welcome to nhk world "newsline." i'm gene otani in tokyo. here's a look at some of the stories we're following this hour. a top north korean official is now in china as relations between the two allies cool down. people in oklahoma are picking up the pieces after a deadly tornado ripped through the u.s. state. . japanese space experts are ready to launch their first new rocket in 12 years. they hope the cut in cost will make japan more competitive in

the global satellite launch business. north korean officials are trying to smooth out relations with their long-time ally. they've sent one of the closest aides to leader kim jong-un on a trip to china. the director of the jem political bureau of the korean people's army was sent. north korean's state run news agency says he's making the trip as kim's enjoy. he was able to be filmed leaving pyongyang. he met with the leader of the communist international department in beijing. this the first time for north korea to send a top official to china following its missile launch in december and nuclear test in february. those incidents increased tension on the korean peninsula. japan's leaders want to discuss some issues of their own with the north koreans. one is the abduction of japanese

citizens by the north's agents. the chief government spokesman says japanese officials are open to the idea of regular negotiations with their north korean counterparts. >> translator: prime minister shinzo abe is strongly determined to resolve the abduction issue. the government wants to explore every possible avenue in negotiations with north korea. >> he suggested that officials will try to resume direct talks with north korea. they were suspended in november. south korea has unveiled its first home grown military helicopters. the president says it is time to show pyongyang her nation is serious about defense. it took the south over is billion to develop the helicopters. the cockpit has four screens for navigation and external views. infrared radar lets the crew carry out operations in extreme weather or in mountainous areas.

and the chopper can stay airborne for two and a half hours with nine fully equipped soldiers. the south korean president park geun-hye explained the importance of the project. >> translator: north korea is continuing threats of prove provocatio provocations. it is high time for our country to establish a firm defense posture. >> the south plans to deploy 200 of the helicopters in the next ten years. a u.n. committee says the japanese government should work to prevent hate speech against so-called comfort women. many of the women were forced to work in military brothels during world war ii. some internet users in japan have posted hateful messages about south korean women who say they were forced to provide sexual service for japanese soldiers during the war. members of the u.n. committee on economic, social and cultural

rights issued a report covering various issues in japan including the comfort women. they recommend the japanese government educate the public to prevent the women from being stigmatized. they say japan should address the lasting effects of the exploitation and guarantee the women full economic, social and cultural rights. the report was compiled before the osaka mayor triggered controversy earlier this month. he said wartime brothels were necessary. religious leaders in iran have barred a former president from running in the upcoming election. reformists say the omission of akbar rafsanjani is a clear setback. nhk world reports from tehran. >> reporter: the more to 600 korea are candidates for the vote next month.

they choose eight candidates to the islamic regime. the top nuclear negotiator finds himself among those who made the cut. former vice president made the race, too. rafsanjani might make a return to power and seek a relation with the west. but his views go against others. an aide to rafsanjani talked to local media on wednesday. president mahmoud ahmadinejad had hand-picked his close aide for the post. ahmadinejad showed his

dissatisfaction with the issue. the group didn't give specific reasons for disqualifying the cabinet they did but some experts point out if rafsanjani ran he might win support from people who are not happy with the current administration. iran shows no sign of backing off from confrontation with the u.s. and europe. only three weeks remain before voting on june 14th. authorities in the country will be on high alert for possible anti-government protests. n had hk world, tehran. >> for more on the iranian election issue i spoke earlier with an expert with the institute of energy economics japan. i started by asking him why members of the guardian council denied two prominent politicians a run at the presidency. >> it's going to be a tough election for the reformists, no

doubt about that. have to look at what happened in the year 2009 when there was destruction of the results. >> a lot of demonstrators back then. >> right. the regime doesn't want to sort of have the reputation once again. they don't want to repeat that incident. so for that, they don't want to have some sort of the unwanted result coming out from the polls on june 14th. in this regard, so the former president, mr. rafsanjani, and and mr. mashaei, adviser to the current president, both have some sort of popular support. they don't want the conservatives, the principlists, don't want to see an unexpected turnout that would lead to a very difficult situation that would lead to a difficult situation, change, that would alter the results. for this reason, i think it's better for them to keep these two away. >> they want to stem it from the beginning. how do you think supporters of the excluded candidates will respond to that? >> well, simply, they could

