines and Indonesia from Aug. 25.
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Germany's climate envoy wants clear G-7 leadership on global warming
TOKYO - Germany's climate envoy called on the Group of Seven leaders to make clear commitments toward resolving the devastating effects of climate change by putting it at the top of their agenda when they meet in May in Japan.
Jennifer Morgan, the German special envoy for international climate action, said in a recent interview with Kyodo News that she wants to ensure G-7 "clearly states its leadership and responsibility" for the early phase-out of coal-fired power generation and fossil fuels to achieve significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
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Video: Dog sled race in Hokkaido
