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Newsroom Tokyo 2026 04 24
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00:11Hello and thank you for joining us on Newsroom Tokyo.
00:14I'm Raja Paran.
00:15Here are the headlines.
00:16The U.S. president has reiterated his stance of not setting a time limit for the next round
00:21of talks with Iran.
00:23Tehran remains defiant.
00:25People in a community in northeastern Japan are taking refuge from wildfires spreading
00:30toward the town center.
00:33And a deadly rail crash in western Japan 21 years ago is having a lasting impact on survivors
00:40and bereaved families.
00:42We'll bring you the story.
00:44Two wildfires are raging in the northeastern Japanese prefecture of Iwate.
00:49The flames are spreading toward the center of Otsuchi town.
00:52More than 3,200 residents are under an evacuation order.
00:58Firefighters worked through the night.
01:00Helicopters resumed water drops Friday morning.
01:03More and more residents are taking refuge in evacuation centers.
01:07The fires broke out Wednesday.
01:10They burned at least 1,100 hectares of land, including eight buildings.
01:15There are no reports of injuries, but the spread prompted municipal officials to expand the evacuation
01:20order.
01:22Firefighters on the ground released this video Thursday.
01:25It shows knee-high flames rising from what look like leaves on the ground.
01:31The local weather is not expected to help.
01:34Only small bouts of light rain are expected over the next week.
01:38A dry air advisory will likely remain in place.
01:42For a closer look at the situation, NHK World's Murata Riho is in Otsuchi town.
01:47So, Riho, it's getting really dark, I can see.
01:50What are you seeing at the moment?
01:55I'm standing on the hilltop, overlooking Otsuchi, outside one of the evacuation centers.
02:01I've been reporting here since this morning, and now that it's dark, we can clearly see the fire as it
02:07burns on the other side of the valley.
02:09The wind has died down, but there's still a lot of smoke in the air and a strong burning smell.
02:15We've seen the fire growing noticeably in size since we've got here just an hour ago.
02:21Road closures have also been expanded throughout the day.
02:25There was an urgent announcement around 5 p.m. calling on residents to evacuate immediately
02:31as the fire was approaching residential areas in a zone under an evacuation order.
02:37I talked to a group of Indonesian women earlier who were working in Otsuchi as technical intern trainees.
02:47Monday's earthquake was big, so I was scared.
02:53My family in Indonesia is worried.
02:57It's scary now that wildfires have broken out.
03:08A wildfire expert spoke with reporters here earlier today.
03:12He was visiting the area to conduct a field survey.
03:16He said many of the trees in the region contain high levels of oil.
03:20Combined with a steep terrain, he said that creates conditions that makes it more likely for fires to start and
03:28to spread.
03:29An earthquake hit the same area on Monday, which led to a tsunami warning.
03:34And there is still an advisory in place for another possible earthquake.
03:39The evacuation center on this hilltop is already close to full capacity.
03:45I spoke earlier with one of the residents who came to check on the situation.
03:49She was worried about whether she would be able to evacuate if another tsunami were to occur.
03:56Otsuchi town was also hit hard by the tsunami during the Great East Japan earthquake 15 years ago.
04:03Many people lost their lives, and many buildings in town were destroyed too.
04:07With this wildfire coming right after Monday's tsunami warning, residents here are feeling lots of stress, fatigue, and anxiety.
04:17And based on what we've seen here today, that could still be the case for a while longer.
04:22Riho, thank you very much for all your input, and please do stay safe.
04:26NHK World's Murata Riho in Otsuchi.
04:30Next, a Japanese group representing atomic bomb survivors is headed to New York.
04:35They'll attend a review of the NPT, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
04:41Nihon Hidankyo is sending eight delegates to the forum, which kicks off Monday at United Nations headquarters.
04:47Among the topics to be discussed is the current direction of nuclear disarmament.
04:51The delegation includes Nihon Hidankyo's Secretary General Hamasumi Jiro.
04:57His mother was pregnant with him in Hiroshima when the atomic bomb was dropped.
05:05We hope everyone will keep in mind what happened when the atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki 81
05:12years ago.
05:14We want to stress that nuclear weapons and humans cannot coexist.
