welcome "newsline," i'm michio kijima in tokyo. former european central bank vice president lucas panda to be named the new prime minister of greece. the country's presidential office announced on thursday that the ruling and opposition parties have agreed to name papandous to the post. he told reporters that he's honored. he said he's confident that the financial crisis can be solved. the ruling and opposition parties is been negotiating to

form a coalition government since the presidential office announced the incumbent prime minister, george papandreau's intention to resign on monday. the new prime minister and the ministers of the coalition government will be sworn in on friday. the tokyo stock exchange has put olympus on a supervisory watch list. that is what it costs investors about trading company's shares. it is reaction to an announcement by the spokes the object equipment maker embroiled in a scandal involving corporate buy-out concealing massive losses. and the company was placed on the watch list after announcing it will miss the legal deadline next monday to release the latest earnings report. olympus employees have been compiling data on the first half of this fiscal year. the company's spokes people say they have to wait for the outcome of an ongoing third-party investigation before they release the report. olympus' cover up of massive loss s is being scrutinized.

the tokyo stock exchange respse will play out in two stages. as we mentioned, olympus is now on a watch list. if the company fails to release its financial results by december 14th, it will be delisted from the stock exchange. olympus' spokespeople say the company employees will do everything they can to release a report by the final deadline. nhk has learned that olympus ended its contract with the auditors who warned it that several costly acquisitions were problematic. olympus paid a total of $73 billion yen to purchase three companies over three years through 2008. although the annual sales of each firm were less than 2 billion yen. olympus posted a loss of over 55 billion yen, or about $560 million for the business year to march 2009. the money is believed to have been used by olympus to cover a vast investmentes. sources say olympus then auditors told the firm the

acquisitions were improper in light of their low value. olympus fired the auditors soon after. the securities and exchange commission plans to investigate the company's cover-up of losses. a nuclear facility in the u.s. state of idaho says damage to a decades-old sealed container led to a plutonium leak that exposed workers for radiation. the idaho national laboratory says seven workers, one more than initially announced, were exposed to low-level radiation on tuesday while handling stored plutonium fuel. three workers were undergoing additional checks after examinations pointed to possible internal exposure. the research lab said workers discovered powder leaking from a small opening in the stainless steel case containing the plutonium when they opened an aluminum box housing the case. the lab says the fuel had been stor there for 30 years. lab officials believe the damage to the case caused the plutonium

to oxidize and turn into powder form. the facility is looking into how the steel container came to be damaged. it says it has confirmed that no radiation has leaked outside the facility and that the incident poses no risk to the environment. southwestern japan held a drill to prepare for the possible leakage of radioactive material from a submarine docked in the city. the drill was baseden a scenario that radioactive materials were leaking from a u.s. nuclearsuar higher-than-usual radiation was being detected in the surrounding areas. about 500 people including local residents took part in the drill. police officers and emergency service workers bussed residents from around the u.s. base to an emergency shelter and checked their clothing for contamination.

the city moved to an emergency shelter to a community center. 700 meters further away. but the city conducted the exercise used in the manual drawn up by the central government before the fukushima accident. >> translator: i'm worried about the nuclear submarines leaking radioactivity in our city. >> translator: i have been concerned about radiation since the accident at fukushima. the operate of of the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant says the explosion in the facility's number four reactor on march 15 was caused by a back flow of hydrogen from an adjacent building. tepco workers who entered the building on tuesday to determine the cause of a blast found that the fifth floor was more severely damaged than the fourth. where a pool of spent fuel is located and that the fuel was intact. the workers also confirmed that an air conditioning duct on the floor had been severely damaged.

tepco says the hydrogen probably flowed into the reactor through a duct connected to the plant's number three reactor when workers released pressurized air from it to prevent hydrogen explosion. the firm says the blast very likely occurred after the density of hydrogen in the duct increased. a hydrogen explosion took place at the number three building one day before the explosion at the number four building. the waters off fukushima are calm these days. fishing boats remain in port. the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant released contaminated water into the sea on several occasions after the disaster there. some fish contain radioactive substances and exceed japan's legal limit. government researchers found the substances in small fish sucas

fish, the flat fish, the rock trout, are contaminated too. in tonight's "nuclear watch," we'll look into how radioactive contamination is harming the sea. marine physicist, yukio matsumoto, runs simulations on how radiation spreads through the oceans. winds and water temperatures affect howesm 137 from the ant trel thsubstance flow fm the plant for several wes ter the cident. the red ea shows hh leve of cesm remaed neath coast. en aft one month warm a cold rrents converg in waters off the plant and trapd the cesi nr the shore. contamat wer lingers alo the cot. thremonths latthe si dispersed wwh the r ar turns yellow d en blue. >> translator: the radioactive substance may have a long-time effect across a wide area.

