victory in new hampshire. >> tonight we made history. >> mitt romney takes another step toward the republican nomination. six main candidates are running to lead the u.s. republican party. one of them is looking more and more likely to go up against barack obama in this november presidential election. former massachusetts governor mitt romney walked away the

winner of the latest contest, the new hampshire primary. nhk world has details. >> tonight we're -- >> reporter: romney won 39% of the vote on tuesday. conservative congressman ron paul took 23%. he ran on the platform of a small government. the moderate jon huntsman focuses campaign on new hampshire. he finished third in 17%. former senator rick santorum had a strong showing in the iowa caucus last week. in new hampshire, he tied for fourth with former house of representative speaker newt gingrich. both candidates won 9%. romney is the first candidate to win in iowa and new hampshire in 30 years of republican party races. he told his supporters they had made history. romney ran for the republican party nomination four years ago,

but after failing to win in either iowa or new hampshire, he was forced to withdraw from the race. the next primary he will be in conservative south carolina on saturday next week. nhk world, new hampshire. people in taiwan are heading to the polls this weekend. the island is holding the presidential election. the result could affect relations with china and regional security. for the next three days here on "newsline" we'll tell you more about the main candidates and the issues at play. nhk world's raja pradhan reports from taipei. >> as election day is approaching here many rallies are being held throughout the city and it seems to be a fierce battle between the current president and his rival from the largest opposition. the the candidates vying for the presidency are incumbent president ma ying-jeou, tsai ing-wen and james soong of the

people first party. according to public opinion surveys conducted by taiwanese media outlets, it's a close race between ma and tsai. and the see point of contention here is how close taiwan should be to china. i explored people's view on this issue. ma is to appear any minute and the entire crowd of nationalist party of supporters are waiting to hear his voice. president ma says that better relations with china under his administration have led to economic growth. >> translator: the people of taiwan need a government that can bring stability to the island, the economy, politics, and ties with china. if you want such stability, vote

for ma ing-jeou. >> reporter: half of the visitors to taipei 101, a popular tourist spot in taipei are from mainland china. under ma, the government has allowed more chinese tourists into taiwan. there were 1.6 million such tourists in 2010. >> i think the open policy if they continue to have this policy and then have direct flights, i think they will have more and more chinese tourists here. >> reporter: stronger economic ties have helped taiwanese businesses expand their operations in china. such opportunities have boosted the population of taiwanese living in china to more than 1 million. one such person is juan. he went to china 20 years ago and runs a factory that produces belt buckles. juan thinks that if president ma

is re-elected, businesses such as his will continue to receive favorable treatment from the government. he has organized the meeting of 300,000 employees of taiwanese companies. >> translator: china is taiwan's greatest partner right now. let's elect ma. >> reporter: tsai is vying to become taiwan's first female president. tsai claims that only a limited few have benefitted from economic growth created by closer ties with china, leaving many people dissatisfied. >> translator: our incomes have dropped while the wealth gap has widened. society's resources are not being distributed fairly. >> reporter: in taiwan, unemployment among young people is high, exceeding 10% for individuals aged 20 to 24.

cheng is a 24-year-old graduate from national taiwan university, a top school. although there are jobs available in his industry of choice, he felt the salaries were too low. he's now working a part-time job with irregular hours. >> i don't expect much of ma government anymore. so we should have another party to run the government. whoever the party is, but we should change who runs the government. >> now i'd like to bring our taipei bureau chief into the conversation. so, president ma and tsai have very different positions in china, don't they? >> that's right. in 2010 their economy grew by 10.7%. president ma claims that this is a result of his policies regarding china. however, these trends have not been so favorable for the

president. europe's credit crisis which has slowed the global economy is beginning to impact taiwan. he claims that many people do not feel the benefits of the deepening ties with china, and that a change in government is necessary. >> and how does the chinese government view this election? >> they are saying publicly that it will not interfere in the election. the chinese government is keeping a close eye on it. beijing is believed to favor ma re-election as he has worked to toward improve the relations with the mainland. if ma wins re-election, taiwan's relationship with china is expected to deepen further. by contrast, tsai and taiwan's business community that if tsai wins, china may take a second look at its expanded relationship with taiwan. this could adversely affect

taiwan's economy. this election year is in the spotlight because outcome may change relations between china and taiwan. if this happens, it will have an impact on the economy and security issues in the east asia region. >> thank you for your analysis. that was our taipei bureau chief naoki makita. an ominous pattern and they say foreign agents are to blame. the government says a car bomb wednesday killed another of the country's nuclear scientists. nhk world reports from the capital tehran. >> reporter: this area in central tehran was the site of a huge explosion today. e iranian security authorities say a moving car suddenly blew up. a professor and another man died. a third person was hurt.

investigators say a motorcyclist placed a bomb on the vehicle. >> translator: after a huge blast, i saw black smoke coming from a car and a man was lying on the street bleeding. >> reporter: the dead professor wasn't just a university lecturer, he was also a nuclear scientist. he worked at iran's uranium enrichment facility. investigators blame israeli intelligence agents for the attack. this isn't the first time iranian nuclear scientists have been targeted. a car bomb killed a university professor and nuclear expert in november 2010. at that time, the iranian government blamed agents from countries opposed to its nuclear program. the united states and israel denied the allegations.