05:22The delegation will be in New York for about a week.
05:25Hamasumi is expected to deliver a speech at an NGO session.
05:29The delegates will also hold talks with representatives of several nations, including those with nuclear weapons.
05:36Japan's transport ministry has banned the use of portable chargers on flights departing from and arriving at Japanese airports.
05:45This comes after a series of incidents involving lithium-ion batteries catching fire or emitting smoke on board.
05:53The new rules went into effect Friday.
05:56Recharging smartphones and other devices with portable chargers and charging the batteries at power outlets in the cabin are prohibited.
06:03People who charge their portable chargers on board or bring more than the allowed two chargers could face a prison
06:11sentence of up to two years or fines of up to one million yen, roughly $6,300.
06:18Airlines put up information on portable chargers at their check-in counters.
06:25It's a bit inconvenient, but it can't be helped because there have been so many fires lately.
06:32The International Civil Aviation Organization revised its rules in March to ban in-flight use of portable chargers.
06:42Japan's railways are known for being punctual and safe.
06:45But an accident 21 years ago in the city of Amagasaki shook people's confidence in their safety.
06:52It happened on April 25, 2005, after the morning rush hour.
06:58The train derailed and crashed into a residential complex next to the tracks.
07:03This unprecedented disaster killed 107 people and injured more than 560.
07:10It made headlines across the world.
07:12Reports highlighted the scale of the accident.
07:15They also focused on systemic failures and the train company's culture of harsh discipline for delays.
07:22For more, I spoke earlier with my co-anchor, Kume Ayako, who's been covering the story since the time of
07:27the accident.
07:31Ayako, over the past 21 years, what has stayed with you most?
07:35Raja, the emotional impact and mental scars on the injured people and the families of the dead are far beyond
07:42what we can imagine.
07:43The accident happened on a bright, sunny morning, so sunny weather on the anniversary adds to the emotional pain.
07:51When the accident happened, I was based at the NHK station in the nearby city of Kobe.
07:56I couldn't believe what had happened at first.
07:59The train had seven cars, but we can see all seven of them.
08:03One had crashed into the parking lot of a building, making it hard to locate.
08:08The driver had overshot the previous station and the train was behind schedule.
08:13The driver accelerated to make up for lost time and the train came off the track on a curve.
08:20A technology called an automatic train stop system had not yet been installed on the line.
08:27Many of the people who died or got injured were commuting to schools and workplaces.
08:33Their everyday lives and their futures were lost or changed in a single moment.
08:39Many survivors have had to live with physical and psychological wounds.
08:43And the families of the dead have been devastated by grief, so their lives have also completely changed.
08:50Right after the accident, they could not come to terms with their loss of their loved ones.
08:56And they searched for even the smallest clues about what their final moments were like.
09:03The accident happened when the train was crowded with morning commuters.
09:07The cars were so badly damaged, it was not immediately possible to work out where the people who were killed
09:15had been standing or sitting.
09:18The bereaved families supported one another and continued trying to find out exactly where their loved ones had last been
09:27alive.場所を知るだけで気持ちを寄り添うことで理解してくれてありがとうって思うんじゃないかなって思います。
09:35場所を知るだけで気持ちを寄り添うことで理解してくれてありがとうって思うんじゃないかなって思います。
09:45こういう中に来ると心癒されるっていうか、分かってもらえるっていうか。
10:14場所を知るだけで気持ちを寄り添うことで理解してくれてありがとうって思います。
10:44場所を知るだけで気持ちを寄り添うことで理解してくれてありがとうって思います。
10:50場所において家寺で気持ちが来てこのような変化の理解を寄り添うことで理解できるのは何もありますか?
10:58悲しや悲しかったりが悲しかったり、悲しかったり、悲しかったりが診断されることで悲しかったり。
11:08彼女は暮らしかったりも進化しかったり、悲しかったりもありました。
11:12彼女が死亡することで理解できるだけでありました。
11:13彼女は家寺のエビジェクションに関わりに適用することを理解してくれてるべきができるかもしれないかと思うんです。
11:16Those include installing platform barriers at stations and preventing accidents at level crossings.
