The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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U.S. base transfer work in Okinawa begins after state OKs by proxy
NAHA, Japan - The Japanese government on Wednesday started construction work for the transfer of a key U.S. military base within Okinawa Prefecture after overriding the local government's objection and approving a modified landfill plan by proxy in an unprecedented move.
The work is to reinforce soft ground at the relocation site for U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma and is projected to take nine years and three months, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told a regular news conference in Tokyo.
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Nikkei stock index soars to nearly 34-yr high for 2nd day on weak yen
TOKYO - The Nikkei stock index soared Wednesday, ending at a nearly 34-year high for a second consecutive day, as the yen's weakness against the U.S. dollar sparked aggressive buying of exporters.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average finished up 678.54 points, or 2.01 percent, from Tuesday at 34,441.72, marking its highest close since February 1990 when Japan was experiencing an asset price bubble. It was the largest point gain since Nov. 15.
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Moving central Japan quake evacuees high priority as deaths rise
KANAZAWA, Japan - Local authorities are speeding up efforts to move evacuees of the powerful earthquake that rocked Ishikawa Prefecture and other central Japan areas on New Year's Day to hotels and other accommodations after challenging conditions at evacuation centers are believed to have resulted in multiple deaths.
The death toll from the quake rose to 206 on Wednesday, according to the authorities, with the figure including eight people who were not directly killed by the magnitude-7.6 temblor but are believed to have died due to a deterioration in their health conditions, in some cases associated with the stress of being evacuated.
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North Korean leader calls South Korea "principal enemy," state media says
TOKYO - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has classified South Korea as his nation's "principal enemy" and the state "most hostile" toward Pyongyang, the country's official media reported Wednesday.
Kim stated the labels during an inspection of major munitions factories on Monday and Tuesday, according to the Korean Central News Agency.
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JAL to preserve part of burned aircraft from Tokyo airport collision
TOKYO - Japan Airlines is considering preserving part of the jetliner burned after colliding with a Japan Coast Guard aircraft at Tokyo's Haneda Airport last week as a reminder of the fatal accident to raise safety awareness within the company, a JAL official said Wednesday.
The collision on a runway killed five of the six people aboard the coast guard's Bombardier DHC8-300 aircraft and left its captain severely injured, while all 379 passengers and crew on the JAL Airbus A350-900 managed to escape.
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Japan government appeals ruling on compensation for illegal investigation
TOKYO - The Japanese government and the Tokyo metropolitan government on Wednesday appealed a court ruling that ordered them to compensate a company president and two others for an unlawful investigation into the alleged illegal export of items seen as capable of being used in the production of biological weapons.
The Tokyo District Court last month ordered the governments to pay a total of around 160 million yen ($1.1 million) after finding the arrest and indictment of the three was illegal.
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North Korea leader's message to Japan on quake sparks hope for dialogue
TOKYO - A rare message from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to Japan expressing sympathy for the powerful earthquake on New Year's Day has raised speculation that Pyongyang may be signaling its openness to dialogue after showing no interest in Tokyo's aspiration to hold a bilateral summit.
As the Japanese government assesses the intention behind the message addressed to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Friday, one official was optimistic, saying it "may be a sign."
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South Korea opposition chief's attacker wanted to prevent rise to power
SEOUL - South Korean police said Wednesday that a man who stabbed opposition leader Lee Jae Myung earlier this month has claimed he tried to kill Lee so that he could not become president of the country in the future.
According to the police in Busan, where the stabbing took place on Jan. 2, the 67-year-old man has said he also wanted to prevent Lee's main opposition Democratic Party from winning in the general election scheduled in April by killing him.
Video: New Year greeting cards for Hikonyan
