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. western leaders are rushing to defuse a crisis in ukraine, as russian leaders pull in the opposite direction. red cross officials from japan and north korea have finished their first talks in 18 months. and we begin our week-long coverage, bringing you all the

latest developments from the national people's congress in beijing. the interim president of ukraine says russian forces have made a declaration of war. troops have surrounded military outposts in the southern ukrainian republic of crimea. russian president vladimir putin suggested he had the right to invade. nhk world's minna comb saw wow reports. >> reporter: in this major crimean city residents gathered to show their allegiance to russia. ethnic russians make up more than 60% of the region's population. crimea is important to russia, as well. the country's black sea fleet is currently stationed at the foes of sevastopol. the russian parliament's upper

house on saturday unanimously approved a request by putin to use military force in ukraine. the black sea fleet has already been increasing activity outside its bases. concerns are rising about a possible military intervention by russia. ukraine's interim prime minister called on western countries to increase their pressure on putin. >> this is not the threat. this is actually the declaration of war to my country. >> reporter: western nations appear to be united. u.s. secretary of state john kerry called russia's moves a brazen act of aggression. >> russia may be able to invade crimea, but in the end, russia will ice late itself. >> reporter: he said u.s. leaders are considering all options against russia, including economic sanctions. the group of seven

industrialized nations, as well as the presidents of the european council, and the european commission, issued a statement condemning russia. it said the leaders are suspending participation in the preparations for a g-8 tum mitt meeting to be held in russia in june. >> translator: we believe that the g-8 countries cannot carry out meaningful discussions under the current circumstances. we are suspending participation in the preparatory meetings until we have a situation in which we can conduct significant deliberations. >> reporter: to try to defuse the situation, german chancellor angela merkel talked on the phone with putin. merkel called on him to stop the russian troops from engaging in activities outside their bases. she also proposed setting up a fact-finding mission to start dialogue.

putin accepted that proposal. however, he defended his actions, saying that ethnic russians in ukraine face the threat of what he called ultranationalist forces. putin said the measures taken by russia are fully adequate. the tensions in ukraine show no sign of easing. nhk world. red cross officials from japan and north korea have sat down together for the first time in a year and a and a half. they have discussed the remains of japanese who died on the korean peninsula around the end of world war ii. delegates have gathered in china along with senior officials from the japanese and north korean foreign ministries. japan's representatives said the participation of government officials will create some momentum. officials with the japanese red cross society say more than 34,000 japanese died in what is

now north korea in the turmoil around the end of the war. the remains of more than 20,000 of them have not been returned. the japanese are also concerned about the fate of people who were abducted in the 1970s and '80s. the government says north korean agents kidnapped at least 17 japanese nationals. talks on that issue have been deadlocked since november, 2012. members of china's legislature, the national people's congress, are preparing to lay out their plans for the year ahead. they've heard complaints about corruption, the gap between rich and poor, and threats to the environment. but amidst all of this, china's economy continues to grow. president xi jinping and his administration are pushing ahead with reforms, as they aim for long-term stability.

we'll have insight, and analysis, all week as part of our series, "china: road to reform." let's take you live now to beijing where nhk world's raja pradhan is leading our coverage. >> hi, gene. in two days, china's biggest annual political event kicks off right here in the capital, and preparations are fully under way. one of the biggest concerns right now is security. as thousands of representatives arrive here in beijing. there's even a bigger security presence because of this weekend's deadly attacks in the southern city of kunling. here's a look at what i saw around the meeting venue. tiananmen square in the center of beijing is also the center of political power. directly to the west is the great hall of the people, where just once a year china's biggest issues are put forward, prioritized and discussed. china's top decisionmakers are gathering in that building in a

few days from now to determine the country's future direction. and security all around tiananmen square has been tightened up. it's a clear sign that the government is not leaving anything to chance. extra police and military personnel have been deployed around the great hall in feenman square which is a popular tourist destinatiodestination. only those with prior approval are allowed in to the great hall. but even they have to have their belongings checked and screened at the entrance, like a security check at the airport. ♪ the national people's congress is the country's legislative assembly. among its responsibilities are electing the president, and enacting laws and policies for the coming year. it convenes annually at the beginning of march. about 3,000 delegates gathered from across the country. they include representatives from the military, provincial

governments, and people from many walks of life. they wrap up their meeting around the middle of march. on the first day, the premier always delivers a speech such as wen jiabao did last year. it lays out goals and policies in a wide range of areas like the economy, social welfare, and environmental protection. the congress also approves the budget for the coming fiscal year. in some years it also chooses the government's key personnel and deals with structural reforms. now, gene, it was at the meeting last year at xi jinping and li gujen were sworn in as china's president and premier. and in their first year in power the leaders have tried to carve out a distinct style in moving the country forward. >> raja, what will be the major points for this year's meeting? >> well, according to state-run chinese media it's all going to be about deepening the reforms that were introduced in the year

