"newsline." russian president vladimir putin says the country will consistently pursue its policy of strengthening global security. he was speaking at an annual military parade in moscow's red square. the event commemorates the defeat of nazi germany in 1945. it was attended by former president and current prime minister dmitry medvedev. some 14,000 service men and guests took part in the parade.

>> the self-determination of individual citizens prevents the repetition of the tragedy of past wars. >> putin also added that russia will consistently pursue its policy of strengthening global security. analysts say putin aimed to stress russia's stance against accepting outside interference in the affairs of other countries including syria. the parade featured more than 100 pieces of military hardware including short range missiles that could counter the u.s. missile defense system. nuclear capable mobile ip were also displayed. just after his inauguration, putin disclosed a plan to strengthen russian defense capabilities by updating its military hardware. meanwhile, 1,200 servicemen and others took part in a parade in vladivastok. the fleet's commander sergei

said in a speech that several hundred thousand people were sent from the far east to the front during world war ii, and that the fleet contributed greatly to russia's vick toerl. the parade featured new equipment including missiles and the advance s-300 surface to air missile system. south korea says it will seek international help in urging north korea to stop jamming the satellite-based global positioning system. the electronic attack has raised safety concerns for aircraft and ships. the government there said in a statement on wednesday that north korea is responsible for the disruptions and that seoul will protest pyongyang's actions through the international telecommunication union in geneva. it says the jamming signals are coming from somewhere around the city of kasong near the military border between the two koreas. seoul says they have affected 660 aircraft arriving at and departing from the airports.

it also occurred near 180 ships in the yellow sea. south korea says no operating problems or safety issues have been reported as it has switched to a backup navigation system used when gps becomes unreliable. it's calling on airlines and shipping firms to be cautious about using gps. south korean government sources say 90% of the wages of workers at the jointly-run kasong industrial complex are kept by north korea. this suggests that the complex may be a key source of foreign currency for the cash-strapped north. the complex in the border city in the north is managed in partnership by both countries. its 50,000 workers are supposed to be paid the equivalent of $85 to $100 a month. the wages are transferred to a pyongyang bank account, but the workers reportedly receive less than $2. south korea stayed in the project amid worsening relations

with the north, but may withdraw from the agreement if pyongyang carries out another nuclear test. currently trying to form a coalition government in greece, is demanding that the country withdraw pledges on austerity measures promised in term for eu rescue loans. the radical leader started looking for partners after the new democracy party which won the most seats in the election on sunday gave up on the effort. the radical left won the largest number of seats. the leaders of two previous ruling parties were asked to withdraw the signatures from the international bailout deal. but they resisted the request, saying withdrawal could force the country to leave the eurozone. creating a coalition government now appears difficult as they must ensure cooperation from at least one of the previous ruling parties to form a parliamentary majority. if none of the parties can form a governing alliance, a new election is to be called in mid-june at the earliest.

voting in the u.s. presidential election is set for november 6th. that's still about six months away. but the race just got a new contestant. president barack obama has formally kicked off his campaign for a second term in office. meanwhile, former massachusetts governor mitt romney has emerged as the most likely republican candidate. fers nhk's takamoto kajiwara reports from columbus, ohio. >> hello, ohio! >> reporter: university students here for president obama's re-election, their support is indispensable. he laid out policies to target young voters in order to stir up their enthusiasm. young people, mainly students, were a driving force behind president obama's victory four years ago. appealing to students once again, obama held his crucial campaign kickoff at ohio state

university in columbus. with students concerned with rising tuition, obama spoke about his determination to promote educational reforms. >> i'm running to make sure that by the end of the decade, more of our citizens hold a college degree than any other nation on earth. in the 21st century, higher education can't be a luxury. over and over again -- >> reporter: obama also criticized likely republican candidate romney for economic policy obama claims would unfairly benefit the rich. >> why else would he want to spend trillions more on tax cuts for the wealthiest americans? why else would he propose cutting his own taxes while raising them on 18 million working families? >> reporter: romney full-swing challenges obama with economic policy that is creating a larger government.

romney is seeking voter support with a tax cut as a major pillar of his economic policy. polls show that obama and romney are very close on general issues and romney is slightly ahead on economic policy. the battle between the two contestants is heating up as election day in november approaches. takamoto kajiwara, nhk world, columbus. the japanese government approved a restructuring plan for tokyo electric power company. the move effectively nationalizes the operator of the fukushima daiichi power plant. industry minister tepco executives said the proposal went through. under the plan, tepco will receive about $12.5 billion in

public money. this will also allow the utility to raise its power rates for households by about 10%. tepco will also receive additional financial support from the government to compensate the victims of the nuclear disaster. the firm plans to pay about $10 billion to those affected. however, some hurdles remain before the plan can be implemented. restarting a nuclear power plant in one of the prefectures is a condition. japanese automaker toyota is expecting an operating profit of over $12 billion for the current business year. although the company suffered a serious blow last fiscal year. they announced their earnings report through march. the operating profit was down over 24%, to $4.4 billion. in the early quarters of last fiscal year, toyota struggled with the impact of the strong yen and the earthquake and