nhk world, tehran. south korean police have arrested a chinese man on suspicion of throwing petrol bombs at the japanese embassy in seoul. two bombs landed in the compound on sunday, but nobody was hurt. the man was taken into custody on the spot. he told police that he held a grudge against japan because his grandmother was forced to provide sex for japanese soldiers during world war ii. police say he also claimed responsibility for an arson atta a shrine in tokyo last month. the fire charred part of the gate at the shrine. the landmark honors the war dead, including leaders who were convicted of war crimes. the man reportedly told police that he did not return to china because he was afraid of being arrested. he went instead to south korea, accompanied by a japanese woman. police plan to question him further about his motive and investigate whether the japanese woman was involved in the attacks. six giant pandas became the

first residents of a new nature reserve in china on wednesday. the new facility has been built to help captive bred pandas adjust to the wild. 200 government officials and researchers attended a ceremony to mark the opening of a nature reserve in sichuan province, southwestern china. the six pandas, aged 2 to 4, were raised at a breeding center. they moved to a fenced in forest on the facility's 1.3 square kilometers of land. they've given a small hut where they can sleep and eat. the pandas will undergo up to five years of training. they will learn how to find food and look for nesting areas. the giant panda is an endangered species. only about 1,600 are set to remain in the wild. next, we go to patchari raksawong in bangkok to find out

what is going on in the region. we start in pakistan where the tense relationship with the united states looks at risk once again. the government in islamabad says the u.s. resumed its controversial drone strikes on pakistani soil for the first time in almost two months. nhk world reports on the potential fallout. >> reporter: anti-u.s. demonstrations in pakistan. seems like this has become increasingly common over recent months. these people are demanding an end to u.s. drone attacks on pakistani soil. u.s. government agencies, including the cia, have repeatedly used unmanned drone aircraft to target suspected terrorists and islamic extremists. but pakistanis say those operations have also caused many civilian deaths.

some people in pakistan became even angrier when jets off afghanistan attacked border positions in northwest pakistan, killing 24 soldiers. drone operations were suspended in an apparent effort by the obama administration to stop ties with islamabad from worsening further. but on wednesday, pakistani government officials told nhk that the united states carried out its first drone attack in about two months. it took place in northwest pakistan. at least three people were killed. resuming drone attacks threatens the rekindled anti-u.s. sentiment in pakistan. it may also delay pakistani's reopening of separate routes for international forces in afghanistan, which have been closed since the border incident

in november. hideki yui, nhk world. and turning to india now, even after two decades of rapid economic growth, the country still suffers widespread poverty with all its associated problems. one of those is malnutrition and prime minister manhoman singh has gone so far as to call the problem shameful. singh said on tuesday that the third biggest economy had failed to provide its children with enough to eat. >> the problem of malnutrition is a matter of national shame. despite impressive growth in our gdp, the level of undernutrition in the country is unacceptably high. >> the prime minister was speaking at the launch of the

2011 hunger and malnutrition survey. the report says 42% of indian children age 5 or younger are underweight and that's almost double the rate in sub-saharan africa. the survey compiled by an indian charity also suggests that malnutrition is a factor in as many as half of all child deaths in india. unicef said that one in every three malnourished children in the world lives in india. the government is planning to put its national food security bill into full effect within two years. the law will provide subsidized grain to 75% of people in rural areas who are deemed too poor to eat properly. and that's going to wrap up our bulletin. i'm patchari raksawong in bangkok.

smartphones are used everywhere in japan these days. now they're being given a traditional japanese flavor, thanks to a master craftsman. nhk world yoshihiro tuchia has more. >> reporter: a smartphone case that is elegant and traditional. with layers of lacquer applied carefully by hand, it is sturdy, but soft to the touch. the kawatsura area is famous for its traditional lacquer ware. the smartphone cases is the work of yuko kato. he's become a lacquer ware craftsman for 40 years. lacquer ware is known for its glossiness from the many coats

of lacquer. kato's work caught the eye of a businessman in tokyo who asked him to make a smartphone case. >> translator: young people rarely come into contact with lacquer ware. i think that making lacquer-coated cases for smartphones is a good way to introduce them to our tradition. >> reporter: plastic is never used as a base for traditional lacquer ware, so the cases need special preparation with an adhesive primer to get the lacquer to stick. the primer surface can crack easily with even small changes in temperature and humidity, or in the formula for the primer. >> translator: it's been a laborious task finding the perfect primer.

i've had to learn by trial and error. >> reporter: it is time to apply the lacquer. to remove all impurities, it first has to be strained carefully. smartphone cases have holes for the camera lens and other functions. this poses a challenge for the traditional lacquer ware. kato uses brushes to coat the small holes. after waiting for the cases to dry for a week, it is time for the next step. traditional lacquer ware is made by a number of crafts men. each with different skills. the top surface is finished in

black lacquer by one artisan. another adds the decoration, in th . in all, it takes the most work to complete a single item. it is a true work of craftsmansh craftsmanship. >> translator: the more you use lacquer ware, the deeper it gleans, so it is fine to use it on a daily basis. i'm keen for young people to try using these, so they can get to know the feel of real lacquer. >> reporter: by making items that fit modern lifestyles, kato hopes more people will start using traditional lacquer ware. yoshihiro tsuchiya, nhk world.