boycott the election. and also maybe it might not be mr. rafsanjani or mr. mashaie himself but it could be mr. ahmadinejad who could come out and, say, make threats against the leadership that he may reveal some secrets that have, say, caused the disruption after the 2009 elections. and he has already done that. as i have said. >> we're now looking at eight former candidates for the election. what kind of contest do you expect? is it going to be pretty standard? >> well, most of the candidates are from the conservative camp. so there's not a major difference among them. but still the voters would like to look into some sort of a differences amongst them. and the issues may be that -- well, if i'm a voter, i could say who may or may not be a candidate that could mend the relationship between iran and united states. that's one issue. of course, there's very little leniency to move forward on that

step or issue. but still there could be some nuanced statements coming out from the voters. there could be also a way of thinking how or who has the -- who and to what extent does a candidate have a blessing from the supreme leader, mr. khomeini himself, after seeing mr. ahmadinejad had a very rough time dealing with mr. khomeini, maybe the voters will seek a stable government, if he has a good relationship or better relationship with mr. khomeini. so that could be some issues people would look into. >> stable but still it's not going to be too much of his relationship with the united states. >> of course the united states has their own interest and issues against iran. so does iran.

people in oklahoma are trying to get their lives back to normal after a tornado leveled houses, businesses and schools. authorities say the twister killed 24 people, including nine children. more are than 200 were injured. residents began returning home to clear debris and collect valuables. this man says all five members of his family weathered the storm in a tub. >> yes. this is the bathtub my kids and wife and i were in. >> it is a little hard to believe but the important thing was my family's safe. >> some people have been taking shelter in a church an other make shift facilities. food, water and relief supplies have been arriving from across the country. tornadoes often hit states in the south and midwestern parts of the u.s. many homes have basement shelters and roadside sirens warn residents of approaching

twisters. >> my neighbor opened the door and then he said it's all gone. i'm like what? no way. then i got out. and it was all gone. >> the tornado destroyed two elementary schools. neither of them had a shelter. seven children were killed at one of the schools. some residents say the facilities were lacking. we're now joined by nhk's rosa sabrino from moore. how is the rescue operation going a day and a half after the tornado hit? >> reporter: rescue teams have worked around the clock for the past two nights. they've combed the ruins one by one looking for survivors. houses that have been searched are marked with a red cross. authorities say they've gone through the whole area and it is not likely they'll find additional survivors or bodies. they say they'll conduct a final search before they shut down the rescue operation. officials have been so focused on the search effort that they have yet to establish the full scope of the damage.

some say thousands of people have lost their homes. the residents of this normally quiet community will have a clear picture of the damage as the efforts turn towards recovery. >> nhk world's rosa sobrino from moore, oklahoma. policymakers at japan's central bank decided unanimously to maintain their monetary easing policy to achieve a 2% inflation target. the bank of japan wrapped up its two-day policy board meeting on wednesday. policymakers discussed economic conditions at home and abroad and the impact of their aggressive easing measures they set in motion last month. board members also decided to upgrade their assessment of the economy saying it has started to pick up. they said exports had had stopped falling due to a better u.s. economy and the yen's decline. they also said corporate capital spending has stopped weakening

overall and personal consumption is improving as the stock market is going up. the policymakers said the consumer price index would gradually turn positive after seeing smaller declines. at the news conference after the policy meeting, the boj governor commented about the recent rise in long-term bond yields saying he doesn't think the higher rates are having any mayor impact on the economy for now but he said the boj will keep a close watch on moves in the bond market. >> translator: we will adopt a flexible approach to help feed through the policy effect while exchanging views with market players. that's by making adjustments, if necessary, in the frequency and pace of government bond purchases and the bond issues to buy. sony's top executive expressed his resolve to turn around the electronics unit this