>> professor takashi ishimoto of tokyo university of mari science and technology, studies marine biology. he has looked at fish off fukushima. they eat sand and starfish that are contaminated by radioactive substances. he conducted his first survey four months ago and found low levels of cesium in serpent starfish and in sand worms. larger fish eat those creatures. he said the concentration of radioactive substances rises ten fold inside the fish and exceeds the legal limit of 500 becquerels per kilogram. >> translator: sand worms and serpent starfish eat organic matter in the mud. through the creatures, radioactive substances are passed on to bigger fish. it takes a long time for that to happen. high levels of cesm are still found in the fish. >> reporter:heoncentration

of radioactiveubstans in serpenstarfish last month was only one-tenth of what it was in the first survey. radio activity in sandworms decreased only 40%. fish feed on sandworms so the contamination is likely to affect marine life for some time to come. >> our reporter spent three days at the research ship and joins us now with more on what he found in that coverage. our conversation will be in japanese. we will provide simultaneous interpretation. >> translator: we have lived learned that the contamination of organisms in the sea off fukushima is serious, the international atomic energy in cooperation with member nations has begun an investigation in the pacific ocean and east china sea. how far do you think the contamination will spread? >> fishery cooperatives in fukushima prefecture decided to postpone test operations it

had planned for this month. on the other hand, the concentration of radioactive materials included in the seawater extracted right near the nuclear power plant had been very high immediately after the accident. but as the time passed, the materials apparently dissipated offshore and it is no longer detectible. a simulation carried out by a japanese research institution showed that the seawater contaminated with radioactive substances that spread offshore will reach the international dateline 4,000 kilometers next east of the fukushima plant, by april of next year. at this point, radioactive concentration of the seawater is estimated to be diluted to 3000th parts. that japan allows to be discharged from power plants. scientist i say contaminated waters will then move to the sea, scientists say, three years later and to the west coast of the united states five years later. they say seven years later, the

radioactive contamination will be diluted to a level that is indistinguishable from ordinary seawater. but dr. masimoto and professor ishimaru say it is unlikely that fish with a diation level over the japanese permissible level will be caught beyond several hured kilometers above fukushima. >> what is needed to be done to respond to the concerns in and out of the nation? >> to learn until when the impact on fish will continue in the coast of fukushima, we need to regularly measure the radiation level of soils on the seabed and organisms fish eat and check the changes. the government needs to conduct a thorough investigation in order to respond to people's concern over safety of fish and when fishing operations can be resumed, as well as to be accountable to the international community.

>> that was nhk world reporting for us tonight. "newsline" is the place to turn to for the latest on japan post march 11th. we have two segments offering two unique perspectives on the fallout from the earthquake and tsunami. "nuclear watch" brings you insight and information on the impact of the fukushima daiichi crisis. "the road ahead" examines japan's efforts to recover and rebuild. don't miss "nuclear watch" and "the road ahead" on "newsline." >> the country has a new leader. next we go to pachari raksawong in bangkok to find out what's going on in the region. >> india and pakistan have agreed to accelerate efforts to improve relations. indian prime minister, manmohan singh, met pakistani prime minister yusuf raza gilani on thursday. they exchanged views on the territorial issue of kashmir, as

well as how to expand trade. nhk world's sukiyaya reports. >>n a joint news conference, both sides expressed strong willingness to improve bilateral ties. >> we have wasted a lot of time in the past in acrimonious debates. the time has come to write a new chapter in this relationship. >> i think the next round of the talks would be more constructive, more positive and it will open a new chapter in the history of both countries. >> reporter: the issue of control of kashmir has clouded relations between india and pakistan for dede ewo sesesedaud aluen ly thgrdoimifis

ocur. isnthe pisni cabinet decided to provide india with most favored nation status. india has a target for islamic terrorists, it says who are based out of pakistan. it apparently hopes dialogue and economic cooperation will reduce that threat. it also expects that the stable relations will attract more foreign investment. fumio, sugaya, the maldives. here in thailand, the flood crisis has been going on for weeks. and in some areas, months. the waters have created health problems, too. the government has responded by dispatching mobile medical services to help people in need. nhk world's nopparat reports. >> reporter: i'm standing on an

elevated expressway some 30 meters above the ground and here is the location of one of the mobile medical centers for flood victims. some 25 kilometers north of central bangkok, a special center has been set up above a heavily-flooded area. around 200 people seek treatment here every day. mobile medical units have helped at least 16,000 people from flooded districts of bangkok since the end of october. >> translator: i have high blood pressure. it's good to have the mobile medical service here. they really ease our problems. >> reporter: the medical team also makes its way by boat to treat people stranded by the floods. living conditions have been made even worse by the deteriorating

sanitation. waste and garbage float around uncollected. doctors say it's a health risk that threatens to spread bacterial infections and water-borne diseases. >> reporter: about 400 people live in this community. old three kilometers from the expressway, the people here have been almost cut off from the rest of the city. many of them sought refuge on the bridge about a month ago, after their houses were submerged. >> translator: because of the flood i ran out of medicine. i felt weak and lost my appetite. i also couldn't sleep at night.

