glad to have you on this edition of "newsline." it's tuesday, may 31st, 8:00 a.m. in tokyo. i'm catherine kobayashi. the operator of the damaged fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant reported high levels of radioactive water that accumulated in the basement of the number one reactor. tokyo electric power company or tepco says a water sample contained 2 million becquerels of radioactive cesium per cubic centimeter. >> translator: we speculate that water affected by the reactor damage is leaking from the pressure vessel and from the containment vessel. >> tepco created a map that shows the distribution of the contaminated water in the plant

buildings. it will use this to prevent a recurrence of accident in march. at that time, flthree workers we exposed to radiation by stepping in tainted water. company plans to set up a cooling system to circulate decontaminated water back into reactors. the system is expected to be installed in july. tepco says it will also install equipment to purify contaminated sea water near the water intakes at the number two and three reactors. the purifier uses a mineral to absorb radioactive cesium. the company says preliminary operations will begin as early as thursday. the utility had previously built undersea silt barriers around the water intakes to prevent highly radioactive water from further spreading into the sea. but raid wrote active substances exceeding government safety limits are still being directed outside the barriers. the operator of the plant says two workers may have been exposed to radiation exceeding the legal limit of 250

milisieve milisieverts. the two are in their 30s and 40s who worked in the control rooms of the number three and four reactors. a test found 7,69 becquerels of radioactive iodine from their thyroid glands, more than ten times those of other workers. the company said the two had been exposed to external radiation of 73.71 and 88.7 milisieverts. tepco says the combined readings suggest they may have been exposed to radiation exceeding the legal limit of 250 milisieverts for workers at the fukushima plant after the accident. the utility said the workers have so far claimed no health problems but they will receive detailed health checks at a specialized medical institution.

tepco has been slow in checking workers for internal radiation exposure at the damaged plant. internal radiation exposure can occur from breathing in radioactive materials or eating radioactive food. radioactive substances penetrate the cells of the body. as a result, exposure could continue for a long period of time until the radioactivity is discharged from the body. the power company began internal checkups on march 22nd. 11 days after the nuclear accident at the fukushima daiirhi plant. it takes about a week to get the results. internal check ups are given priority to workers who have been exposed to more than 100 milisieverts of radiation ex-personalex person e termly. to date, less than 40% of the approximately 3,700 workers at the plant have received checkups for internal radiation exposure. internal exposure cannot be detected unless tests are conducted using special equipment called whole body

counter. tepco uses four devices to measure internal radiation exposure. it plans to introduce five more devices in july. the power company has a duty to ensure that workers are not exposed to more than the emergency limit. it looks as thousagh it's been some of the workers. they are ill equipped to protect themselves from internal ra radiation exposure. . >> experts say their exposure levels need to be monitored closely.

in other news, north korea is vowing to cut off military communications with south korea. the country says it will no longer deal with the administration of president bak. north korea's national defense commission issued a statement on monday saying the country will sever military communication lines on the east coast and shut a liaison office. the decision allows remarks -- the decision follows remarks the president made on may 9th. during a visit to germany, he urged north korea to abandon its nuclear ambitions and also said he's ready to inve north korean leader kim jong-il to a nuclear security summit if the country agrees to denuclearize. south korea plans to host the summit next march.

north korea's national defense commission denounced the statement for demanding apologies for two deadly attacks last year. 36 sailors died after a torpedo attack sunk a naval vessel and the shelling of a south korean island killed four people. north korean leader kim jong-il is home after a week-long tour of china. he traveled 5,000 kilometers on an unprecedented third trip to china in just a year. >> translator: north korean leader kim jong-il made an unofficial visit to china from may 20th to 26th at the invitation of president hu jintao. >> kim's spoke was observing china's economic development. kim's first stop was a lake near

the city of mudanjang, his father had a battle against japanese forces in the 1930s. kim next visited an automobile factory, a supermarket and a solar panel factory in yangzhou and electronics factory in nanjing. he met hu jintao in beijing. earlier we spoke to a reporter about the in-depth look of kim's latest visit to china. >> what can we learn from kim jong-il's trip to china? >> no north korean leader since 1950s has ever visited china three times a year. kim's latest visit was reportedly to ask the chinese government for economic aid. goal of creating what it calls a powerful and prosperous nation

in 2012. its currency in 2009 ended in failure. experts say kim is becoming frustrated because there are no signs north korea's economy is recovering. so i think kim asked china to help move things along. whether he's able to get the economic assistance he wants remains to be seen. >> why did kim visit china at this time? >> since the beginning of his trip, a summit between the leaders of japan, china and south korea was held in tokyo. the purposes of the meeting was the wake of the march 11th earthquake and nuclear crisis. by travel to china during the summit, kim is aiming to show his power in the region. also, he wants to show his country and the world he's still healthy. if you will look at the video that's been released, the north korean leader's complexion

appears foo s good. his movements are natural which makes it seem like he's recovered from the stroke in 2008. also, if he needed to get special medical treatment such as kidney dialysis, it would be difficult to travel by train for an entire week. >> it was initially reported that his son, an heir apparent, was going to visit china alone but that didn't happen and he didn't even go with his father. why wasn't he there? >> the process for the transfer of power in north korea will take time. kim jong-ung is in his late 20s. in the meeting with chinese, kim said relations between two countries will not change if the leadership changes. this shows kim's support for the transfer of power to his son. >> i want to ask you, from china's perspective, how does

kim's visit help china? what's in it for china? >> china wants to keep relations with north korea. it is important considering china is chair of six-party talks where the member countries discuss north korea's nuclear program. in the meeting with hu jintao, kim insisted the six-rty talks would resume immediately. usually both china and north korea don't announce kim's visit before he returns to his country, but this time win jiabao told bak about the visit while kim was staying in china. >> what makes china so eager to deal with china? what are china's intentions when it comes to north korea? >> i think the chinese government wants to show the international community that it is trying its best with north korea to give up its nuclear development. china is also trying to -- open up its economy and begin reform before kim jong-il loses power. >> nhk world with us tonight.

thanks. appreciate it. japan's leading opposition parties are trying to bring down prime minister naoto kan's government. members of liberal democratic parties are planning to submit a no confidence motion by the end of the week. kan has been facing strong criticism over his response to the ongoing crisis at the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant. the parties confirmed their decision on monday during talks between their secretaries general and diet affairs chief. the ldp leader will decide the timing of the motion. but he says tanigaki wants to coordinate with the new cometo party. the new cometo secretary general

agreed to consult with party members so it can be submitted jointly. both leaders agreed to grill prime minister kan over his handling of the nuclear crisis. they also plan to call on other opposition parties to back the no-confidence motion. >> translator: under the kan administration it would be difficult to further proceed with the reconstruction of the disaster areas. given these circumstances, we are determined to make the prime minister take responsibility for his failings and take charge of the reconstruction effort. >> kan's ruling democratic party is preparing for a fight. it will punish party members who break rank in favor of the no-confidence motion, or who will be absent during the vote. dpj secretary general said the democrats would unite against the motion. japan's tourism industry took a major hit following the

disaster and the nuclear crisis is still keeping visitors away. a delegation from china is trying to change that. it says traveling to japan is one way people can support the country's economy and by extension, the rebuilding effort. the 100-member delegation made up of airline and travel agency executives arrived at tokyo's haneda airport monday. they'll tour sightseeing spots in tokyo, yokihama and osaka and hold exchanges with local governments and tour agencies. >> translar: our country wants to increase the number of visitors to japan and china through friendly exchanges. >> japan has been growing into a major tourist destination for the chinese, especially now that visa restrictions have been

relaxed. last year it saw 1.4 million people from china. next we go to our bureau in bangkok with the latest on what's going on in the region. >> greetings from the thai capital. in afghanistan, the latest deadly taliban attack is raising questions about the country's readiness to start taking responsibility for its own security as planned in july. thousands of mourners in the north on sunday attended the funeral of the general. the powerful police chief was killed in a suicide attack over the weekend. he was a high-ranking officer in the northern alliance which brought down the taliban with u.s. support after the u.s. -- after the september 11th terrorist attacks nearly ten years ago. the general was killed along with six other officials and soldiers in an attack on a meeting of political and military leaders. a local government spokesman

said the taliban had claimed responsibility. meanwhile, anti-american sentiment remains high after the deaths of more civilians. international forces bombed two houses in southern afghanistan on saturday. local authorities say 14 people, including 10 children and 6 others, were wounded. afghan president hamid karzai has condemned the bombings. civilian casualties are believed to be one way the a taliban tries to broaden its support against the afghan people. a forum on solar power took place in boangkok monday. solar energy is being taken more seriously. participants from 34 countries including both public and private sectors gathered to

exchange information on how to boost the development of solar energy. the conference is sponsored by the asian development bank as part of its asia solar energy initiative designed to boost solar power usage in the region. >> solar power requires financing and is not normal for a commercial bank, so we have to help commercial banks t give that kind of financing. >> although asia is relatively new to solar power, growth is rapid. in thailand, construction has begun on one of the world's largest solar power plants. the project is the first to receive funding and aims to power 70,000 homes when completed in 2012. foreign firms and investors are increasingly interested in regional opportunities for solar power. >> working in laos, cambodia, and indonesia to help develop

programs in the solar sector. >> currently, solar energy accounts for less than a quarter of 1% of asia's overall energy supply. the adb hopes to enlist the help of the private sector to increase the solar market sixfold to 3,000 megawatts in 2012. the tibetan parliament in exile has approved the transfer of political powers from the leader, the dalai lama, to the prime minister and other officials. it ushers in a new era for the leadership of tibetans in exile around the world. nhk world reports from the exiled government's base in northern india. >> translator: the announcement to step down from active political leadership has left the tibetan community in exile concerned about its future. the tibetan parliament in exile

