The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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G-7 vows to tackle Russian sanction evasion, weapon supply via others
KARUIZAWA, Japan - The Group of Seven foreign ministers on Monday agreed to step up cooperation to prevent Russia from evading economic sanctions and securing weapons supplies from other countries to aid its invasion of Ukraine, specifically naming Iran to stop providing military assistance.
In the latest show of support to Ukraine, the top diplomats from the industrialized nations agreed on the second day of their three-day talks in the central Japan town of Karuizawa to commit to "intensifying, fully coordinating and enforcing" punitive steps against Russia, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.
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Japan, U.S. vow to uphold rules-based order, cooperate on N. Korea
KARUIZAWA, Japan - Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday vowed to work closely together in upholding a rules-based international order, amid Russia's war in Ukraine and China's assertiveness.
Meeting on the sidelines of the Group of Seven foreign ministerial talks in Karuizawa, central Japan, the two also agreed to cooperate in dealing with North Korea's nuclear and missile development programs and seek to strengthen their bilateral alliance's defense capabilities, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.
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French minister calls on China to act responsibly over Taiwan
PARIS - French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna called on China to "adopt a behavior appropriate to that of a responsible great power" amid growing tensions over the Taiwan Strait in the wake of its military buildup.
She also said France will continue to engage in tough talks with Beijing and is opposed to unilateral moves to bring Taiwan into its fold, in a recent written interview with Kyodo News before the Group of Seven foreign ministers meeting that started Sunday in Japan.
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Suspect in Japan PM explosives attack carried devices onboard trains
WAKAYAMA, Japan - The suspect in an explosives attack on Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during his weekend stump speech in western Japan is believed to have arrived at the scene by train, bringing explosive devices with him onboard, investigative sources said Monday.
A security camera in the vicinity captured Ryuji Kimura, a 24-year-old man from Hyogo Prefecture, leaving the ticket gate of Wakayamashi Station roughly an hour before the explosion occurred at around 11:25 a.m. Saturday at a fishing port in Wakayama Prefecture, the sources said.
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Sega Sammy to buy "Angry Birds" developer Rovio for 706 mil. euros
TOKYO - Japanese game and entertainment company Sega Sammy Holdings Inc. said Monday it will acquire Finland-based Rovio Entertainment Oyj, developer of the "Angry Birds" mobile game, in a deal worth about 706 million euros ($775 million) to expand in the fast-growing mobile gaming market.
Sega Sammy said it will launch a tender offer around May 8, paying 9.25 euros per share of the Finnish company that is most famous for the smash-hit title in which players put a bird in a slingshot to hit targets.
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Campaigning starts for mayoral, municipal assembly elections
TOKYO - Official campaigning started Sunday for elections to pick mayors and assembly members in a number of cities across Japan as part of the second round of a series of quadrennial local contests.
Voting to pick the mayors of 88 cities, chiefs of 12 of Tokyo's 23 wards, and assembly members in 294 cities and 21 Tokyo wards will take place on April 23, the same day voters cast ballots in by-elections for five vacant seats in parliament
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2 people from missing SDF chopper off Okinawa confirmed dead
TOKYO - Two people found on Sunday following a deep-sea dive in search of a Japanese Self-Defense Forces helicopter have been confirmed dead, the Ground Self-Defense Force said, in the first official announcement of deaths resulting from the incident since the chopper lost contact in early April.
Earlier in the day, the GSDF said five bodies and part of the UH-60JA helicopter, which went missing with 10 personnel aboard off the southern prefecture of Okinawa, have been located.
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Japan PM denounces explosive attack just before stump speech
TOKYO - Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Sunday denounced an attack the previous day in which an explosive device was thrown at him just before he was supposed to make a stump speech in the western Japan city of Wakayama.
"A violent act taking place during elections, the bedrock of democracy, can never be tolerated," Kishida told reporters at his official residence, a day after a man cast the cylindrical object that exploded and let out white smoke near the premier.
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Video: New "Spacia X" express train unveiled
