The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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G-7 vows to boost sanctions on Russia before Zelenskyy visit to Japan
HIROSHIMA - The Group of Seven leaders pledged Friday to boost sanctions on Russia to further undermine the country's "capacity to wage its illegal aggression" against Ukraine, hours after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was reported to be set to attend the G-7 summit in person.
The latest commitment in a G-7 statement released in Hiroshima, a western Japanese city devastated by a U.S. atomic bomb on Aug. 6, 1945, came as concerns linger that Russia may use a nuclear weapon in its war in Ukraine launched 15 months ago.
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Ukraine's Zelenskyy to be in Hiroshima this weekend for G-7 summit
HIROSHIMA - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will travel to Hiroshima to join discussions with leaders of the Group of Seven major industrialized democracies, officials said Friday, as they seek to put more pressure on Russia to end its war against Ukraine.
Japanese and U.S. government officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Zelenskyy is set to attend the G-7 gathering before it concludes on Sunday. Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, confirmed on state television that Zelenskyy will attend the summit in person.
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G-7 leaders make unprecedented group visit to Hiroshima A-bomb museum
HIROSHIMA - The Group of Seven leaders on Friday made an unprecedented joint visit to a museum in Hiroshima documenting the devastation caused by a U.S. atomic bomb in 1945, signaling at the outset of their three-day summit their commitment to a world free of nuclear weapons.
The visit by the leaders, including those from nuclear powers the United States, France and Britain, was a long-awaited event for atomic bomb survivors who hope that getting to know the consequences of a nuclear attack will add fresh impetus to stalled efforts to abolish nuclear arms.
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Nikkei ends at 33-yr high on hopes for U.S. debt ceiling deal
TOKYO - The Nikkei stock index rose Friday morning to its highest level in 33 years, lifted by overnight advances on Wall Street on hopes for a resolution to the U.S. debt ceiling issue and higher exporter shares on the yen's weakness.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average climbed 318.54 points, or 1.04 percent, from Thursday to 30.892.47, after briefly reaching its highest intraday level since August 1990. The broader Topix index was up 10.30 points, or 0.48 percent, at 2,168.15.
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Ennosuke leaves hospital as police suspect Kabuki family suicide
TOKYO - Popular Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ennosuke was discharged from a hospital Friday, a day after he was found collapsed with his parents at their home in Tokyo, as an investigative source said police suspect the family attempted suicide together.
His father, Ichikawa Danshiro, 76, was also a Kabuki actor. An autopsy found that the parents, who were confirmed dead Thursday, allegedly died after overdosing on psychotropic drugs, police said.
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Sumo: Georgian former ozeki Tochinoshin calls it quits
TOKYO - Georgian sumo wrestler Tochinoshin, who competed at the traditional Japanese sport's second-highest rank, ozeki, announced his retirement Friday.
The 35-year-old Kasugano stable representative, whose real name is Levan Gorgadze, had been wrestling in the second-tier juryo division. On Thursday, his record at the ongoing Summer Grand Sumo Tournament at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan fell to 0-5.
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Japan core consumer prices rise 3.4% in April as food prices jump
TOKYO - Inflation in Japan accelerated again in April, with core consumer prices rising 3.4 percent from a year earlier, as consumers took a fresh blow as food and durable goods prices jumped, government data showed Friday.
The rise in the core consumer price index, excluding volatile fresh food items, remained above the Bank of Japan's 2 percent target for the 13th consecutive month, putting further pressure on the central bank to tweak its ultralow rate policy. The key gauge of inflation gained 3.1 percent in March.
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China's Xi at Central Asia summit warns against U.S. interference
Chinese President Xi Jinping warned Friday against U.S. interference in the internal affairs of other countries in a meeting with the leaders of five Central Asian nations in the ancient city of Xian coinciding with the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima.
Xi stressed the importance of standing "firm against external attempts to interfere in domestic affairs of regional countries" in a speech at the first in-person summit of China and the Central Asian countries, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry. His remarks were apparently directed at the United States.
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Video: Security tightened in Hiroshima for G-7 summit