fiscal year. the company's core business suffered a loss of about $1.3 billion last fiscal year that ended in march. he said the firm aims to achieve an operating profit of around $3 billion in the electronics unit in the year ending march 2015. he said sales of smartphones and digital cameras will be boosted on the sluggish performance of its tv business. sony will focus on models with high functionality. he also referred to the recent proposal by a major shareholder that sony should spin off its entertainment business to rebuild the core electronics business. >> translator: this is a major undertaking that will affect our core business and management policy. our board will duly discuss the matter before we respond. >> sony reported a net profit last fiscal year for the first

time in five years but that was mainly due to profits from sales of real estate and stock holdings. here are the latest market figures. delegates from countries hoping to form a transpacific partnership agreement are now entering the final stretch of

their 17th round of talks in peru. the tpp free trade pact is aimed at removing all tariffs in principle on agricultural and industrial goods from member countries. 11 countries are attending the talks this time. the topic of debate is the finalization of trade rules under a proposed free trade mechanism. attention is focused on the so-called rules of origin requirement. a problem has arisen as certain products are manufactured using parts or materials produced in non-tpp member countries certify whether or not the raw materials after product are produced in a tpp member country is a contentious issue. uncertified products will be excluded from the non-tariff agreement. the key export of the tpp member country vietnam is its textile products. concerns are rising in the country that these products will remain subject to tariffs. nhk world in hanoi has the

story. >> reporter: vietnam's economy is growing by 5,000 a year. exports of textile products including clothes and shoes are helping to drive that growth. many of vietnam's textile factories take orders from the united states. another country joining the tpp talks. that trade is worth $7.6 billion to vietnam. once the tpp takes effect, the value could triple to $22 billion. but there is a problem. textile products in vietnam mostly import thread, fabrics and other raw materials from china. workers use them to make clothes and shoes. the finished products are exported under the "made in vietnam" label. the u.s. insists, however, on

adopting the requirement of textile products to use yarn produced in tpp member countries in order for tariffs to be removed. china is not part of the tpp talks, so if that becomes a tpp rule, textile products made in vietnam using chinese materials will remain subject to tariffs. vietnam hopes to boost textile exports could be dashed. alarmed, vietnam's government is trying to expand domestic production of yarn. it plans to make textile plants switch from foreign products. >> translator: if domestically made yarn isn't used, vietnam's textile sector won't benefit

from the tee tpp. we need to expand our opportuniti opportunities. >> reporter: not all of the plants can adopt the switchover. if the thread was in the industry it might lead the vietnamese government to reconsider its participation in the tpp talks. to prevent such a move, the u.s. has taken preemptive action. last month acting u.s. trade representative visited vietnam to explain the advantages of joining the talks. he also pledged technical support. the u.s. is keen to prevent china from benefiting from the tpp without joining it. nhk world, hanoi. the operator of a nuclear power plant in central japan may be forced to shut the facility

down. regulators have backed expert findings that the plant sits on an active fault. government guidelines band the operation of reactors in such areas. >> translator: with due consideration of the plant aseismic design, we conclude the fault is active. we take this matter seriously. >> officials for the plant's operators say the nuclear regulation authority's conclusion is unacceptable. they say they'll conduct their own survey and submit the results to the nra by june, but some participants at an nra meeting on wednesday advised caution. they said operators entrusted to make surveys may fail to conduct them properly. japanese space experts are set to launch their first new rocket in 12 years. experts have cut down costs in a bid to make the epsilon competitive in the global satellite launch business.

