not have time to get to. and do not forget to follow me on twitter at @megan_martin. glad to have you with us on this edition of news line. it's wednesday september 18th. north korea has tested an engine for a new intercontintal ballistic missile. the test happened last month at a launch site in the northwest. source say the engine test could be used in this type of missile

recently on display at military parade. similar tests were carried out at the same launch site in february. this comes in mid suspicious there's through a nuclear reactor capable of making chemical weapons. international leaders are calling for dialogue. officials are expected to attend in beijing. they say they're using the weapons to pressure the u.s. on talks of nuclear issues. north korea has been under international sanctions nearly a decade. it's taken a toll on the country's ecomy. the government decision in 2003 to allow free enterprise has injected into the capital. tall modern buildings are beginning to dot the city's skyline. people can be seen in fashionable clothes and bieg tablet computers.

foreign reporting is highly restricted in north korea. nhk world was allowed to visit late august to early september. as our correspondent reports, although wealth seems to be reaching parts of the capital, it's a different scene once you go outside. >> reporter: this is becing an increasingly popular way to get around. just a few years ago the number of taxis far and few between. this driver tells me they're now on the rise. >>translator: our supreme leader says he wants to increase the number of taxis to 1,000. there are already more than 500 on the streets. >> a 6 kilometer wide costs $3. it may not sound expensive but for the average citizens here, it's one tenth of their monthly

wage. tas are still very much reserved for the rich. the government says more and more people are becoming upper class. this residential area is covered with high-rise buildings where the rich can afford to live. many more towers are currently under construction. >> reporter: the city plans to build enough condominiums to how has 100,000 citizens. people have made fortunes aloug small scale private businesses. most have capitalized on fallen investment mainly from china. they can be seen buying imported goods by the bagfuls. even buying those tablet

computers, even though one unit cost five times the average monthly salary. >>translator: it has changed a great deal. our comrade initiatives are producing fruitfulle results. >> reporter: then it's clear the government doesn't want you to see driving out of the capital. it's like going back in time where road turns from paved to bumpy. a steady stream of cars have carts and vehicles that run on charcoal. >> reporter: most people still rely on bicycles to travel around. most officials don't talk about these issues. they'd rather focus on what they

say is the country's rising and government proceeds that have stimulated economic growths like this tote from three hours. currently being built by 10,000 soldiers and students, officials say it's expected to be complete this year. it will boast 11 ski slopes, high class hotel. >>translator: this resort aims to be profitable. it's also a place where north korea can enjoy skiing, including the young. >> reporter: there's this project already complete. a suite with ocean view at this beach resort cost $262 for a night.

>>translator: we came from pyongyang. >> i feel very good. people can enjoy themselves at resorts like this thanks to the profound love of our leader kim jongun. >> reporter: a luxury get away for north koreans able to benefit from the economic reforms. officials want to give the impression the entire country is booming. the difference between the country side suggests a different story. >> he's now back from north korea. he has insight into the country's economic growth. >> we followed the group of researchers are trying to locate the remains of japanese people who died there after world war ii. it was because of that that we were able to get video of what conditions are like in the country side. we were actually able to do

quite a bit of traveling along the country. we flew from pyongyang to chogjin and we visited four cities along the highway. officials are very strict on what media can and cannot film. they were quite eager to get us along as quickly as possible. our bus was traveling 120 kilometers per one hour. i suspect because officials only wanted to show us the positive development in the country. there were things we were told not to film like children working at the farm. >> north korea is run by one party. they're very much in control. he explains why they allow some people to become wealthy.

