Here is a selection of Kyodo News photos taken this week in Japan and beyond.

Tokyo Sky Tree is lit up in different colors on March 11, 2023, the 12th anniversary of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster that devastated the country's northeast, to pray for recovery from it of the affected areas. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
A man looks up at the monument to the "Miracle Pine," the only tree that survived in a coastal forest flattened by the 2011 deadly tsunami in the Iwate Prefecture city of Rikuzentakata, northeastern Japan, on March 11, 2023, the 12th anniversary of the disaster. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
A woman throws flowers into the sea from a beach in the Fukushima Prefecture city of Iwaki, northeastern Japan, on March 11, 2023, the 12th anniversary of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster that devastated the country's northeast. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
 
Photo taken on March 12, 2023, shows the annual "omizutori" water-drawing fire ceremony at the Nigatsudo hall of Todaiji-temple in Nara, western Japan. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) and Li Qiang, a close ally of Xi and ranked No. 2 in the ruling Communist Party's apex of power, exchange words during a plenary session of the National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 11, 2023. Li was elected premier during the session. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
The closing ceremony of the National People's Congress is held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 13, 2023. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
Tourists wear masks as they walk around a popular tourist spot near Kiyomizu-dera Temple in Kyoto on March 13, 2023, despite Japan's easing of its COVID-19 guidelines on mask-wearing the same day, with the decision to wear them now left up to individual choice. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
A staff member at Kintetsu Department Store in Osaka on March 13, 2023, takes down a sign asking customers to wear masks, as Japan eased its COVID-19 guidelines on mask-wearing the same day. (Kyodo)
 
Giant panda Rauhin, a mother of 10, gets presents including heart-shaped blocks of ice at the Adventure World amusement park in the Wakayama Prefecture town of Shirahama in western Japan on March 14, 2023, Japan's "White Day," when men give candies to women in return for chocolates received a month earlier on Valentine's Day. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
A piloted demonstration flight of a one-person flying car is held at Osaka Castle Park in Osaka, western Japan, on March 14, 2023. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
Stage outfits worn by members of Japanese boy band Arashi during their concert tour in 2018 and 2019 are on display at a Shanghai store on March 15, 2023, marking their first overseas exhibition. The five-member group went on hiatus at the end of 2020. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
Photos of members of Japanese boy band Arashi during their concert tour in 2018 and 2019 are on display at a Shanghai store on March 15, 2023, marking their first overseas exhibition. The five-member band went on hiatus at the end of 2020. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
Photo shows a miniature of Tokyo's Shibuya scramble crossing at the Nagoya-based theme park Legoland Japan Resort's new "Miniland" area on March 16, 2023, unveiled to the media ahead of its official opening the following day. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
Japan supporters cheer in front of Tokyo Dome in Tokyo ahead of the World Baseball Classic quarterfinal game against Italy on March 16, 2023. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
Shohei Ohtani pitches in Japan's World Baseball Classic quarterfinal game against Italy at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo on March 16, 2023. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
Kazuma Okamoto (C) celebrates with teammate Shohei Ohtani (16) after hitting a three-run home run in the third inning of Japan's World Baseball Classic quarterfinal game against Italy at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo on March 16, 2023. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (R) and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol shake hands during a joint press conference following their talks at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on March 16, 2023. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
 
 
Mourners light candles in Ukraine's capital Kyiv on March 16, 2023, to mark the one-year anniversary of a Russian airstrike on a Mariupol drama theater where civilians were sheltering. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Back number:

Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - March 4~10

Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - Feb. 25~March 3

Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - Feb. 18~24

Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - Feb. 11~17