The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
----------
Japan, India agree to maintain rules-based order as G-7, G-20 chairs
NEW DELHI - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi agreed Monday to maintain the rules-based international order in the face of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and China's increasing clout in the Indo-Pacific region.
After their talks in New Delhi, Kishida said he and Modi promised to work together toward the success of the Group of Seven and Group of 20 summits that Japan and India are slated to host, respectively, later this year.
----------
Canada seeking to set up 4-way framework with Japan, South Korea, U.S.
WASHINGTON - Canada has proposed creating a quadruple cooperation framework with Japan, South Korea and the United States as part of efforts to counter China and Russia, diplomatic sources said Sunday.
Canada conveyed the idea directly to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida when he visited Ottawa in January, the sources said, adding that it believes the expansion of the existing trilateral mechanism involving the United States and its key Asian allies will help boost ties among countries belonging to the liberal democratic camp in the Pacific Rim region.
----------
1966 Japan murder case to reopen as prosecutors give up appeal
TOKYO - Tokyo prosecutors said Monday they will not appeal a recent high court order granting a retrial to a former professional boxer previously sentenced to death over a 1966 quadruple murder case in central Japan, laying the stage for his exoneration.
With prosecutors deciding not to file a special appeal with the Supreme Court, the retrial of the 87-year-old Iwao Hakamata, who spent nearly half a century behind bars before new evidence led to his release in 2014, is set to be held at the Shizuoka District Court, where he was initially tried.
----------
Xi vows to promote Ukraine peace talks as he starts Russia visit
BEIJING - Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged Monday as he started his state visit to Russia that Beijing will actively promote peace talks to resolve the Ukraine crisis, with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin welcoming China's readiness to make a meaningful contribution.
The two leaders contributed articles to major news outlets in each other's country to mark Xi's three-day trip to Russia beginning Monday, his first visit to the neighboring state since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February last year.
----------
Head of Japan NPO indicted for facilitating overseas organ transplant
TOKYO - Prosecutors on Monday indicted the head of a nonprofit organization for allegedly mediating organ transplants overseas without government approval.
Hiromichi Kikuchi, director of the Association for Patients of Intractable Diseases, is suspected of facilitating transplants for two recipients in Belarus, collecting from them a total of 51.5 million yen ($390,000), according to the indictment.
----------
UBS to buy Credit Suisse in gov't-backed emergency rescue deal
LONDON - Swiss banking giant UBS said Sunday it will buy its embattled rival Credit Suisse in a government-brokered rescue deal worth 3 billion Swiss francs ($3.2 billion) aimed at calming financial market jitters triggered by the collapse of two U.S. regional banks.
Negotiations for the acquisition were initiated by the Swiss government and the Swiss National Bank, while six of the world's central banks, including the U.S. Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan, announced a coordinated effort to enhance global dollar liquidity to calm financial markets.
----------
Thai PM Prayut dissolves lower house to pave way for May election
BANGKOK - Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha dissolved parliament on Monday ahead of an election possibly in the first half of May.
The move came before the four-year terms of House of Representatives members expire on Thursday, with Prayut having said a dissolution will give more time for all parties to prepare. Thailand's Election Commission is required to set the election date within five days of a lower house dissolution.
----------
Japan court nixes 12-yr prison term given to man who stabbed policeman
OSAKA - A Japanese court reversed Monday a 12-year prison sentence handed down to a 36-year-old man for stabbing a police officer and stealing his handgun in western Japan's Osaka Prefecture in 2019.
The Osaka High Court acquitted the man of attempted murder and robbery, overturning a lower court ruling in August 2021 that deemed he acted on his own judgement despite his diminished mental capacity.
----------
Video: Parrot Olivia predicts Samurai Japan's win in WBC semis
----------
