The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan marks 12 years since quake-tsunami that led to Fukushima crisis
TOKYO - Japan on Saturday marked 12 years since a massive earthquake and tsunami struck the country's northeast, claiming the lives of over 15,000 people and triggering a nuclear disaster that will take decades to clean up.
Recovery from the magnitude-9.0 earthquake and resultant tsunami that devastated Fukushima, Miyagi and Iwate prefectures has progressed in the ensuing years, but some 31,000 people remained displaced as of November 2022. Cleanup plans at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex are also stoking controversy.
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Iran, Saudi Arabia agree to resume ties in deal brokered by China
TOKYO - Iran and Saudi Arabia have agreed to re-establish diplomatic relations and reopen their respective embassies after years of hostility, in a diplomatic breakthrough brokered by China.
The agreement, announced Friday after five days of high-level talks in Beijing, is likely to help ease tensions in the Middle East and signals weakening U.S. influence in the region.
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China ruling party's No. 2 leader Li Qiang elected premier
BEIJING - China's parliament elected Li Qiang, a close ally of leader Xi Jinping and ranked No. 2 in the ruling Communist Party's apex of power, as premier on Saturday, replacing Li Keqiang.
Li Qiang, 63, will head the State Council, China's Cabinet, and his main task will be overseeing the economy, although the role of premier has been waning as Xi has concentrated power in his own hands over the years.
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60% of South Koreans oppose Japan wartime labor dispute resolution
SEOUL - Nearly 60 percent of South Koreans said they are against a move to resolve a wartime labor row between the country and Japan that would see Seoul compensate former Korean laborers, a public opinion poll found Friday.
The result by Gallup Korea reflects public antagonism toward the resolution, which would not require direct payments from Japanese companies, regarding alleged forced labor during Japan's colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.
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COVID-19 patients to pay for most treatments after status downgrade
TOKYO - Coronavirus patients will generally be required to pay for their own medical expenses after the legal status of COVID-19 is downgraded to the same category as common infectious diseases on May 8, the Japanese government said Friday.
Under the reclassification of COVID-19 to Class 5 diseases like seasonal influenza, the government will also aim to increase the number of medical institutions that provide outpatient COVID-19 treatments by 50 percent, while expensive drugs will continue to be subsidized until the end of September.
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90% in Japan feel discrimination against disabled exists: survey
TOKYO - Nearly 90 percent of people in Japan believe discrimination and prejudice against those with disabilities continue to persist, according to a recent government survey.
The survey conducted last year found 88.5 percent responded discrimination against such people either "exists" or "exists to a certain extent," despite the holding of the Tokyo Paralympics in 2021, according to the results released by the Cabinet Office late February.
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M'bishi Motors aims to electrify all cars sold globally by FY 2035
TOKYO - Mitsubishi Motors Corp. said Friday it aims to electrify all of the cars it sells globally by fiscal 2035, expecting related investment to total more than 1.4 trillion yen ($10 billion) through fiscal 2030.
Mitsubishi Motors, which had previously set a 50 percent electrification target for its cars by fiscal 2030, is the latest Japanese automaker to accelerate a shift away from gas-powered vehicles amid intensifying competition worldwide.
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FEATURE: Sake exports set record high in 2022 for 13th year in row
OSAKA - Exports of Japanese sake have grown in step with the global Japanese cuisine boom, setting a record high for the 13th consecutive year in 2022.
The continuing boom, with shipments surging 18.2 percent last year to 47.4 billion yen (about $340 million), is also fueled by younger sake brewers targeting a more upscale market with premium products and taking steps to foster a sake culture overseas.
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Football: Reds snap Kobe's streak, earn 1st back-to-back J1 wins
KOBE - Atsuki Ito's 21st-minute goal secured visiting Urawa Reds a 1-0 win over Vissel Kobe on Saturday, handing the early front runners their first defeat of the J-League top-flight campaign.
Urawa notched back-to-back league wins for the first time under new manager Maciej Skorza as they snapped Kobe's three-match winning streak to start the season.
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Video: Evacuated resident visits home in no-go zone since 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster
