hello, and welcome to nhk "newsline." afghan president hamid karzai has called on nato troops to leave afghan villages and hand over security authority for the country one year ahead of schedule. karzai met with leon panetta in kabul on thursday. they discussed sunday's shooting

spree when a u.s. soldier murdered 16 afghan civilians. karzai told panetta that afghan forces have the ability to maintain security on their own in rural areas. he said international forces have lost the trust of afghan people, and they must pull out of the rural areas. karzai requested international forces stay in urban areas and focus on helping reconstruction efforts. panetta reiterated his regret over the shooting incident and agreed to the earlier transfer of security authority. in response the taliban has decided to us is spend peace talks with the u.s. the taliban said in a statement that the u.s. had introduced unacceptable demands contradicting an earlier agreement. the statement said the peace talks will remain on hold until

the u.s. makes its position clear and shows a willingness to fu fulfill its promises. it did not provide further details of the talks. the taliban demanded the release of five of their fighters from guantanamo. they said they be transported to cutter under surveillance. the americans demanded that the taliban cut off all ties with al qaeda and end its armed struggle. the official was widely expected to be named to a a central post in the leadership transition this fall. there's now growing speculation that he was fired over allegati allegations of corruption involving a close aid. a news agency reported the decision by the communist party's central committee to

replace him, who was the secretary. the vice president will assume the post. a close aid was dismissed as head of the public security bureau on february 2 pd. he later visited the u.s. consulate. the incident triggered speculation that he may have been seeking asylasylum. he has been questioned on corruption charges. so what happens behind his bow's removal? we have the analysis from beijing. >> reporter: widely expected to be named to china's communist party at the convention later this year. now the subject of an investigation was his right hand m man. so it was inevitable that beau be made to take some

responsibility over the cscanda involving his aid. the dismissal came one day after the attack without mentioning him by name after the closing of the national congress. it was the first public criticism over the scandal by a top chinese leader. many say that and the fact they are behind him is a power struggle within the party as the time approaches for changes in leadership. it is believed that the current chinese leadership remains two grou groups. one is that so-called -- the sons and daughters of a potential communist party official. which grooms future party leaders.

the chinese president came from the youth league. the vice president, who is widely expected to -- is also. the speculation then that the removal by the china youth league to prevent them from gaining power. the behind the scenes fighting is likely to come to. the united states and south korea will now get cheaper products from each other. a bilateral free trade agreement went into effect on thursday, eliminating tariffs on most of their exports. the deal will remove tariffs on 94% of south korean exports. these include cars and consumer electronics to the u.s. over the next five years. south korea says it expects the fda will boost its gross domestic product by 5.7% and create 350,000 jobs.

south korean president e myung-baek is optimistic. about the accord. >> translator: if the south korea/u.s. fta goes well, it will have a positive impact. >> a super market in seoul held a special sale event on thursday marking the launch of the fta. it offered u.s. wines at prices about 30% cheaper than before. about 1,000 members of agricultural organizations gathered in seoul on wednesday to demand a halt to the launch of the trade deal. opposition to the fda continues in south korea due to concerns over possible damage to sales of domestic foreign products. the aim of the drills is to convince north korea not to

engage in further military prop indication amid-rising tension on the korean peninsula. the exercise named full eagle was open to the media on thursday near the military border with north korea. 100 south korean and 200 u.s. troops took part in a 19-minute dril. the exercise included firing of self-propelled how iter ises. >> the purpose of this is to deploy to korea from the united states and to combine with our korean counterparts and to show the north koreans that we are united and that we can fight together and we will fight and we will win. >> north korea has been refusing to hold dialogue with the south. the north korean leader has made frequent visits to army units near the military border. leading japanese casual clothing chain will open its

largest shop in the world in the posh tokyo shopping district of ginza. the 12-story building stands on the main street. about 100 employees or one fifth of the store's staff are native speakers of english, korean, french, chinese or spanish. it plans to open more than 200 stores a year outside of japan. >> translator: we are truly delighted to open uni clothes flagship stores in ginza, one of the leading shopping districts. >> the company says it hope it is new store will enhance the brand image and name recognition with shoppers around the world. and organizations supporting

victims of crimes by the religious cult has demanded in court that the group quickly pay overdue compensation. all members released poison gas inside the tokyo subway system in 1995. the gas attack left 12 dead and thousands injured. in 2000, hom agreed to pay $11 million to the victims within five years, but $1.9 million of this amount remains unpaid and is long overdue. the support organization says that the cult now known as allaf, is still responsible for total damages amounting to $35 million. the organization filed the demand with the tokyo summary court on thursday. >> translator: they only think about their own interests. their attitudes haven't changed a bit from when they did the sarin gas attack. >> the organization also wants ban on sales of dvds that

