glad to have you with us on this edition of nhk "newsline." tokyo and seoul have seen relations sour again over a controversial statue outside a japanese consulate building. south korea's top diplomat said for the first time that the location of the statue is inappropriate. >> translator: in light of international relations and diplomatic protocol, it's generally considered undesirable to install objects in front of a foreign mission.

>> the foreign minister told parliament they need to gather more opinions on other possible places for the statue. late last month, a civic group installed the statue which in front of the japanese consulate general in busan. it symbolizes those referred to as war time comfort woman. tokyo is urging seoul to remove the statue saying it runs counter to a 2015 agreement. the deal says that south korea will work to resolve the similar statue in front of japan's embassy in seoul. a panel advising the japanese government has cautioned against rushing to develop fast reactor technology. the reactors can run on plutonium recycled from spent nuclear fuel. the atomic energy commission reviewed the government's decision last month to scrap the monju fast breeder reactor in central japan. the prototype reactor has been plagued by safety problems for decades, but the government decided to also continue developing fast reactor technology in order to recycle nuclear fuel. the panel says the government

should examine whether those reactors are commercially viable. it calls for setting goals such as keeping costs lower than conventional reactors. one panel member also noted utilities will likely stick to existing plants given the abundance of uranium supplies. people in many parts of japan are bracing for a cold spell, possibly the most severe this season. winter weather is expected to hamper life lines and transportation. that will be a problem for thousands of students scheduled to take university entrance exams. snow has already accumulated in many areas along the sea of japan coast causing a host of problems. many vehicles got stuck. in the northern prefecture of yamagata, over 2 meters of snow has been recorded.

a 61-year-old woman was found buried under snow in front of her house. she later died. police believe she was trying to remove snow. this weekend is crucial for thousands of students who will take the nationwide university entrance exams. many are worried about how they can get to exam centers. >> translator: i'm planning to leave home very early since the road conditions can be very dangerous. >> some have gone to greater lengths, booking hotel rooms nearby where they're doing last-minute studying. >> translator: my school booked rooms for us. i'll do my best. >> weather officials are warning of possible heavy snow and blizzards across wide areas of the country, including kyoto and osaka where people are not used to much snow.

prime minister shinzo abe arrived in sydney australia for a meeting with turnbull. seeking to get his agreement that donald trump should continue engaging with the asia pacific region. abe will meet with business leaders before holding talks with turnbull. he wants to beef up defense cooperation by reviewing a pact between japan's self-defense forces and australia's military. on the economic front abe plans to cooperate with australia so the trans pacific partnership free trade deal with take effect and ensures that the economic partnership proceeds smoothly towards a conclusion. abe will use the visit to reaform that japan and australia will play a role in the region. relations between the u.s.

and china have cooled in the lead up to next week's inauguration of donald trump. our next story looks at what's in store for the relationship once he's in office. >> reporter: chinese state television issuing a strong message to the u.s. about the region. the country sent out warships including its first aircraft carrier on military exercises in late december. the ship's route included waters around the taiwan strait and the disputed south china sea. the reaction from the taiwanese --

>> reporter: some of the drills coincided with taiwan president's tsai ing-wen meeting with republican lawmakers in the united states. tensions started to rise back in december. president-elect donald trump took a phone call from the president tsai after his election win. it was the first such phone call since 1979. the year the u.s. switched diplomatic recognition from taiwan to china and started to follow the one-china principle. it acknowledges taiwan is part of china. an expert says china's military drills show the country is concerned. >> although the aircraft carrier cannot be used in the real operation, it's a training ship. but china must fit the fighting stance. the taiwan program is very important to chinese leadership.

and the chinese leadership cannot withdraw from this program. from the taiwan program. must be a good bargaining chip if mr. trump want to try to get economic benefit from china. >> during his first news conference as president-elect, trump questioned china's relationship with the u.s. >> russia and other countries, and other countries, including china, which has taken total advantage of us economically, totally advantage of us in the south china sea by building the massive fortress. >> reporter: earlier this week, china issued a white paper concerning asia pacific security cooperation. it says china has no intention of compromising over its claims in the south china sea, but it signaled a willingness to work with the new u.s.

administration. >> translator: the united states cannot maintain security in the asia pacific region on its own. but that does not mean china will take america's place. >> reporter: as for the future of u.s./china relations -- >> china understood that china cannot win the war with the united states. so china, of course, does not want to go into a war with the united states. now they are very careful and did not bring into the trump election too much. they are still watching policy against china. >> reporter: that real policy starts on january 20th when trump is sworn in as the 45th president of the united states. and the incoming trump administration is one of the agenda items for a summit between the leaders of japan and the philippines.