>> the people who are rich have special skills or knowledge in certain areas that the government finds useful. most importantly, they are people who are very loyal to the regime and the dynasty. they are allowed to live in pyongyang and some can get foreign currency. that's really the key here. there's an official type of currency inflation going on. officially $1 is is equal to $101 local currency. the actual on the black market is $8,000/1. it's hard for people to exchange it for. if they make foreign currency, you don't have to exchange money. that is making them rich.

pyongyang is not the only place people can engage in foreign business with companies. international trade show was held last month in hopes of attracting foreign investment. the government is relying on that continuing flow of cash to build up the economy. delegates from around the world are meeting face to face to discuss and debate among several areas of concern. they gathered in new york for the u.n. general assembly. they already find discussions are focused on syria. delegates from 193 member nations will examine broad themes of development concerning women, youth, human rights. the secretary general says syria is the biggest challenge. >> we must look at not only

chemical weapons but ongoing fightings, refugees issues, humanitarian issues. >> he outlined how rockets filled with nerve gas killed hundreds of civilians in damascus. he asked delegates to work together to end the con flichlkt. tensions are escalating between turkey and syria. the border is getting more dangerous. just days ago, turkish forces shot down a syrian helicopter that entered turkish air space. that was a car bomb at the border on wednesday injuring at least 12 people. the rebels say the injured were fleeing the civil war. they blame the syrian government for the blast. it's on one of their supply routes. france and russia disagree on

ways to bring peace to syria. a major dividing point is a u.n. resolution allowing military action. the french foreign minister and his russian counterpart minister lavrov met in moscow to discuss the situation. france agreed to set up a framework to scrap all chemical weapons held by the syrian government. but they disagree over key issues. he referred to a request to allow military action in case diplomacy fails. they were divided over a u.n. report on a chemical weapons attack in syria. >> translator: according to our own foreign intelligence, we believe this report proves the responsibility for the chemical attack lies with the syrian regime.

then we asked them at the u.n. security council. there's no answer as to where the weapons were produced. >> russia is an ally of syria. a u.n. resolution should have cautious wording. and children's officials say the ongoing conflict says 40% of the school children missed out on education. they say helping them back to school is an urgent task. unicef officials say they have fled or evacuated to safer places in syria with their parents. more than 130,000 syrians are in the refugee camp in jordan. 30,000 of them are school-age children. schools are open, but only 40% of the children are attending classes.

some parents do not prioritize their children's education. others use their children to help with their jobs. unicef will continue trying to persuade parents to send their children to school. they need to find ways to support children living outside refugee camps. u.n. investigators say system mattic and gross allegations are taking place. the member of inquiry gave their report to the u.n. human rights council in geneva. they conducted interviews. they heard statements also. michael kirby heads the commission. he said he was deeply moved by a message by the japanese's relatives to north korea leader kim jongun. they say kim must know family ties are precious.

the individual testimonies emerging from these are just instances do not represent isolated cases. they are representative of large scale patents that may constitute systematic and gross violations of human rights. >> the north korea delegates rejected the report. >> my delegation rejects the order update by the commission, so called commission of inquiry on the human rights in the republic of korea. this is a copy of fake materials on the situation of human rights in my country. >> the commission plans to submit the final report next march. the investigators will ask north korea to give them access to the

country. >> japan has recommended a group of industrial facilities as a world heritage site. a south official says koreans were forced to work at sights. the japanese government asked the agency to add 19th century industrial revolution sites to the world heritage list. the sites are located main loi in western japan. they include the iron works and shipyard. government representatives say they show japan's historical emergence as a manufacturing power. the south korean officials say people from the peninsula were forced to work at some of the facilities. the officials say the recommended sites do not match the ideas behind the world heritage concept. the officials disclosed the south korea government conveyed the opposition. he says japan should retract the

decision. some japanese writers are opposing a plan to tighten security around national secrets. a bill to impose harsh jail sentences for those leaking information could restrict the public's right to know. senior members of the japan pen club are calling on the government to abandoned the bill. they impose jail terms up to ten years for people that divulge state secrets. writers say this could intimidate reporters and whistle blowers and violate the freedom of press. the bill is unclear about what types of information would be covered. >>translator: if the current laws are properly applied, they're sufficient to protect

secrets related to national security. a new law would invite abuse. >>he writers say secrecy laws in other countries are balanced with freedom of information legislation. they say japan is lagging in this respect. japan's industry minister says people should stop focussing on isolated problems at the fukushima plant and look at the overall picture. motegi says leaks at plant do not pose a threat to the environment outside the compound. motegi was responding to criticism of comments by prime minister abe. abe assured members of the international olympic committee that the situation is under control. a tepco official contradicted that view. motegi says the radioactive water is affecting a limited area of water inside the plant's