tsunami. flooding in thailand also disrupted its supply chains. however, toyota is showing a turn-around due to good sales in emerging markets like china and brazil. the company estimates car sales worldwide will reach 8.7 million in fiscal 2012. that's 1.3 million more vehicles than the previous year. toyota president told reporters that in the current fiscal year, the carmaker is expecting over a 180% surge in its operating profit to about $12.5 billion. >> translator: we will sustain attainable growth under any circumstances. >> china's growth rate of domestic car sales in the january-to-april period has slowed from a year earlier. the china association of automobile manufacturers said that during the first four months of 20126.42 million cars

were sold, down 1.3% from last year. in april, the monthly sales increase increased. overall domestic car sales in china appear to be continuing to slow down. lingering concerns over the european credit crisis. they will achieve domestic sales of more than 5 million electric vehicles by 2020. the government also outlined a plan to provide subsidies for individual purchases of such vehicles. japan's first budget airline flying international routes has taken to the skies. it's called peach aviation. the budget carrier is a venture between an airway and investment

firm in hong kong. it's offering cheap flights to south korea. the fledgling airline is surviving a fiercely competitive market. >> reporter: peach aviation got an international service airborne on tuesday. it is offering a one-way ticket to seoul for as low as $26. peach is operating one-round trip for today. the plan is to increase this to three trips in july. >> translator: now i can go to seoul every month. >> translator: it's so cheap. i can fly there just to get some books. >> reporter: peach says it will start a service to hong kong in july, followed by a flight in september. >> translator: our goal is to become a bridge between asian countries. we'll expand our network to cover asia, as soon as conditions allow.

>> reporter: carriers have become major carriers especially in europe and the united states. their share has grown from 8% in 2001 to 26% in just ten years. ryanair has the largest share of international passengers. now let's turn the globe. asia pacific aviation says there are currently 51 low-cost carriers across asia. riding the tailwind of peach aviation, two japanese budget airlines will answer the market later this year. they're joined this year by no-frills airline from the philippines and singapore. china's state-run airline is also planning to launch a low-cost carrier. one expert said local carriers have a bright future in this region.

>> translator: budget airlines are likely to expand quickly in asia and latin america, carried along by the economic growth in these regions. >> analysts say demand for budget flights is growing but so is competition among the carriers. for more on the success for japan's newcomers and current business climate, here's nhk world's mitsuko nishikawa. >> local carriers are now operating out of china, south korea, singapore, and elsewhere. so japanese airliners were late in entering the asian market. but the expert we spoke to says there are still good opportunities for japanese carriers to succeed. >> translator: travelers in asia will be paying attention to what kind of services japanese budget carriers can provide.

i believe japan has a reputation for offering meticulous service, hospitality and other amenities. asian customers may choose japanese airlines over others offering the same price if expectations for such added value are high. it wouldn't matter if the low-cost carriers are late-comers. >> competition will definitely intensify between airlines in asia. in australia earlier this year one low-cost airline filed for bankruptcy. so low airfares alone can hardly be considered as a recipe for success. beyond cost-cutting measures, airlines will have to work on several fronts in order to survive. they need to develop unique services based on their own national backgrounds and come up with effective pr strategies. carriers also have to be prepared for the risks of the potential rise in fuel prices.

it's a difficult business, but the key to success is convincing consumers of the real benefits of flying on low-cost carriers. >> nhk world's mitsuko nishikawa. here's the latest market figures. u.s. media say a would-be suicide bomber sent to attack a u.s.-bound airliner was in fact a double agent. the yemen branch of al qaeda dispatched the man last month to carry out the bombing. it turns out, he was actually a saudi intelligence agent who

infiltrated the group and volunteered for the mission. u.s. government officials revealed on monday that the terrorists plan to use a new type of explosive that can pass through metal detectors. the media say the cia planted an operative inside the group. the agent volunteered as a suicide bomber to obtain details of the plan, then pass them to u.s. intelligence. cia officials reportedly revealed the plot after ensuring the safety of the agent and his family. the media say the agent also helped locate a senior member of the al qaeda affiliate. the cia killed the terrorist leader on sunday in a drone attack. he was wanted in connection with the bombing in yemen 12 years ago of the destroyer "uss cole." a fire in a three-story building in the philippines has left at least 17 people dead. the fire broke out early wednesday in a commercial district of a town in the southern island of mindanao.

the local fire department says 17 bodies were discovered near the emergency exit of the top floor which houses a clothing store. three women managed to escape. the victims are believed to be female employees of the shop. most of them lived far away and were sleeping inside the store. one of the survivors said when she woke up, the room was filled with smoke and the fire spread rapidly. she says the fire was too strong to wake up the others before she dashed out of the building. more and more signs are showing up that underscore the struggles of people who live near the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant. the signs read, closed for business. people are leaving the area, one after another. shops are closing down. so some people in fukushima city are trying a new strategy to revive their economy.