11:22But they've still been incidents where trains have gone through level crossings without barriers coming down, and a track switch
11:29has malfunctioned.
11:31The families of the victims are urging train companies to put safety and human lives first.
11:38Right, and of course there have been, you know, also other train accidents in other parts of the world as
11:43well.
11:43Right. This past January, a high-speed train crashed in southern Spain.
11:48At least 45 people were killed and more than 100 were injured.
11:53Also, a train crash in India in 2023 killed more than 200.
11:58So serious train accidents have kept happening over the years.
12:03Looking back on the accident 21 years ago, I feel everyone in Japanese society bears some indirect responsibility beyond the
12:12immediate causes.
12:13We unconsciously expect trains to be totally punctual.
12:17Even after 21 years, the accident is afflicting many people.
12:22Family members of the victims are getting old and may not be able to push for safety improvements as they
12:28used to.
12:28I don't think we should see this accident as unrelated to us as individuals.
12:34We need to keep thinking what we can do to make our society safer.
12:38Ayako, thank you very much for all your insight.
12:51The standoff between the U.S. and Iran continues.
12:54President Donald Trump has reiterated he is not setting a time limit for the next round of talks.
13:00Tehran remains defiant, issuing new threats against U.S. vessels.
13:10The U.S. military is maintaining its blockade of ships to and from Iran's ports.
13:16Trump claimed the action is dealing a serious economic blow to the country.
13:20Tehran, meanwhile, is claiming the Strait of Hormuz is under its control.
13:25Iran's state-run television reported the country's judiciary chief has issued a warning to the U.S.
13:31The chief is quoted as saying the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is waiting with speedboats and unmanned underwater vehicles.
13:39He says they'll destroy U.S. vessels intruding in waters south of Iran.
13:44Trump said he's ordered commanders to attack any boats putting mines in the Strait of Hormuz.
13:50A U.S. media outlet reported on Thursday the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps laid more mines in the waterway this
13:57week.
13:57Both sides appear unwilling to compromise, making it uncertain weather talks will take place.
14:12It's time now for a look at the biz news.
14:14Prices are starting to rise again here in Japan.
14:17And our Yoshikawa Ryuichi has the latest on that.
14:20Ryuichi.
14:20Thank you very much, Raja.
14:22Consumer prices in Japan rose at a faster pace in March as the cost of fuel and some food items
14:28jumped from a year earlier.
14:30Data from the Internal Affairs Ministry show the Consumer Price Index, excluding fresh food, climbed 1.8 percent.
14:39That was up 0.2 percentage points from February's figure, and it's the first acceleration since October.
14:46The main driver was the price of gasoline amid the conflict in the Middle East.
14:53Inflationary pressure remained elevated for non-perishable food.
14:57Prices in the category were up by more than 5 percent in the month.
15:01The cost of coffee beans surged 54 percent, and chocolate was up 24 percent.
15:07Experts warn that the cost of a wider range of items, especially those made from petroleum-based materials, will increase
15:17if oil prices continue to rise.
15:22Japan's petrochemical makers say output of a wide variety of plastic materials fell sharply in March.
15:30And this is due to disruptions of NAFSA shipments from the Middle East.
15:35The companies say they are seeking alternative suppliers.
15:39NAFSA is used to make ethylene, the base material for producing plastics.
15:45The Japan Petrochemical Industry Association says ethylene output fell almost 40 percent from a year earlier.
15:53Production of low-density polyethylene also dropped about 40 percent.
15:58The material is made into packaging film and food wraps.
16:03Polypropylene used in all the parts in the home electric appliances fell nearly 30 percent.
16:09But the association says Japan does not face immediate shortages of the materials as the country has stockpiles.
16:17Member companies in April also started procuring NAFSA from sources outside the Middle East.
16:23And now, Canada's defense industry has long been dependent on U.S. companies.
16:29But Prime Minister Mark Carney has unveiled a new strategy as ties with Washington grow strained over tariff policies and
16:38other issues.
16:39In simple terms, buy a Canadian.
16:42NHK World's David McClure has the story.
16:48In February, Carney's administration announced details of the government's spending targets.
16:54The goal is to turn the domestic defense industry into a growth sector, generating jobs and opportunities.
