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World Meteorological Organization Secretary General Celeste Saulo speaks during a press conference on the opening day of COP29 U.N. climate talks in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Nov. 11, 2024. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Seven & i mulls management buyout to fend off Canadian takeover bid
TOKYO – Japanese retail giant Seven & i Holdings Co. said Wednesday it is considering a management buyout proposed by a member of the company’s founding family, in a move that could thwart a takeover bid by a Canadian convenience store giant.
The suggestion that will take the Japanese operator of the Seven-Eleven convenience store chain private is a fresh development in the takeover battle with Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., whose latest offer has been estimated to be worth around 7 trillion yen ($45 billion).
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Central Japan nuclear unit fails post-Fukushima safety check
TOKYO – Japan’s nuclear watchdog formally decided Wednesday that a reactor in central Japan has failed to pass a safety review needed for its restart, in the first such case since the regulatory body’s founding after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear crisis.
The Nuclear Regulation Authority said it confirmed its decision made in August not to approve the safety of the No. 2 reactor at the Tsuruga plant, operated by Japan Atomic Power Co., due to the possibility that an active fault runs underneath the offline unit. The NRA had also solicited public comments.
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50,000 Russian, N. Korean troops in Kursk fighting against Ukraine
KYIV – About 50,000 Russian and North Korean troops deployed in Russia’s Kursk region are fighting against Ukrainian forces, a senior government official told Kyodo News on Tuesday.
The Ukrainian official said fierce fighting has broken out and North Korean soldiers have been killed in some areas, as the United States officially acknowledged for the first time on Tuesday that Pyongyang had sent troops to support Russia’s war.
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Japan PM receives 2nd medical checkup in 5 days amid health concern
TOKYO – Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba received a medical checkup on Wednesday for the second time in five days, amid concerns after he appeared to fall asleep during a parliamentary session earlier this week.
The top government spokesman, however, dismissed fears that the 67-year-old lawmaker, whose Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner lost their majority in the Oct. 27 general election, has been unwell, saying there is “no health issue.”
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Japan approves 2nd protein-targeting drug for Alzheimer’s sufferers
TOKYO – A single course of newly approved Alzheimer’s drug donanemab-azbt, the second medicine available in Japan targeting proteins in the brains of sufferers of the debilitating disease, will cost 3.08 million yen ($19,800) per year, a Japanese health ministry body said Wednesday.
The drug developed by U.S. pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Co. will be offered to patients experiencing dementia and mild cognitive impairment. The cost of the drug, to be sold under the brand name Kisunla, will largely be covered by public health insurance from Nov. 20.
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Sporting bodies in Japan moving to block voyeurism targeting athletes
TOKYO – Over half of Japan’s sporting bodies have taken measures against nonconsensual capturing and sharing of sexualized images of athletes, a Japan Sports Agency survey has revealed.
Wednesday marked four years since the Japanese Olympic Committee and seven other sporting organizations released a joint statement on the matter. Of 126 organizations surveyed between April and June, 62 of the 113 that replied said they were implementing countermeasures.
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Japan keeps tabs on Trump gov’t picks, as Fox host, Musk tapped
TOKYO – Japan is keeping a close watch on U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s picks for key government posts, its top government spokesman said Wednesday after Fox News Channel host Pete Hegseth was chosen as secretary of defense and Tesla Inc. chief Elon Musk as a high-ranking official tasked with cost-cutting.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said Japan wants to build “trust and cooperation” with the next administration as the United States is Japan’s longtime ally.
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Toyota plant fire forces workers to evacuate, production unaffected
NAGOYA – A fire broke out at a Toyota Motor Corp. plant near its headquarters in central Japan on Wednesday, burning a vehicle and forcing workers to evacuate before it was extinguished nearly four hours later, the company and other sources said.
The fire, which started at a facility where car performance tests are conducted, did not spread to surrounding equipment on the premises in the city of Toyota, Aichi Prefecture. No injuries were reported and production was unaffected, the automaker said.
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