The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan gov't to decide Aug. 22 when to begin Fukushima water release: PM
TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said his government will hold a ministerial meeting Tuesday to decide when to start releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant, despite lingering objections from local residents.
Kishida's remarks came after he talked with the head of Japan's national fisheries federation on Monday, hoping to gain his understanding of the government's plan to discharge the water from the crippled nuclear complex into the sea. The process is expected to start by the end of August.
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South Korea, U.S. begin joint military drills amid North Korea threat
SEOUL - South Korea and the United States began a joint large-scale military exercise on Monday aimed at bolstering their defense and preparedness against North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats.
The annual Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise, which will last for 11 days until Aug. 31, will include about 30 field training events based on an all-out war scenario, according to an official from South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff. The number of drills this year will exceed those in previous joint military exercises.
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Japan expects higher debt costs in FY 2024 after BOJ policy tweak
TOKYO - The Finance Ministry expects a higher interest rate will increase debt-servicing costs for fiscal 2024, reflecting rising long-term government bond yields following a recent policy tweak by the Bank of Japan, sources familiar with the matter said Monday.
The assumed interest rate, used in calculating the costs in a state budget, will likely be set at 1.5 percent for the year starting next April, up from 1.1 percent in recent years, the sources said.
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China suspends mango imports from Taiwan after VP Lai's U.S. transits
BEIJING - China decided Monday to suspend mango imports from Taiwan, citing pests found in the fruit earlier this year, though the measure is believed to be a direct response to recent U.S. stopovers by the island's Vice President Lai Ching-te during his Paraguay trip.
Zhu Fenglian, a spokeswoman for China's State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said in a statement that Beijing has urged Taipei to improve its quarantine controls. The step follows military drills launched by the mainland near Taiwan over the weekend.
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AI to create song for school in central Japan, in country's 1st
TOKYO - A city in central Japan said Monday it will use artificial intelligence to compose a song for a new school to open in fiscal 2026, hailing the project as the nation's first.
The song will be for merged elementary and junior high school in Tado District of Kuwana, a city in Mie Prefecture. Schools there are being reorganized in response to a declining population.
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China OKs restart of N. Korean passenger flights, 1st since COVID
BEIJING - Beijing said Monday it had approved the restart of passenger flights between China and North Korea to be operated by North Korea's state-run carrier Air Koryo, following the suspension of services since early 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry confirmed the planned resumption of flights after an Air Koryo flight from Pyongyang originally scheduled to arrive in Beijing on Monday was canceled.
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Japan assemblyman, Taiwan spouse urge Tokyo to OK same-sex marriage
TAIPEI - An openly gay assemblyman from Aichi Prefecture and his Taiwanese partner, having just registered their union in Taipei, called on Tokyo Monday to swiftly legalize same-sex marriage to ensure equality for sexual minorities.
Takahama city assembly member Masahiro Shibaguchi, 53, of the Japanese Communist Party, and his spouse Ariel Ling-chun Liu, 38, who also lives in Japan, traveled to Taiwan to register their marriage in Taipei City's Datong District on Aug. 11.
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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversees cruise missile launch drill
BEIJING - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw a strategic cruise missile launch drill while visiting a naval unit, state-run media said Monday, with released photographs also showing him boarding a new type of patrol vessel with improved stealth capabilities.
The date Kim visited the unit, belonging to the fleet that covers the Sea of Japan, remains unknown. The official Korean Central News Agency reported on the inspection as South Korea and the United States began a joint large-scale military exercise Monday.
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Video: JR unmanned train stations
![[Kyodo Visual Story] Shinkansen - The dream super limited express marks 60](https://img.kyodonews.net/english/public/images/posts/73363c43e46f627de43fd1ed80764dec/image_m.jpg)
