welcome to nhk world "newsline." u.n. officials say some countries are using china as a gateway to send goods to north korea. that would violate security council sanctions. some of the exports include luxury items and parts that could be used to make missiles. a u.n. panel of experts recently compiled a report on how the sanctions against north korea are working. they noted some in the north are importing pianos from japan and plan to buy yachts from europe. they also cited cases in which items that could be converted for use in ballistic missiles

have made it into the reclusive nation. the report promises to investigate allegations that transport and launch vehicle for what appeared to be an intercontinental ballistic missile was purchased from china. members of the military displayed the hardware last month in a parade in pyongyang. this report points to cases of forged documents and other illegal practices in the port city of dalian, where elicit trade deals are often arranged. it urged u.n. member states to be more thorough with freight inspections. the united nations and foreign governments go to great lengths to try to figure out what is happening inside north korea. but the country is secretive and unpredictable. that's why the u.s. and south korea are keeping their militaries at the ready. air force personnel from both nations are staging the largest ever joint drill on the korean peninsula.

nhk world reports from seoul. >> reporter: the pilot of this plane takes off for an exercise called max thunder. the crews of 50 jets from the u.s. and south korea are taking part. >> and when we train together, we know there is no force that can beat us. >> reporter: during one exercise, f-15 and f-16 jet fighters took off from kwangju air base. the pilots performed role play exercises taking the parts of ally or enemy. the organizers put guided bombs and missiles on display at the base. personnel can load the weapons on to fighter jets to attack enemy aircraft or ships. >> translator: any power that threatens peace on the korean peninsula will be thoroughly defeated. >> reporter: the allies air

forces hold regular drills twice a year. they want to prepare for the possibility of a confrontation with north korea or attacks on military bases in south korea. the pilots say if those things happen, they want to be ready. nhk world, seoul. >> the time is short. iran must act with the seriousness and a sense of urgency that this demands. the u.s. and allies are trying to force iran's leaders to abandon their nuclear program. they're using sanctions that include an oil embargo and bans on transactions with the iranian central bank. the obama administration has

also started targeting small and midsized firms that do business with iran. the sanctions are having an impact. but some iranian companies are finding ways to get around them. nhk world shows us how. >> reporter: one of the largest oil exhibitions in middle east was held in tehran in april. despite eminent new sanctions, iran remains bullish, as eager as ever to promote its abundant oil reserves. >> translator: iran has one of the world's largest reserves of oil and natural gas. we are ready to sign contracts with many foreign firms at the event. >> reporter: but moves to slap new sanctions on iran are making some of the exhibiters nervous. >> translator: we can't respond to interviews.

it's our head office policy. >> reporter: the iranian economy is already feeling the effects of western sanctions. prices of goods, mainly imports, have more than doubled. >> translator: amid inflation, prices are soaring. it's really tough. >> reporter: for years, iran has secured shipping routes with its trading partners by using dubai located across the persian gulf as a trading point. but transactions via dubai have been sharply restricted after the u.s. stepped up pressure on the city state. that led iran to shift its focus to its neighbor turkey, which has maintained friendly relations with iran. the number of iranian companies operating in turkey is said to have increased four-fold from last year.

this iranian firm exports construction materials from turkey to iran. it used to be based in dubai but decided to move to turkey five months ago. >> translator: transactions between dubai and iran have been banned. that prompted many people, including me, to move to turkey. >> reporter: there are go-betweens in istanbul that are helping iranian and foreign firms, many from europe, carry out business. they find ways to circumvent sanctions so that transactions with iran via turkey can proceed as smoothly as possible. >> translator: this is an inquiry from a swiss company. european companies are particularly keen on trading

with iran. people naturally want to search for new loopholes. we are serving as a bridge that links iran with the west. >> reporter: this group says inquiries are pouring in from companies in european countries. they want to maintain transactions with iran, a country that boasts rich natural resources and a huge market. mojtaba sanati, nhk world, tehran. we are now joined by mojtaba sanati. sanctions are being placed by western nations but iran doesn't seem to be completely closed off. >> u.s. and european-made goods like electrical appliances that are essential, can be easily found in iranian stores. iran is eager to build a new key distribution channel through