kato is currently working on lacquer-coated usb memory sticks and is planning to add other items to his product line. ross mihara is up next with sumo. entering the fourth day of the new year's grand sumo tournament. all the ozeki had won on back-to-back days for first time since 2009. could they continue their victory streak? in fact, kotoshogiku began the day as the only ozeki who wasn't undefeated facing aminishki. he puts the ozeki on his heels immediately. aminishki almost 20 kilometers lighter but that doesn't matter at all. he maintains the pressure and is rewarded with a force-out. kotoshogiku has two wins and two

losses now. the newest ozeki kisenosato has been great since being promoted to the second highest rank. and he's beaten his opponent toyomoshima the last five times they met. he shows fantastic agility in this bout. he does a complete 360 at one point and gets his engine going and creates forward momentum. he completes the upset using a pushout. kisenosato losing for the first time as an ozeki. there was a really scary moment with ozeki baruto and wakakuyo. not the match itself. he unleashes an intense pushing attack, which sends wakakuyo sprawling. the referee gets caught in the

middle of the action. he lands hard on the ground. the 61-year-old would lay there for several minutes. the fans, the attendants are all worried he might be seriously injured. he briefly passed out but the good news is he regained consciousness and was moving his arms. he was then carried out on a stretcher. that referee was taken in an ambulance and is resting at a hospital. we hope he recovers quickly. meantime, hakuho stayed perfect so there are now six men undefeated at 4-0. >> mai shoji is up next with weather. >> hi, welcome back. let's take a look at australia. we have been monitoring this system, tropical cyclone heidi. heidi looked like it is going to be making landfall anytime soon. i should say wednesday overnight. just around port headland in

western australia. now it is moving in a southerly direction at the speed of ten kilometers per hour so the speed has gone down a little bit but the wind gusts are reaching up to 140 kilometers per hour. coastal high waves, these will be a high concern as well as flooding generated from this staggering amount of rainfall accumulation in just the next 24 hours, we might see 120 millimeters or even more just around this coast in and around near port headland. this system, as it makes landfall, looks like it will be gradually weakening in towards the end of the weekend to become a low pressure system, but we will definitely keep you monitored with this tropical cyclone. heading back to the bigger picture in southeastern asia, monsoonal flows still affects much of the philippines and vietnam and the peninsula. the ongoing short-term heavy rain could trigger flash flooding, landslides and further mud slides.

now, let's take a look at 24-hour precipitation just around western coast of japan. we have already seen lots of snow just below hokkaido. we're talking about more than three meters high for the current snowfall accumulation. and just in the past 24 hours in aomori, we have seen 52 centimeters to be piling up. and in the next 12 hours, additional snowfall of 50 centimeters could be seen. so lots and lots more snow to be piling up, just around the sea of japan coast and the winds are very strong too. so that could generate blowing snow, which is very dangerous for your driving conditions. now, it looks like this wintry pattern will be tapering off, but light snow and some heavy snow could be possible in northern japan in towards the end of the week and in towards the weekend as well. but the pacific side will be remaining devoid from any kind of precipitation, but very cold

surge will be affecting tokyo especially. thursday high just at 6 degrees. we're talking about just that freezing point for the low in tokyo, chilly day for us. in seoul, we're looking at 1 degree, even chillier, bitter cold here up in ulan batur at minus 18 degrees. staying in the low 30s in bangkok and the tropics. let's head over to europe. we have got a potent system. it will be an intense storm system as a couple of low pressure system that will be merging. and going to be bringing lots of heavier snow, especially in western norway. and that could be piling up, widespread snow showers we're talking about in the northeast. we have a snaking jet stream, so keeping very dry in the west, but wet in the northeast. that's going to be the pattern for the end of the whole week, actually. an incoming high pressure system will be dominating much of the british isles in towards the end

of the week. you'll be seeing some sunny spells. london not too bad at 12 degrees. and lisbon at 15. we're talking about minus -- excuse me, 0, just the freezing point at moscow. here is your extended forecast.

the doomsday clock has ticked one minute closer to global catastrophe. it now stands at five minutes to midnight. the u.s. scientific magazine making the gloomy forecast says world leaders are not doing enough to promote nuclear disarmament. the clock is a symbolic barometer showing how close mankind is to self-annihilation. the magazine bulleting the atomic scientists announced the decision on tuesday. it said the road map to a nuclear free world remains unclear because leaders of the u.s., china, north korea, and others have failed to achieve a significant progress. the magazine referred to a disaster at the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant in japan. it says the accident even shows peaceful use of nuclear power can become a threat to humans and raises safety questions about complex technology. that's our broadcast for this hour on "newsline." we will be back with more news in half an hour.

i'm michio kijima in tokyo. thanks for watching. bye-bye.