japanese prime minister shinzo abe is the first foreign leader to visit president rodrigo duterte's private residence in davao. on friday, duterte mentioned the importance of the country's alliance with the united states. he suggested keeping up cooperation with the incoming president. the outspoken duterte has repeatedly criticized the administration of president barack obama. abe responded by saying u.s. engagement is indispensable for securing peace and prosperity in asia. japan's defense minister says she'll work to make sure the plan to relocate thousands of u.s. marines from okinawa to guam goes smoothly. tomomi inada was in guam to inspect u.s. bases where hangars and port facilities will be built to accommodate additional troops. japan and the u.s. have an agreement to transfer some of the u.s. marines currently in okinawa. it'll start in several years with about 4,000 being reassigned to the u.s. territory.

japan will cover some of the costs. >> translator: this transfer will reduce okinawa's burden in hosting u.s. military facilities. that is one of the top priorities of prime minister abe's government. i was able to see with my own eyes how the plan is progressing. i will see to it that japan cooperates with the u.s. to expedite things as much as possible. >> inada also inspected the u.s. military's advanced missile defense system called thaad. it has been deployed to counter missile threats from north korea and elsewhere. inada says the defense ministry will study ways to bolster systems including ways of implementing thaad. residents in southern japan say they have concerns about debris from a u.s. military aircraft accident. even though american officials say the cleanup is done. an osprey crash landed off the

coast of okinawa last month. on wednesday, nhk reporters took a look at the seabed where the osprey went down. they found it was strewn with objects thought to come from the accident. this resident along with friends and family have taken it upon themselves to clean up debris. >> translator: we consider this place part of our home. all we want to do is help keep it clean. >> he says it may take months before cleanup is complete. u.s. military personnel has since come to retrieve some of the debris. the crash of the controversial aircraft ignited protests in okinawa. there are concerns about the osprey's safety record. there have been calls for them to be removed from the prefecture. south korea's political turmoil means the next presidential campaign has started at least unofficially.

it is scheduled for december this year but if suspended president park geun-hye is dismissed, it will happen sooner and candidates are preparing. here's some of their background. >> reporter: a former leader of the largest opposition party and he's one of the most strident critics of park geun-hye who narrowly defeated him in the last election. >> translator: the construction of a new south korea is possible if it's based on strong security. i cannot let anyone who suspected of corruption or who aren't competent lead the country. >> in his early years he fought against poverty and military government led by park's fun. moon was arrested in college but went on to become a human rights lawyer. he worked with former president at the law firm as well as when he led the country.

some supporters hope moon will more effectively deal with north korea. >> translator: the park administration only imposed sanctions on the north. i expect the moon may show a more rational solution that's neither a one way dialogue or sanctions. >> the international figure ban ki-moon, just finished two terms as secretary general of the u.n. >> i intend to unite this divided country and make it a first rate nation again. >> ban flew back to seoul on thursday and then took a train to his home saying he wants to act like an ordinary citizen. ban's father went bankrupt and he grew up in poverty. but he succeeded in school and went on to build a career at the foreign ministry. he served as foreign minister

under a liberal. ban has not yet announced which party he will run for.him to co contribute to create a new country based on his experience. >> he's quickly becoming popular especially with young people. >> translator: we should promote a just society based on justice and peace and guarantee him an rights and social welfare. >> and speaks frankly and is called the donald trump of south korea. >> lee tries to communicate to us through twitter. it's different than the current president. >> reporter: graduated from medical school but became the ceo of an i.t. company. there he distributed security software for free and gave the nickname south korea's bill gates. >> translator: i made up my mind

to bring change to this country because people are so eager for it. >> also ran for president in 2012 but withdrew saying he wanted to help -- >> translator: i hope he will support business innovation. i expect he'll try to solve the unemployment problem. >> the constitutional court has until june to decide whether to permanently dismiss president park and that uncertain time line means candidates are trying to rally support and formulate their strategy as quickly as possible. kim chan-ju, nhk world, seoul. >> a top japanese executive says companies must make clear their contributions to the economy.

japan association of corporate was responding by remarks by the u.s. president-elect. kobayashi told journalists on friday he's worried big forms such as ford and amazon seem to be giving in to trump's claims. >> these companies seem to be fawning on mr. trump. their leaders are proving themselves weak when they should be strong. we are not americans so i don't think we need to react as quickly. >> kobayashi said trump's head is full of wrong information and he should be given accurate data about japanese firm. the international monetary fund will revise down the forecast for mexico's economic

growth amid uncertainty surrounding the incoming u.s. administration. according to a source, the imf plans to lower the estimate of plus 2.3% to less than 2%. the imf says the outlook for mexico's economy looks bleak since trump began criticizing companies that plan to build factories there. trump pledged to keep jobs in the united states. several companies responded by canceling plans in mexico. the imf says the peso is rapidly depreciating and growing concerns about the commodity prices. officials say they'll continue to carefully watch the impact of trump's policies. amazon says it's going to hire more than 100,000 people over the next 18 months in the u.s. trump criticized i.t. firms during his election campaign for failing to employ enough people. officials at the online retailer say the new recruits will be full-time and directly employed.