turkey. iran also continues to secure revenue from crude oil exports to china and india and other nations keeping a distance from the west. furthermore, iran aims to strengthen ties with neighboring iraq. in april iraqi prime minister nuri al-maliki visited iran. he was given a warm welcome by president mahmoud ahmadinejad who expressed an eagerness to boost economic ties. iran's former foe is governed by xia muslims, like iran. late last year the remaining u.s. troops pulled out of iraq. >> is there any chance that iran and the west will make a deal over tehran's nuclear program? >> talks over the nuclear issue will take place between iran and the u.s., europe, russia and china in baghdad on may 23rd. the western nations are expected to demand that iran delay its nuclear development.

in exchange, iran is likely to ask that the sanctions be eased. as the u.s. and eu are moving to impose new sanctions over iranian crude oil exports as early as june, iran has signaled that it may make concessions on its nuclear program. the apparent aim is to reach an agreement favorable to iran as the upcoming talks. diplomatic maneuvering among the nations involved can be expected to heat up as the meeting draws near. >> nhk world's mojtaba sanati in tehran. yemeni government forces have recaptured one of the strongholds of an al qaeda-linked militant group in the south of the country after heavy fighting. the group al qaeda in the arabian peninsula seize the province and other cities last year, taking advantage of the political turmoil in yemen. government forces on thursday drove more than 1,000 militants

out of the town of lawder in abyan province. the yemeni army launched one of its largest operations against the group last week, deploying 25,000 troops across the province, backed by the u.s. military. the u.s. federal bureau of investigations announced last week that it had foiled a bomb attack attempt by the group against an airliner bound for the u.s. from yemen. the yemeni army is also encircling al qaeda strongholds in the towns of zinjibar and jaar where more than 5,000 al qaeda militants are holed up, including some from other countries. china and north korea are caught up in a rare public spat, representatives from both sides are negotiating the release of three chinese fishing boats and their crews. authorities in the north seized the vessels last week. chinese media say north korean gunboat captures the ships on may eighth in the yellow sea. the boats came from dalian in northeastern china.

the reports say officials in the north are demanding money for the release of the 29 crew members. chinese foreign ministry spokesperson hong lei says his government is trying to resolve the problem. >> translator: we are demanding that north korea observe the legitimate rights of the crew members. >> hong declined to say whether the north korean government or the military may be involved in the seizure of the fishing boats. the traditionally friendly relationship between the two countries soured after an incident in 2010. north korean border guards fired on a chinese ship on the yalu river and killed three crew members. chinese leaders are urging north korea's regime to refrain from conducting its third nuclear test. an international group of exiled beingers ended its four-day general assembly in tokyo with an agreement to boost aid for the ethnic minority in china.

the world uygur congress decided to ask other countries to press the chinese government to end its oppression of the minority. participants at the meeting, the first in asia, also agreed to retain rebiya kadeer as the group's president. the participants say they will continue to strengthen their appeal to address problems facing uygurs. >> translator: we will work to expand our political activities around the world in order to support uygurs. >> china's leaders were not happy about the meeting. they expressed strong dissatisfaction with japan's decision to allow the congress to meet. china also called the congress an anti-china separatist organization, which links two terrorists groups. top space officials in japan are trying to make the country a global competitor in the satellite launching business. engineers at the japan aerospace exploration agency or jaxa are

preparing to send a commercial satellite for the first time on behalf of another nation. they set the launch for friday. they'll be using the h2a rocket to send a south korean satellite into space. it will blast off from the tanegashima space center in southwestern japan. jaxa engineers used the same type of device last december to put a domestic information gathering satellite into orbit. that operation brought the h2a success rate to 95%, the international threshold for reliability. observers say a smooth liftoff friday will help japan secure launch orders from other countries. europe and russia currently control 80% of the international market. the rocket will also carry a japanese water observation satellite to monitor climate change. that device will orbit at an altitude of 700 kilometers. it will capture very weak radio waves emitted by water on the earth's surface.

