Kyodo News Digest: May 20, 2022

The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.

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Biden heads to Asia to showcase key alliances amid China’s rise

WASHINGTON – U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday embarked on his first trip to Asia since taking office to deepen security and economic ties with Japan and South Korea, while committing to a “free and open Indo-Pacific” amid China’s growing assertiveness and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

One of the highlights of the five-day visit will be the launch of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, which the Biden administration has proposed as a key vehicle for U.S. engagement in a region expected to drive global growth for years to come.

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Japan inflation jumps 2.1%, above BOJ target for 1st time since 2015

TOKYO – Core consumer prices in Japan leapt 2.1 percent in April from a year earlier, government data showed Friday, above the Bank of Japan’s long elusive inflation target for the first time since 2015.

The nationwide core consumer price index, excluding volatile fresh food items, rose for the eight straight month as inflationary pressures persisted in the resource-poor nation due to surging fuel costs and a weak yen that inflates import costs for energy and other raw materials.

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U.S. vows firm response to any North Korea threat during Biden Asia trip

WASHINGTON – The United States will “decisively” respond to any threats from North Korea that may occur during President Joe Biden’s trip to Asia, a White House official said Thursday amid speculation that Pyongyang could carry out a missile or nuclear test while the U.S. leader is visiting South Korea and Japan.

“Our cooperation with these two countries bilaterally and the U.S.-Japan-ROK cooperation trilaterally will only strengthen in the face of any further provocations by North Korea,” National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One, using the acronym for the Republic of Korea, South Korea’s official name.

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G-7 agrees to provide Ukraine with additional financial help

BONN, Germany – Finance chiefs from the Group of Seven major developed countries on Thursday agreed to provide Ukraine with further financial support as Russia’s invasion of the Eastern European country continues, a Japanese official said.

The agreement was reached during the first day of their meeting in Koenigswinter, near the German city of Bonn. The group’s finance ministers and central bankers are still discussing the amount of financial help to be offered, the official said.

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Japan PM Kishida to tell Biden Japan planning G-7 summit in Hiroshima

TOKYO – Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will likely sound out U.S. President Joe Biden during his visit to Japan about holding a Group of Seven nations summit in Hiroshima next year, Japanese government sources said Thursday.

At the summit, Kishida, elected from the city that suffered a 1945 U.S. atomic bombing, wants to make a case for a world free of nuclear weapons as the world faces Russia’s nuclear threats following its invasion of Ukraine, the sources said.

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IAEA chief says transparency key to Fukushima water release

FUKUSHIMA, Japan – International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi vowed Thursday to use his agency’s transparent and fact-based review process to enhance public confidence in Japan’s planned release of treated water into the sea from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Grossi inspected tanks storing treated water and an advanced liquid processing system that removes most radioactive materials from contaminated water except for tritium, during his first visit to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, damaged by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, since February 2020.

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Masks outside not always needed when not chatting: Japan gov’t panel

TOKYO – Wearing masks when outdoors is not always necessary even if sufficient social distancing cannot be maintained, with the caveat that people are not conversing, a Japanese government panel of experts on COVID-19 measures said Thursday.

Based on the panel’s view, the government of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will announce its policy Friday, an official said.

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Japan looks to 20 tril. yen in aid to spur green investment: PM Kishida

TOKYO – The Japanese government will consider financial aid of 20 trillion yen ($156 billion) to promote investment in the green energy sector to meet its goal of carbon neutrality by 2050, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Thursday.

The government will look into the possible issuance of so-called transition bonds, which are typically used to fund environment-related projects, and will set up a new panel under the Cabinet Office in summer to deepen discussions over how to realize a decarbonized society, Kishida said at a meeting with energy policy experts.