nhk world has the story. >> reporter: the epsilon solid fuel rocket is 24 meters long. that's about half the size of the main rocket. the epsilon is designed to send small satellites into space. officials at japan aerospace exploration agency are stressing the cost effectiveness of the rocket. >> translator: the epsilon will shift common perceptions in rocket development and bring about a revolution in the indust industry. >> translator: the united states, russia and european nations compete in the satellite launch business. japan has faced an uphill battle due to high costs. engineers have tried to cut costs. it used to take over a month

from loading to launch. officials say they will get it down to a week. computers perform part of the inspection process. launch control work will also change. in the past, it took dozens of people. now two personal computers can do the same work. jaxa officials say these have cut costs. the epsilon costs $37 million. that's almost one-third of the h2a. the officials are aiming to make it even less. their target is $30 million within four years. >> we should cut into the commercial launching business by using such a new technology. the plan is enough in reducing

the cost for competing with foreign competitors. >> reporter: the epsilon is scheduled to blast off on august 22nd. it's not only carrying a satellite, but the hopes and dreams of numerous people in japan. nhk world, tokyo. severe weather continues in the u.s., even after the tornado passes through oklahoma. meteorologist robert speta is here with more. robe robert. >> we'll watch the rough weather through wednesday but thankfully behind it we're seeing some fair weather. that's good news in these trpd hit areas in oklahoma because that's going to help out with the recovery efforts once you see those blue skies. we'll see that in images throughout the day, blue skies at least in the forecast. now the rough weather a little bit farther here towards the

east. this will start to taper off. cold front that's been pushing through eventually shifting off towards the northeast. all that severe weather is going to be moving into the ohio river valley. we are talking about western new york, western pennsylvania, not so much the tornado threat on the other hand though. warm air coming in from the gulf of mexico has a lot more room to travel and modify. that means less of a collision of air masses but it is still there. we're still going to be seeing the risk of hail and definitely some of these damaging winds, straight line winds and some of these gusts from a few of these storms to. upwards of 90 to 100 kilometers per hour. there is still a risk of a hr tornado here but only the stronger cells and not the risk of these larger, massive ones we saw throughout the last several days. now that system will push off toward the east. fair weather in the central u.s. desert southwest though, fire weather down here. kind of a 180 from the east. a few wildfires are already in place. then to go even a little bit farther into the extreme, talking about hard freeze watches into northern nevada. they needed snow in some of the

higher elevations in the northern rockies due to low pressure spinning through there cooling things off. only 13 and 14 for your high in vancouver and seattle. a look towards eastern asia, out here we are continuing to watch the stationary boundary. this rainy season front lingering across much of southeastern china, taiwan toward the southern japanese islands. you'll still be seeing some rainfall here. just in the past 24 hours alone an absolutely staggering number out of macao, just outside of hong kong. upwards of 705 million meters of rainfall has fallen here. in the past few hours alone you've seen three to four centimeters of rain. you need some relief an thankfully you will get some relief. the front will drift toward the south and east. okinawa you'll still get showers thursday into friday but over here where you need clearer weather it is going to start to work in. unfortunately by the end of the weekend another low will start to work in and that's going to bring another shot of wet

weather by the beginning of next week. off towards the north, rather fair across much of northeastern china, over towards korea and over into japan. temperatures into the high 20s and low 30s. actually well above average into shanghai. you're getting up to 27 as well and into the tropics, just those afternoon thunderstorms you typically get here especially with the daytime heating. towards europe we are looking at a low pressure area. in the balkan peninsula, 72 kilomet kilometer-per-hour winds. heavy showers will work of off toward the east but webs into thursday, especially wednesday night overnight into thursday morning is really when it will be its heaviest as it pushes into overhead. then into the north across the low countries, actually in eastern germany, currently seeing some fairly heavy showers here. that's going to work its way to pull in behind that, a trough still sticking around here but cooler air is working in from the north. on wednesday we actually saw temperatures of 16 to 17 degrees in london and paris, now down to

12. but by friday, definitely get your jackets back out. that's your world weather. here's the extended forecast. that's "newsline" for this hour. i'm gene otani in tokyo. from all of us here at nhk world, thanks for joining us. have a great day wherever you are.

♪ from the far winds and the scent of the earth, come the color of the seasons. exploring the four seasons of japan. >> the island of itsukushima lies ten miles away from hiroshima in western japan.