researchers hope the data will help them calculate fluctuations in ocean surface temperatures which can affect the earth's climate and arctic ice masses. next, we go to patchari raksawong in bangkok to find out what's going on in the region. >> a program to get taliban fighters to return to civilian life is working. nhk world reports. >> reporter: since 2009 more than 500 soldiers from nato-led forces have died in afghanistan. a private research institute said the number of soldiers killed since the war began in 2001 has topped 3,000. british major general david hook

is director of a program to talk to taliban soldiers to quit fighting and reintegrate into society. he says the situation is improving. >> so far, we've had over 4,400 come into the program since the program started in october 2010. >> reporter: hook said the number of taliban fighters has fallen to between 20,000 and 30,000. he says the group is weakening, as its members return to civilian life. >> we'll give them a choice. the choice is to die, to be captured or to reintegrate. and the reason we're seeing more people coming in over the last three to four months is because that pressure is starting to have an effect on the insurgency. >> reporter: hook says he also believes some taliban leaders are seeking peace negotiations with the afghan government. he says he intends to keep up the military pressure on insurgents, at the same time as

promoting dialogue, hoping that this strategy will undermine solidarity among the taliban. hideki yui, nhk world. next, there's been another development surrounding the south china sea territorial dispute between the philippines and china. a new class of submarine belonging to the u.s. navy docked at a bay near the contested area this week. observers say the presentation of the submarine is an indirect message to china. the philippine navy issued a statement saying the "uss north carolina" is making a week-long routine port call. the u.s. navy also mentioned the visit on its home page. the navy said it was proud to be working toward stability in the region. a routine port call like this is rarely announced so publicly. it's being seen as a message intended for china. the foreign secretary of the philippines stressed his country's strong military ties

with the united states. >> we have a strategic partnership. we have a treaty alliance, the only one that we have. and the foundation of our relationship is very solid. >> not all filipinos welcomed the presence of the u.s. nuclear submarine. according to local media, some protested that it would antagonize relations between the philippines and china. chinese marine survey ships have been engaged in a standoff with philippine navy vessels for more than one month at the nearby scarborough shoal in the south china sea. that confrontation shows no sign of being resolved anytime soon. that's going to wrap up our bulletin. i'm patchari raksawong in bangkok. personal belongings swept out to sea by last year's tsunami are now appearing on north america's west coast.

one recent item in the news was a motorcycle that washed up on to a beach on an island in the canadian province of british columbia. local communities are concerned about the massive amount of debris that is believed to be heading towards their shores and what to do with it all. nhk world reports. >> reporter: is this rusted motorcycle was inside a container that washed up on the island, about 1600 kilometers from japan. a local resident, peter mark, found the motorcycle while out on the beach one day. he likes to collect things brought by the tide. >> i thought it must be the craziest thing in the world that something like this can come across the pacific in 13 months. >> reporter: the discovery made headlines around the world. the north soon identified a man who lived in the tsunami-hit miyagi prefecture.

mark hopes to soon return the motorbike to its owner. he's now arranging to have it sent to a firm that has offered to repair it after sending it back to japan. >> i found this in february. >> reporter: the motorbike is not the only thing mark has recovered from the beach. his collection includes a volleyball. >> all we can do is our part to pick the items up and clean up the beach and make any effort possible to return personal belongings to the rightful owner and, yeah, the big thing is just treat everything with respect. >> reporter: the tsunami, triggered by a massive earthquake, swept millions of tons of wreckage, including destroyed buildings, into the pacific ocean. parts of it, like the motorcycle, have already reached the western coast of north america, but it is only the beginning. untold amounts of debris are

expected to begin arriving soon. and this has residents worried. caroline hazelteen works at a bed and breakfast near the shore. one of her jobs is to clean the beach almost every day. normally she keeps the occasional things she finds at home, but this year it is different and the local authorities have yet to decide how to dispose of all the wreckage. >> none of this at all. we had nothing like this at all. we have never had anything like this. it's unique to this year. >> reporter: it's not only the amount of debris that has the locals worried. people are also wondering whether the wreckage is

radioactive. one of the municipalities on the island installed radiation detectors in march to try and ease concern. >> it's just from the anxiety in the community, particular things showed up drifting across on the oceans and, you know, i tested it and it was radioactive, that's the only way i can see now. >> reporter: however, because of limited financial resources and manpower, the small island has no plan about how to dispose of the expected deluge of debris from japan. >> there's no plans that are currently in place that are solid. we're going to have to work with them as well as the other agencies to develop a plan of how to address the debris. >> reporter: more than one year has passed since the march 11th tsunami, but people living in the north american pacific coast thousands of kilometers from japan are now starting to confront a problem that could haunt them for months or even years to come.