feature the teachings of the founder shoko asahara. now let's take a look at the market figures. next we go to bangkok. >> state tv broadcast a campaign address on wednesday by prodemocracy leader an son su chi. this was the first to promote

her party's platform. >> translator: how are we going to achieve the rule of law? we have to repeal inappropriate laws that oppress the people. we have to reform the judicial process so that it is independent, fair, and just. the press must be given full freedom. >> she repeated her vision of the path to democracy in her 15-minute slaugt. her speech was widely anticipated by people on the street. >> translator: i respect her. she wasn't reading from a script like the others and every single word came from the heart. >> her party, the national league for democracy, is fielding candidates for the april 1st elections. they want a full lifting of the sanctions imposed by western countries. the government wants to show the international community that the

upcoming vote will be free and fair. the fukushima nuclear accident a year ago sent shock waves around the world. in india fears of a similar disaster have fuelled a growing antinuclear movement. but for india's leaders, nuclear reactors are an economical solution to the power shortages that are stalling growth. >> reporter: i'm standing here the nuclear power plant in southern india. it was supposed to start functioning last year, but has been dealing with protests from the people. after the fukushima accident, residents intensified their protest, even closing the road to the entrance of the plant.

>> after the fukushima, so few people were aware. >> reporter: like japan, india has also suffered the destructive force of a massive tsuna tsunami. the waves that struck eight years ago claimed over 16,000 lives. anxiety has spread among residents who think another giant tsunami could cause a nuclear catastrophe similar to fukushima. a fisherman lost his house to the tsunami. having witnessed the ocean's power, he's absolutely opposed to the nuclear plant. >> translator: for children to continue living here, the nuclear plant must be stopped.

>> reporter: india is suffering serious power shortages. they plan to build an additional 20 nuclear power plants in the next ten years. it seems the authorities hope opening the plant will give the nuclear plan momentum. >> it's not a choice of one particular plan, but everything we can use, and nuclear is one of the definite choices. >> reporter: the local government has formed a panel of nuclear experts to try and persuade residents. >> if the government decides to do it by force, that will be unfortunate because this is a democracy country. >> reporter: with images of fukushima still fresh in indian minds with gaps between people and powers, it is widening.

>> that will wrap up our bulletin. time to check on some of the stories we have gathered from broadcasters around asia. we begin with this item by irib in iran. an iranian aircraft carrying 40 tons of humanitarian aid for syrians landed in damascus on thursday. the aid sent by iran's red crescent society includes food, tents the aid includes food, tents, blankets and an balance ambulance. about 7,500 people have lost their lives since an uprising erupted last year against bashar al assad. a thai university has opened the country's first facility to promote the korean language, culture and arts. the korean culture center opened wednesday at the university in thailand's northeast.

it features academic materials, cultural exhibitions and displays related to korean life. the opening comes at a time when trade and cultural ties between south korea and thailand are flourishing. at the opening, university officials led the provincial governor and korean delegation on a tour of the facilities. hong kong's ocean park on wednesday unveiled a new section that re-creates the territories as it appeared decades ago. the section features rick shaws, street games, trams, a double decker bus and leaves reminiscent of what kailoo and and hong kong island looked like in the 1950s. an official said the new addition will help people appreciate hong kong's history. park authorities plan to unveil a polar adventure attraction this year and add an all season waterpark and an ice skating rink sometime in the future. ballooning enthusiasts are

up and away at the international hot air balloon fiesta that opened on thursday in the malaysian city of putra jira. the balloons are in novel shapes including a birthday cake, tree trunk, kiwi and a cat. flying competitions start every morning. the rivalries give way to pleasure rides in the evenings. on saturday, the festival finishes with a synchronized celebration when the balloons light up the skies. japan's crown prince hope those who go through disasters will share stories. he made the appeal to an international forum on water. delegates are atepiding the sixth world water forum in france. japan's koun prince serves as the honorary president on water

and sanitation. he cancelled plans to deliver a keynote speech. he stated japan to temporarily perform the duties of his father. he is recovering from heart bipass surgery. the crown prince delivered a video message instead. >> i will do my best together with you to share and make use of the experience and lessons in japan and elsewhere in order to help build a safer and better future for all. >> crown prince showed photos of northeast japan and thanked people around the world for their help. the prince stressed the importance of remembering disasters and passing the stories on to future generations. japan's education ministry is inviting foreign students to witness the current situation in areas devastated by the march 11st disaster. on wednesday, 47 university

students from 24 countries visited the city where survivors are still suffering from the effects of the nuclear accident. misato ishikara reports. >> translator: we hope you keep supporting us. thank you for coming from so far away. >> reporter: students gave the survivors presents from their home countries and offered words of encouragement. soma city lost 458 people from the disaster and continues to suffer from the accident of the nearby nuclear plant. about 500 people are living in this temporary housing complex, because their homes were swept away or are within an evacuation area.