port. >>translator: the government is taking the initiative in tackling the problem. it's pushing preventive and multilayered measures to insure the wider sea is not affected. >> motegi says offer shore radioactive levels are well within safetied isy standards. survivors in north japan developed other problems. a poor diet was partly to blame. they've come up with a way to bring more nutritional balance to emergency rations. >> a piping hot bowl of chinese food, curry with rice. soup with plenty of vegetables. all of these meals were developed for use during disasters. they can be preserved more than three years. here's how people ree acted to

the food at a disaster prevention event last month in tokyo. >> yum. it's pretty good. >> now they're tasty. >> after the 2011 earthquake, researchers studied what disaster victims ate in shelters. many people have lived in these temporary lodgings for months and developed health problems because they ate lots of unbalanced meals. the japan dietetic association surveyed their health. this is the menu at one of the evacuation centers two weeks after the quake. the residents ate rice balls and bread, overload of carbs. efb a month after the disaster,

people were still eating the food. residents were taking in 40% of the recommended amount of vitamin c. because of the vitamin shortage, many suffered colds. at the same time, many residents found their blood pressure rising. researchers believe it was because the residents were consuming one and a half times the average intake of sodium. >> the university department works to develop emergency rations. they focused on containers. >> we made the aluminum thicker. >> this allows rations to be preserved three and a half years. the heating element allows the use tore warm food without a stove satisfying the

evacuation's wish for hot meals. they consider the nutritional balance of the meals adding a lot of food rich in vitamins like carrots and peas to compliment the meat balls. >>translator: it's great the meals last so long. >> but before these rations are made available to the public, problems must be overcome. one question raised was price. >> how much for each? $8-9. >> that's a bit steep. >> it's too much. >> the special container is what pushes up the cost. if people come to understand the importance of well balanced food during disaster recovery, the cost will come down.

the food can help people survive longer and give them comfort when the next disaster occurs. >> the team wants to keep developing emergency rations that satisfy the needs of a diverse group of survivors. next on the list, the elderly and people with allergies. >> let's now take a look at a brief look at the markets.

it is time now for a check on the weather with many people in mexico dealing with severe flooding. what's the latest? >> good morning. you're absolutely right. western talking about a low pressure system over western mexico which used to be a tropical storm manuel. now it redeveloped into a tropical depression. around this region flooding continues. this is a serious situation. take a look at this video. flooding chaos began last week in southern mexico as tropical storms ingrid and e mother man e will brought rain. people used jet skis in flooded streets. residents were walking in waist deep water.

more than 1 million people are affected by the flooding. i must say it has redeveloped. this is the man knew we will that we're talking about. late thursday it could make landfall to the baja peninsula. stormy conditions are already in the regions. it will be bring drenching amounts of rainfall anywhere around this storm system. also topping as much as 400 millimeters in isolated location. down towards the south, another low pressure system will be bringing buckets of rainfall. anywhere across mexico, likely to see life threatening ploods in the next few days. across to the bigger picture. north of that, looking at red

flag alert across the four corners region and further north. another active system is providing thunderstorms. this storm system has produced a couple of tornadic activity in idaho and likely to unleash more of that. it could unleash tornadic activity, large hail, gusts and damaging levels of heavy downpours. this system will bring stormy conditions across the north dakota regions. down towards the south, phoenix 39 degrees. new england state, highs are recovering. lows dipping down to single dits. frost advisories are in some of the regions. look at the update of the storm system here. usagi is almost stationary now and will be tracking towards the

north. could be possibly making landfall in southern taiwan. it could become a strong typhoon status in the next 48 hours. do take precautions. this is now a tropical depression but become a tropical storm any time soon in the next 24 hours making landfall in the china peninsula. these systems will bring drenching amounts of rainfall. across this region, looking at just down to 19 degrees. summer like here with 31 degrees and plenty of sunshine. i'll leave you now for the extended forecast.

and that is all for this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine in tokyo. thanks very much for joining us. . 

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