mayumi maruyama, nhk world, los angeles. a curator at the british museum says a clock given by a spanish king to a japanese shogun 400 years ago is a masterpiece. the king gave the clock to the founder in 1611 for rescuing crew members of a spanish ship that was wrecked in japanese waters in 1609. the senior curator, david thompson, gave his assessment of the clock, believed to date from 1581. >> it is delightful to look at the craftmanship, the quality of the work in this clock is, to my mind, of the best. >> thompson said the clock is almost entirely without repairs or modifications. he also said the craftmanship of its gears and other parts is

more precise than that of other clocks of the era. the time piece is designated as an important national cultural asset as the oldest western clock in japan. it is on display at a museum at a shrine, dedicated to central japan. another hot day here in tokyo. but rain is expected. robert speta has the forecast for here and elsewhere. robert? >> well it does look like thunderstorms will be on tap for tokyo, going in here until friday. actually in portions of western japan today, you saw some hail in a couple of -- and thunderstorms and frequent lightning, but now as all of this instability pushes off to the east, much fairer weather will be setting into western japan. unfortunately throughout much of the day on friday, thunderstorms continue to pop up here in eastern japan, including tokyo and also off towards hokkaido. farther down towards the south, we have the stationary boundary that is lingering over taiwan

here. and into the past 24 hours, in portions of southern taiwan, you saw upwards of 247 millimeters now of rainfall. this is contributing to the potential of some flash floods and landslides here and even the threat continues to persist in southeastern china. does look like the rain will start to become lighter going into the weekend. but unfortunately this entire area has already been devastated by floods for about the past several weeks now with any more rainfall here could further exasperate the situation. so definitely not going to be welcomed. farther towards the south, indochina, malaysia, the southwest monsoon is kicking in here. bangkok, high a high of 35. beijing, 32. seoul at 25. and tokyo, on your fry, high of 24, accompanied by rain showers and a thunderstorm. now, into the americas, southeastern u.s. here, are yesterday, you saw some hail and even some water spouts were reported just after off the gulf coast this is pushing to the east, but still some lingering

storms will be popping off into your afternoon and evening hours. could bring the threat of some more hail and even frequent lightning. well, farther towards west, into the arizona desert, already, numerous wildfires are burning here. and unfortunately dry conditions combined with windy conditions out here will bring in the threat of critical fire weather, even extending out there towards southern nevada. while farther off to the north, a low pressure area is developing out of the rockies this is bringing strong thunderstorms on friday toward the dakotas. and then going into the weekend, as that continues to push east, some severe storms could be popping off in portions of kansas and also oklahoma. especially going into the afternoon and evening hours on saturday. temperatures are looking like this, though, very warm down towards the south. oklahoma city at 31. 20s across much of the eastern seaboard. while off towards the west, vancouver at 16 and seattle at 17 in there to the mid to high teens across much of the british northwest. now, into europe, the balkans,

you have been seeing some rough weather eventually in bull gruyere in the next 24 hours, it does look like winds up to about 80 kilometers per hour could be expected here accompanied by about 30 to 50 millimeters of rainfall as this low pressure continues to spin, gradually working its way to the east, bringing some rainfall to turkey over the weekend. central europe, and germany, you saw some snow yesterday, now sunny skies prevail as high pressure is dominating. wet and windy conditions prevail in the west. actually out here in the british isles, a low pressure area is moving through and going torn the iberian peninsula on friday, bringing widespread rainy conditions and even some thunderstorms. and then as it continues to push towards the east, it will be bringing cooler temperatures behind it. london today, looking at a high of 15. for your friday, madrid at 28. but then going into saturday, that could be getting down to about the midteens, off to the west, warsaw at 16 for your high and moscow at 23. accompanied by sunny skies. here is a look at your extended outlook.

we'll be back with more news in 30 minutes. i'm gene otani in tokyo.

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