the visiting students learned that mothers with small children are especially worried about health issues and that farmers are anxious about the future of the industry because of the negative image the nuclear reaction has created. >> we should think of how we can change that. i mean, we have to find other ways of generating energy because there are so many dangers between us. >> reporter: a student from a developing country had a different view. >> i think the nuclear energy need to run, but you also need to be a good management of the waste of the nuclear safety nets. >> translator: i want the students to make use of what they have learned here today, and to be aware of how dangerous radioactivity is. i also hope they can see us

after we rebuild our country and our smiles have returned. >> reporter: the visiting students will discuss methods of reconstruction with japanese students, and will give reports to their schools back in their home countries. we have had hints all week of spring coming. what can we expect this weekend? >> well, not away you might think is coming. you're talking about spring and it's been feeling warmer. it's going to be a bit of a wet weekend across much of japan. we have more showers coming in from eastern china. they are already starting to hit. 100 millimeters of rain here. then the rain is going to spread across much of the country. when we're sitting around the 10-degree mark, if you have rain coming in, it feels a little more chilly. as we head back many towards the

continent, things will be drying up for eastern china as the showers head across the korean peninsula and into japan. more showers brewing. those will make their way over during the course of the weekend. a snowstorm in northeastern china, significant snow and also some gusty winds. as that heads over, it will be skirting the northern tip. scattered thunderstorms for china. popup thunderstorms during the heat of the day. 34 degrees for bangkok. 23 in hong kong. so just on average after a bit of a chilly week. 10 degrees in tokyo. and once again, down we low the freezing point in other areas. to north america we go. not much of a change here. we have seen a winter storm combine combine confined to the northwestern corner of the continent. the intermountain west, once

again, gusty winds. you'll be seeing significant snowfall. during the course of the weekend, the snow will start to expand down towards the four corners. so much of the western half of the u.s. will be seeing snow by sunday into monday. for the time being though, it stays very warm across much of the continent. thunderstorms in the mid-mississippi valley. a little bit severe perhaps, but probably large hail, thunder and gusts rather than high risk of tornadoes. let's take a look at those temperatures then. we're seeing way above average temperatures. it will last into next week. 25 degrees in denver. 26 in chicago. 26 in washington, d.c. a little cooler in new york city. in fact, in the northeast, it is going to start to get a little cooler. we have winds coming from the east here. these back-door winds. that's going to be making things cooler for much of new england up into eastern canada and the maritimes.

you could see freezing rain here. into europe we go. very clear across much of the continent. it's been quiet weather wise. there are some showers starting to move across parts of the peninsula. that's good news, but it's not going to be quite enough rain to make a dent. heavier rain across the british isles and towards scandinavia. it's going to be accompanied by strong gusts. and it it will turn to snow further towards the north. out to the east, a lingering system over the black sea and turkey is starting to move away and dissipate. you'll e see another round of coastal rain and snow though today before it starts to move away. then temperatures are going to improve. back up to double digits by your sunday. up to 13 degrees on monday. minus 2 in moscow. a little cooler, but the temperatures should start to improve. you can see the warmth rebuilding in the central parts of europe. 19 in berlin. 21 in paris.

back down to your seasonal average in london. that's your extended forecast.

our lead stories this hour. the president has called on nato troops to leave afghan villages and happened over security for the country one year ahead of schedule. karzai met with leon panetta in kabul on thursday. they discussed sunday's shooting spree. karzai told panetta that afghan forces have the ability to maintain security forces on their own in rural areas. he said international forces have lost the trust of afghan people and they must pull out of rural areas. karzai requested that international forces stay in urban areas and focus on helping reconstruction efforts. panetta reiterated his regret

over the shooting incident and said the u.s. will make a gradual transfer of security. in response, the taliban have decided to suspend peace talks with the u.s. preliminary discussions were being held in kuter. the taliban said that the u.s. had introduced unacceptable demands contradicting an earlier agreement. the peace talks will remain on hold until the u.s. makes its position clear and shows a willingness to fulfill its promises. it did not provide further details of the talks. the taliban demanded the release of five of their fighters from guantanamo bay. they say the u.s. demand they be transferred to cutter under surveillance. the americans demanded that the taliban cut off all ties with al qaeda and end its armed struggle. that wraps up this edition

of "news line." due stay with us. hello. i'm with nhk world tv. our choices of the week begin with a documentary examining the great east japan earthquake. many smaller businesses were damaged on march 11th. for 200 days we followed a team that continued to lend money to support the recovery of a local

fishing village despite their bad depth. next is a program on cambodia and efforts to become an august churl company. under the rice policy campaign, cambodia is turning agriculture into a key industry. we focus on the rice farmers and companies expanding international trade. and our last choice of the week is a science program looking into the mysteries of the deep ocean. in 2010 the japanese deep sea drilling vessel became the first in the world to examine the bed at its source. we look at the results of