17:01The plan is known as the Defense Industrial Strategy.
17:04It aims to trigger investments of more than $340 billion U.S. dollars over the next 10 years.
17:12This would boost the domestic share of defense procurement to 70 percent from a reported 30 percent.
17:20Carney has made clear he sees Russia across the Arctic Circle as the biggest military threat.
17:27He visited Norway in March to deepen security cooperation with Nordic countries, which also see Russia as a security challenge.
17:35We are all making significant additional investments in our defense and security to protect our peoples,
17:42given the threats that have gone up immeasurably.
17:45Look, the biggest security threat, physical security threat, in the Arctic is Russia.
17:52Canada's new strategy is already causing a surge in the number of local startups seeking government defense contracts.
17:59This venture firm was founded last year and is developing data and communication sensors.
18:07A prototype set up on a frozen lake is designed for use in the Arctic.
18:12The goal is to set up a network of sensors over vast frozen areas.
18:18Data from the sensors will then be fed into custom AI-enabled software to analyze and detect possible threats from
18:26air, land, or sea.
18:29The company also plans to produce a fleet of reconnaissance drones that would communicate with the Arctic sensor network.
18:36The goal is to become a large defense contractor, known in the industry as a prime.
18:43We are designing this space to be a sort of factory of the future.
18:49The history of Canadian defense is, by and large, they integrate into foreign primes.
18:56The opportunity now is for Canada to have the ambition to build their own global primes.
19:04Rockets are on the drawing board at another startup, which aims to have a fully developed Canadian-built model, launching
19:11in 10 years.
19:13The startup says it has hired engineers who worked in U.S. space development projects, including at SpaceX.
19:19It's a signal, equally importantly, to the private capital markets, that this is a government priority and there is funding
19:29and there is interest.
19:30So in periods of conflict and as the world becomes, you know, unfortunately filled with more conflict, we need the
19:39ability to replace both ours and our allies' assets in space.
19:44And without that, it'll be very difficult to remain a sovereign nation without those key capabilities.
19:54Canada's massive spending plans on domestic defense were spurred by difficult disagreements with long-time ally Washington.
20:01But the end result may attract more talent and technologies to the country and give a significant boost to the
20:09economy.
20:10David McClure, NHK World.
20:13And now to the markets.
20:15Japan's Nikkei 2 to 5 stock index closed at a record high on Friday.
20:19Semiconductor-related shares drove the gains of bullish expectations for the AI industry.
20:25The benchmark rose almost 1% to end the week at 59,716.
20:31This comes after the index set an intraday high the previous day, briefly crossing the 60,000 mark.
20:38And that's the biz for this week.
20:40Thank you very much for that, Ryuichi.
20:42Now let's move to Trati Rakosan at our bureau in Bangkok for stories-making headlines across the Asia-Pacific.
20:48Trati.
20:50Thailand's Prime Minister and China's Foreign Minister have agreed to strengthen their partnership in areas including combating transnational crimes.
21:01Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Thai Prime Minister Anutin Chan-wira-kun in Bangkok on Friday.
21:09Wang is on the second stop of his Southeast Asia tour following a visit to Cambodia.
21:14The Thai government says they agreed to upgrade bilateral ties to a deeper strategic partnership.
21:22It says they reaffirmed their security cooperation, especially the suppression of cross-border crimes and scams.
21:30The government adds they also discussed relations between Thailand and Cambodia.
21:35A ceasefire is in place following a series of border clashes last year.
21:41Wang said the relationship is moving in a positive direction and expressed hope for further progress.
21:48Thailand emphasized the importance of mutual understanding.
21:53Wang is scheduled to wrap up his tour in Myanmar.
21:57Thailand's Supreme Court said it accepted a petition that accuses opposition lawmakers of breaching ethical standards
22:05over a failed bid to change the royal insult law.
22:10The petition was filed by the National Anti-Corruption Commission against 44 current and former lawmakers
22:18of the reformist opposition People's Party and its predecessor, Wolf Ford Party.
22:24The court said on Friday that their proposal to amend the royal defamation law constitutes a serious breach of ethics.
22:32The leader of the People's Party is one of the accused.