they say if their plan goes smoothly, their u.s. based workforce will exceed 280,000, making the company one of america's largest employers. amazon ceo jeff bezos says his company's innovation created hundreds and thousands of american jobs, not just in silicon valley but across the country. amazon's decision came in response to trump's request. he said trump was happy to play a part. >> taking care of elderly parents isn't easy. especially if they live far away. in japan the problem is creating demand for new types of home monitoring services. here's the report on some of the

companies trying to get their foot in the door. >> making the delivery, replaces cylinders at this home every month. but today, he and his colleagues have something else to do. they are testing the health monitoring service. >> have you tried the new rice? >> 73-year-old lives with his wife. their daughter lives in another town. and she's concerned about them. the gas man asks basic questions to make sure he's okay. >> they ask me things like, where i went earlier in the day. i'm happy to have a conversation. there there's more to the service than monthly visits, they are coordinating a trial, with the goal to provide around the clock monitoring. they already have a tie-up with the gas company for electricity and monitors electricity uses of customer households in real time.

that includes how home appliance products are being used. if they detect anything unusual, they can alert the gas company. >> in remote areas or places with a high ratio of elderly people, people can benefit from the network we've established. >> they have caught up with energy related around the town. gas companies make ideals for emergency response and the staff can reach a client's home within 30 minutes. gas suppliers have a strong motive to seek out -- and the government it deregulating the gas and electricity industry and that creating new competitors. >> all gas companies have to deal with the changing energy market. >> they plan to start operating the home monitoring service next

april. but it won't be long. tokyo electric power company has already announced plans to enter the business and other utilities are following suit. new doors are opening in the energy market for the established players, customer relations may be the strongest asset. nhk world. >> thailand's parliament voted thailand's parliament voted to create a environment to enable revisions to the draft constitution putting the basic law in force is vital to

restoring a democratically elected government. the draft constitution was approved last year in a referendum and needs the endorsement from the king who attended the throne in december. >> the assembly has voted to approve the changes being made in the 2014 interim constitution. >> interim prime minister said on tuesday they have to amend three or four -- regarding royal power. the prime minister didn't offer details about the revision. on friday, the parliament voted overwhelmingly to amend the constitution so the changes can be made. of the 231 members, 228 voted in favor and three abstained. the interim government has insisted it will hold elections by the end of this year.

and analysts say the legal changes will likely delay the schedule. in other news, kite flyers from across the globe have gathered in south india to show off their skills at a festival. more than 100 people from 17 countries took part in the contest. >> i'm very impressed that the culture here because in ukraine, unfortunately, kites are not so popular. but i hope something will change and i see a lot of locals that come and it's amazing and i hope that we will take this energy home. >> kite flying is popular in many parts of india, especially around the time of a hindu harvest festival. they try to bring down each other's kites whose strings are coated with a sticky paste containing ground up glass or metal. >> evolving citizens demanding democracy, the threat of violence, the push for peace.

the shadow of conflict. get news and insight on southeast asia every weekday, live from bangkok. only on nhk "newsline." outgoing u.s. ambassador to japan, caroline kennedy was shown how a traditional card game was played. it was one of her last engagements as she prepares to leave her post next week. 60 high school students took part in the game on friday at the ambassador's residence in tokyo. it features an anthology of poems and included are poems written by emperors and aristocrats from around the 17th through 13th centuries. the poems are translated into english to introduce the game to people outside of japan. only the second part of the poem is written on cards placed on

the floor in random order. a reader recites the first half and others compete in grabbing the card that has the second half. >> one of the priorities that i've had as ambassador is to learn as much as i can about the japanese poetic tradition. i hope all of you come to america and teach americans how to play this game. >> kennedy served as ambassador for over three years. u.s. president-elect trump will choose a replacement after he's inaugurated next week. >> the lunar new year is approaching in china and that means an exodus of people have begun. many are migrant workers and students heading home for the week long holiday that begins this year on january 28th. the station in the southern province was packed with travelers returning to rural hometowns. chinese officials increased train and bus and other transport services across the

country to keep up with the flood of people. >> translator: it takes a whole day to get to my home town. i want to relax when i get back. >> i worked hard to earn money this year so i'm heading home to get married. i'm happy. >> officials estimate more than 350 million people will use rail services around the holiday period. now here's a three-day outlook on the world's weather.

and that's all for now on this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm raja pradhan in tokyo and from all of us at nhk world, thanks for watching.

>> this week, global 3000 heads to the west coast of africa, where plastic trash poses a challenge for the island state of sao tome and principe. what's the solution? in toronto, artists can rent affordable spaces in expensive city districts. we find out more. but, first, we go to a zambian forest that draws millions of migratory fruit bats every year. they're like precisely choreographed dances -- flocks of birds in motion. but why do wild ducks move in sync when they're disturbed? and just how do birds and fish