nhk world has their story. >> reporter: japanese are no strangers to match-making parties. but not many have seen one as big as this. men and women gathered at this restaurant in fukushima city, and at more than 70 other spots across town. none of them had ever met before. and they had other worries, too. >> translator: many people are uncomfortable, or skeptical about being in fukushima, fearing the effects of radiation. i wanted to wipe out their fears. >> reporter: fukushima city is about 60 kilometers away from the fukushima daiichi. it's outside the government's evacuation zone. still, city officials have detected elevated levels of radiation in some places.

and more and more residents are leaving town. >> translator: when i walk around, i feel that there are fewer young people in the city. >> translator: it will be great if many people could get together to make fukushima vibrant again. >> reporter: shop keepers aren't seeing the customers they used to. masato manages a commercial building with dozens of shops. three of them have gone out of business over the last year. he decided he had to do something. his solution, matchmaking on a grand scale. at first, most restaurant owners were skeptical. they didn't think that anyone in fukushima would participate in such an event.

fukushi visited them one by one to win them over. >> i hope we can work together to get people to come to fukushima. >> reporter: the day of the event arrived. and more than 2,300 people lined up. hundreds came from outside the area. iwano grew up in the town within ten kilometers of the fukushima daiichi. he was forced to move away after the accident. now he lives in a town not far from fukushima city. his friends are scattered all over the place. he hadn't seen so many people in one place since the accident. he wanted to meet some new friends and not just women. >> translator: over the past year, i've been busy taking care of myself.

the people around me were so keen to make things better in fukushima. i couldn't have come this far without their help. so now, i want to contribute to those efforts. >> reporter: men pay $80 to get in. women pay $50. then they can go to any restaurant they like, eat and drink as much as they want. and if they're lucky, maybe even find a match. fukushi said the success of the event encouraged him to organize another, and perhaps another after that. >> translator: everyone will come back gradually. and when they do, i want them to find this city lively. i think it's our duty to make that happen.

>> reporter: fukuchi says the event helped businesses throughout the city. restaurants, sure, but shops, salons, and hotels too. he says together residents can rebuild their home on the hope of finding love. nhk world, fukushima city. after sunday's tornado, the freak storms killed one person and damaged nearly 900 buildings. one survivor, though, has been reunited with his family. family dog vanished from his home, along with his doghouse. a leash was the only evidence he existed. the tornado whipped through the city on sunday afternoon.

two days later, he was spotted on the street only 100 meters from home. the owner says no one was more relieved than her 11-year-old grandson. his collar was broken, but he was unharmed. there is still no trace of the doghouse. and here is the weather forecast for here and elsewhere. >> unstable conditions are back again here in japan. the unstable atmosphere combined with the upper level cold air surging down all the way from the north, and combined with the daytime heating, that's going to be causing and erupting numerous thunderstorms across much of the

eastern and northern japan. and these thunderstorms, some of them could be severe, creating some hail and damaging gusts, as well as shorttime heavy rain which could be as much as 30 to 40 millimeters in just a span of one hour. short-time heavy rain could be up the risk of flooding and mudslides. now, across much of the eastern areas, western half of japan as well as the korean peninsula, most of these regions are going to be dominated with high pressure cresting overhead. so sunny and very warm. much drier and calmer weather to be seen for your next 24 hours. very different story here in southeastern china, though. rainstorms have been battering the area, especially some areas. we have a video coming out from huhbay province. the rainy season made its presence felt in southern china as a deluge rainfall fell. about 800 residents of the city

were stranded in their homes due to the rising floodwaters. no deaths or injuries reported, despite the copious amount of rain. many residents felt the effects of the floods as houses filled up with water, and cars became stranded on roadways. now, if we can pull back, i can show you that in hubay province, the heavy rainfall is finally going to be dissipating, but it's descending a little bit. hujong province, rainfall could be seen into thursday evening. so do be aware of flooding and land slides and mud slides here in the next 24 hours. temperaturewise, we're looking at tokyo at 23 degrees, right at average temperaturewise. although we'll see some showery weather for us. heating up in beijing, 30 degrees, staying in the mid-30s in the tropics. all right. now, let's move on to the americas. finally, that low-pressure system will be moving offshore,

but as it does so, it will be picking up winds as well as rainfall becoming pretty heavy. all the way down towards the deep south and gulf states, the cold front will be stretching down, and sometimes severe thunderstorms could erupt. the primary threats being hail and gusts. southwestern texas, just along the border here of mexico/u.s. border, weather could get rough with rainfall accumulations. especially thursday afternoon and evening hours. taking a look at your temperatures. denver is rising. 25 degrees. finally above average from what we have been seeing for a few days. mid-teens, so it was on a cooler side. but heating up in los angeles, 28. here's the extended forecast.

we'll be back with more news in 30 minutes. i'm gene otani in tokyo. thank you for joining us on nhk

world. .