>> translator: we've seen the water recede a bit. but it remains too high to allow people to resume normal life. that's why people here are still in need of outside help. >> but the water level is unlikely to recede much any time soon. worries remain about the spread of health problems as the crisis drags on. nhk world, bangkok. thailand is not the only country in the region hit by this sort of crisis. vietnam is also in the middle of devastating floods. the death toll has reached 100 since august. mainly in central and southern regions of vietnam. a government official quoted by the a.p. news agency says 25,000 people have been forced from their homes in the central

province of quan nom alone. the historic town of hoian has been inundated. but none of its world heritage landmarks are apparently in danger of serious damage. and that's wraps up today's bulletin. i'm pachari raksawong reporting from bangkok. here's a brief look at other stories from around the world. the international energy agency says a global trend towards scrapping nuclear power in the wake of the fukushima accident will cause a rise in energy costs. the iaea says in its annual report that under such a trend, demand for natural gas and coal will rise dramatically, causing higher prices while the use of renewable energy sources, such as wind power will increase. it says that as a result, energy importing countries will face a combined increase in energy costs of $90 billion in 2035.

it's back to class in bangkok for students at the japanese school, where extra lessons have begun for kids who have missed out because of the floods. on thursday, about 260 children returned to the school, which had been closed for three weeks. about 80% of the 2,500 students have temporarily returned to japan. the school does not know when it can resume regular lessons, as a large amount of floodwater has accumulated about five kilometers from the city center. south korean and japanese civic groups held an event in seoul on thursday commemorating the life of a japanese man who helped revive japan's forests during japan's colonial era. asakawa went to korea in 1914 as a forestry engineer. he helped plant trees and studied korean ceramics and promoted cultural exchange until he died in 1931.

a south korean representative praised the forester's efforts. a cenotaph was built in the 1960s, despite anti-japanese sentiment among south koreans. winter is just around the corner here in japan and here's a loo at how the an intelligent capital, kyoto, prepares for the asrade it looks thin but the taste becomes thicker and richer as the temperature drops. these are turnip pickles. the vegetables are salted in wooden barrels for a few days before they are ready. making pickles hits its peak next month. >ojp

wer. hi and welcome back. let's talk about weather now. starting off with asia, we're going to be looking at high pressure system dominating much of china, we're going to be seeinghi system going to be moving just across the pacific coast of japan. wreoi to be looking at showers in much of the country, toi regions are going to be targeted with very heavy rain in towards the weeken however, this system will be moving rapidly away from t country. starting friday overnight. so it looks like tokyo throughout the day on friday, we're going to be looking at ecipitation for the whole day perhaps. but starting friday evening, that lks let' going to be tapering off and so we might have a dry a calm weather for us in our weekend. korean peninsula will be lki athowers that will be tapering off in towards the weekend as

well. heresnsherfo mongolia in towards northeastern china and the temperatures are going to beroin dramatically. we'll take a look at those temperatures later on. here in taan the ongoing showers here in the southeastern coast of china isesndg wnowdshear, s tpe llearteit vy hvy ra ihe ntouf ys teeruris ip,e' okg , awe a hg ng anbar,inor o hh fray weeoong ain8or elo sunday. so that temperature really going to be dropping in towards the weekend. tokyo, we're 13 degrees. here in north america, let's first talk about this storm. you can see that eye over there. it's well offshore of southeastern coast of the united states, but we still have high surf rip currents due to this wind, packing up to about 100 kph, moving in a north-northeast direction at a speed of 13

kilometers per hour, so the pace has picked up. it looks like it's going to become a hurricane friday overnight local time. d loio hintric srm wain ait psees o beud nonl i iec udt' gng t beurgingotf isre tordthnohet. wen seehoseova scia culatemiimer wee winter storm passing in towards eastern canada. and ttillesnowshower but up towards centr ahe weng very d and clear. calm weather for us here. bris ies woio looking at pacific systems moving in we mayeee ows heavy at times. and mountain snow ter t ro cau bwi sn vaour, 12 degrees, winnipeg, we'rengtenrt 1 grs,ouon19anne yo a 1grs.

rero, wre gngo lkit oanof swe heie rnillhern portal an the are chaesf weakening in towards the weekend. we're going to be looking at van, this is where another earthquake hit in turkey. the three-day forecast looks like this, friday, saturday, forecast is snow. and sunday, there are going to yr teny

the top story at this hour, former european central bank vice president lucas papandous is to be named the new prime minister of greece. the country's presidential office announced on thursday that the ruling and opposition parties have agreed to name him to the post. papandous told reporters that he's honored and said he's confident that the financial crisis can be solved. the ruling and opposition parties is been negotiating to form a coalition government since incumbent prime minister, george papandreau announced his

intention to resign on monday. the new prime minister and the ministers of the coalition government will be sworn in on friday. nhk has learned that olympus ended its contract with the auditors who warned it that the several costly acquisitions were problematic. olympus paid a total of 73 billion yen to purchase three companies over three years through 2008. although the annual sales of each firm were less than two billion yen. olympus then posted a loss of over 55 billion yen, or about $560 million for the business year to march 2009. the money is believed to have been used by olympus to cover vast invesent losses. sources say ompus auol theirm the acquisitions were improper in light of their low value. olympus fired the auditors soon afterwards. the securities and exchange commission surveillance commission plans to investigate the company's cover-up of its losses. and that's our broadcast for this hour on "newsline," we'll

be back with more news in half an hour. i'm michio kijima in tokyo. thank you for watching. bye-bye.