on saturday unanimously approved changes to the tibetan charter in exile. it will transfer the political powers of the dalai lama. the dalai lama escaped to india following the 1959 tibetan uprising against the chinese rule. in 1989, he was awarded the nobel peace prize for his efforts to seek nonviolent means of conflict resolution. in march the dalai lama announced his intention to transfer political power to elected officials. the power to approve laws is transferred to the prime minister. and the cabinet becomes responsible for appointing special representatives to handle dialogue with china. >> we have sent envoys before. we are willing to send some more

in the future. if and when the chinese government would like to have ernest conversation with us. >> reporter: the 75-year-old dalai lama wi dalai lama. the transfer of his official powers is seen as an attempt to award a political vacuum after his death. an event that fills many tibetans in exile with a sense of anxiety. nhk world. in the philippines, massive quantities of dead fish have been discovered in a lake south of manila. so far the cause is unknown. more than 800 tons of fish were found dead at fish farms.

workers filled bags of dead tilapia fish to be buried sunday. the fish are staple foods for people living nearby. >> translator: all the fish have died. they were found floating in the water. >> authorities are still investigating what caused the fish to die. some speculate that a sudden temperature drop may have lowered oxygen levels in the water. others say that recent activity had a nearby volcano may be to blame. and that wraps up our bulletin in bangkok. now let's take a look at the market figures.

hello there. time now for your weather update. across eastern asia, still looking quite windy across japan this morning. the remnant low of typhoon sanga brought heavy downpours in northern japan causing flooding problems in quake affected regions and also continues to bring windy conditions along the east coast of japan here. high wave warnings have been posted just now. but we are going to be looking at much calmer and brighter conditions, especially up toward the north. good spells of sunshine here and warm and bright down in the okinawa islands as well. looking gloomy in the west. across china, lots of clouds building over the region across the north-central portions up toward the northeastern corner here. we have this lingering low pressure system that continues to bring drenching downpours in

isolated areas. couple thunderstorms to watch out for as well and starting to spread across the korean peninsula. we'll see light to moderate showers across central portions of the country as well, but nothing on the severe side. to the west of the philippines, we have an active low pressure system that is in fact showing signs of intensifying as it moves slowly over the south china sea. this is going to be bringing heavy rain to taiwan as well as persistent rain to regions of the philippines as well. now let's head toward south iss asia, picking up monsoon rain into northeastern india, as well as bangladesh. this is going to be an ongoing story. we're keeping a very close eye on this area. high flood risk as well as landslides, especially across bangladesh then all the way down into thailand as well. 30 degrees in hong kong today. some isolated showers, but good spells of sunshine here. looking cloudy in chongqing, 25 degrees. up to 32 in shanghai.

looking very warm in beijing, again, at 29. now, for the united states, looking very unsettled over toward the northwestern corner again. looking rather chilly and wintry in around montana and wyoming. could see isolated heavy snow during the nighttime. that's going it be clearing up, though, by your tuesday. this low-pressure system is going to be heading into the northern plains, so looking at moderate chances of severe storms tonight across the dakotas all the way down into nebraska, also minnesota as well, looking at chances of hail, damaging winds as well as tornadoes. it stays essentially dry out toward the east. very hot, again, for places like washington, d.c. 36 degrees here. 32 in toronto on tuesday. and then 34 in houston. red flag warnings, again, posted down in the south. very dry and windy out here. now, for europe, eastern europe will stay calm and settled under this high pressure system, but wet weather will

really impact the western sides of europe. particularly for france and germany, looking at heavy rain to move on through on tuesday. along this frontal line, we're going to see heavy showers developing. for the peranese. british isles, a bit of a break in the wet weather. again, a new system is going to be moving in from the west. we're expecting widespread showers by the end of tuesday. 17 degrees in london today. turning much, much colder in paris, 18 degrees. stays very warm in central and eastern portions. temperatures in the upper 20s for you. here is your extended forecast now.

our lead story this hour. the operator of the damaged fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant reported high levels of radioactive water that accumulated in the basement of the number one reactor. tokyo electric power company or tepco says a water sample contained 2 million becquerels of radioactive cesium per cubic centimeter. >> translator: we speculate that water affected by the reactor damage is leaking from the pressure vessel and from the containment vessel. >> tepco created a map that shows the distribution of the contaminated water in the plant buildings. it will use this to prevent a recurrence of the accident in march. at that time, three workers were exposed to radiation by stepping in tainted water. the company plans to set up a cooling system to circulate decontaminated water back into reactors. the system is expected to be installed in july.

tepco says it will also install equipment to purify contaminated sea water near the water intakes at the number two and three reactors. the purifier uses a mineral to absorb radioactive cesium. the company says preliminary operations will begin as early as thursday. the utility had previously built undersea silt barriers around the water intakes to prevent highly radioactive water from further spreading into the sea. but radioactive substances exceeding government safety limits are still being directed outside the barriers. that wraps up this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. do stay with us. we'll be back with more of your updates at the top of the next hour. we'll see you then. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com