22:39We'll fight the case in the Supreme Court to the fullest extent to protect representatives' legitimacy under a democratic system.
22:52The hearing for the 44 individuals is set to start on June 30th.
22:57If found guilty, they could face a lifetime ban from politics.
23:02This is the latest setback for Thailand's progressive opposition movement.
23:07The Move Forward Party took the most seats in the 2023 election,
23:12but was disbanded in 2024 over its campaign pledge to amend the royal defamation law.
23:19And the People's Party lost a significant number of seats in February's general election.
23:27Japan's entity, Dokuma Global, has partnered with a Thai e-commerce operator to develop new businesses in Thailand.
23:37I hope this will be an example of a partnership that leads to many more collaborations between Thailand and Japan
23:43in the future.
23:46They announced their business alliance on Friday.
23:50Through a subsidiary, the Japanese mobile operator had already acquired a 20% stake of Thailand's Ascent Commerce,
23:59which is under the Tsareun-Pokopan Group.
24:02NTT Dokuma Group operates a huge customer loyalty program in Japan
24:07and has strength in digital marketing using customer purchase data.
24:12The Thai group also runs convenience stores and supermarkets.
24:17Through this partnership, it seeks to refine its customer loyalty program and other data-driven services.
24:24The two companies plan to market quality Japanese merchandise,
24:28such as food items and home appliances.
24:32This initiative focuses on the authentic Japanese goods
24:39from Japan to Thai directly through the reliable e-commerce site
24:45that will make pleasure to Thai people to get the right goods at the right price.
24:56And that wraps up our bulletin.
24:58I'm Tha Chirakosan in Bangkok.
25:00Thank you very much for that, Tha.
25:01Next, it's time for a check on the weather with our meteorologist Jonathan O.
25:07Hello.
25:08We have been dealing with some rain back toward the western portions of Japan,
25:12but across the east, maybe some clouds, but not much in terms of rain.
25:16But we're having issues with wildfires because of the dry pattern.
25:20And it looks like that, at least in Tokyo, we're not talking about rain for the weekend.
25:25We will see, however, a low-pressure system that will be developing,
25:29already bringing rain for the western portions of Japan,
25:30eventually moving back up to the north and east.
25:33And as it does so, it's going to introduce some rain.
25:35So we'll go through some wet weather on Sunday in western portions of Japan.
25:39Then we go into Monday, and places like Tokyo will be seeing some of that rain in the forecast.
25:44And so it looks like you're going to have to have the umbrellas nearby,
25:48depending on where you're located.
25:49But again, it looks like we're going to start off relatively dry in terms of the weekends.
25:53Hapura looking high at 15, 20 in Tokyo.
25:55Osaka looking at mid-20s.
25:57Then the rain comes in from the west, and so Osaka and Fukuoka will pick up on the rain,
26:01spraying through the north and east by Monday and Tuesday of next week.
26:07Meanwhile, across North America, we're looking at some strong thunderstorms,
26:11tornadoes being reported along a cold front that's been pushing through the central portion of the United States.
26:15Now, this pattern is expected to bring some more strong severe thunderstorms as we go into Friday and Saturday,
26:22as we see a stationary front and a cold front all attached together from the southern place up into the
26:27Great Lakes.
26:28So that combination could bring the potential for some more strong severe thunderstorms.
26:31And yes, because the system already has a history of producing tornadoes, it could be something you really need to
26:36look out for.
26:37Up toward the north into the Upper Rockies, looking at some snow coming up as we head through Friday and
26:42Saturday.
26:42Showers from Denver down to Oklahoma City with thunderstorms.
26:45Eastern seaboard by Saturday looking awesome rain as well.
26:48Looking at what's happening across Europe, we have some snow into the northern portions of the continent,
26:53high pressure controlling the central portions of Europe,
26:55and that's helping to bring some dry and sunny weather with highs,
26:58topping off in the low 20s here from Paris into around Vienna at 22 as we go through Saturday.
27:04Hope you have a good day wherever you are.
27:35That's all for this edition.
27:36of Newsroom Tokyo.
27:38Make sure you catch our program on our website as well.
27:41I'm Raja Prada, and from all of us at NHK World Japan,
27:44thanks for watching and have a good weekend.
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