that just passed, showing the determination of the xi administration for a change. here's a look at some of the big issues to watch out for. the focus of this year's national people's congress is on how bold the xi administration's reform proposals will be. while boosting economic growth, china has put off solving various problems. as a result, many chinese are growing more frustrated. they are becoming especially concerned about environmental issues, such as air and water pollution. beijing has pledged to reduce a potentially lethal air pollutant known as p.m. 2.5. authorities say by 2017 the substance will be 25% less than the level in 2012. it's already started aggressive measures including shutting down some plants that pollute the

air. stepping up environmental measures could slow down the economy. it's difficult to strike a balance. experts are watching closely to see if authorities will lay out specific measures to protect the environment. another focus is how the government deals with corruption among the power elite. as it increases, it causes anger among ordinary chinese. president xi jinping has said he would go after both tigers and flies. this is his way of showing he will crack down on any official no matter how high. many senior party officials have already been convicted. a lot of people welcome the government's firm stance. but others suspect it's all part of a power struggle. the government is expected to face strong opposition from those with vested interests.

people wonder if the government leaders are capable of exerting strong measures against such powerful figures. >> let's talk more about the upcoming npc now. conichiro, let's start off with security and about the kedly attacks last saturday. what more do you know about what happened? >> chinese authorities speculate that there were more than 10 incidents. they say they randomly attacked people at the railway station with knives. police say they shot dead four attackers and have taken another into custody. investigators are looking for the remaining suspects. they believe separatists from the uighur autonomous region carried out the attack. you may recall here in beijing last october, uighurs were to blame for that attack. now, the npc does not begin

until wednesday but another important meeting is already under way. the national committee of the people's political conference has opened at the great hall of the people, and before it even began delegates, including president xi jinping held a minute of silence for the victims of the attack. >> so do these attacks show the growing discontent towards the government? >> absolutely. crime threatens security tend to happen during important meetings like the npc. they see such events as an opportunity to make a statement about their discontent for the government. but the two meetings are the political forum for delegates from across the country to talk directly to the leadership about their various grievances. addressing them is very important for the government, because mounting discontent could threaten china's one party rule system. the government, of course, wants

to main stain the status quo and stay firmly in control. >> thanks for your input. that's all from me and the team here in beijing. be sure to join us on tuesday, when we'll take a closer look at china's environmental issues, and the government's crackdown on corruption. for now, it's back to you in tokyo. gene? >> raja, thanks. raja pradhan in beijing. >> a nation of 1.3 billion. chinese leaders examine the issues at their annual national people's congress. president xi jinping faces a long list of challenges. find out how he plans to tackle them. don't miss our special coverage, "china: road to reform" at these times, right here on "newsline." nearly 400 people have joined japan's nuclear regulation authority after it

merged with a government-backed organization. nra officials want to boost their ability to conduct safety assessments of nuclear facilities. nuclear regulation authority chairman welcomed the staff from the japan nuclear energy safety organization. he said there are great expectations for the new members as they have high skill levels and expertise. >> translator: i would like you to do your best, so our organization can gain the trust of the people as a regulatory body. >> the merger was planned in the wake of the 2011 nuclear accident in fukushima. nuclear regulators at the time were criticized for lacking expertise. the addition almost doubles the staff of the nra's secretariat. many of the newly joined engineers are retirees of nuclear plantmakers. the regulators are now examining safety measures at nuclear power plants across japan. a safety screening is a prerequisite for resuming

nuclear power generation. all reactors in the country are currently offline. japan's education ministry officials have revised teaching materials they made after the nuclear accident in fukushima. they want students to learn more about the impact of the disaster, in addition to getting basic knowledge of radiation. the ministry originally published booklets in october, 2011. about six months after the disaster. but many teachers complained that the material lacked sufficient information on the accident itself. the new booklets show how radioactive materials spread from the plant. they also show the current evacuation zones. they also explain how rumors about the disaster hurt the farming and tourism industry. ministry officials say they hope the materials will help students better understand the situation in fukushima and make an informed judgment. they will distribute the booklets to schools in april.

they will also soon post them online. tension in ukraine is affecting the markets around the world. yuko fukushima has more on that from our business desk. so yuko, how are investors reacting to the devolvements in ukraine. >> it's not only investors but the whole financial world is shaken by the crisis in ukraine and one of the latest movements we're seeing is that investors are pulling their money out of russia. they fear the country may suffer from international financial sanctions and an effort to stabilize financial markets in russia, and also counter inflation, the country's central bank unexpectedly boost the key interest rate to 7% from 5.5%. still the benchmark index tumbled more than 10%, and the russian ruble sank to a new low on monday. and the sell-off in russia is rippling through to other european markets. in london, the ftse is down 1.75%, and in frankfurt, it's down 2.6%, trading at 9,432 at

the moment. and in paris, it is also down 2%, 2.3%, trading at 4,304. all these indices dropped to their lowest level since early february. many asian markets also ended lower. tokyo's nikkei fell to a new week low. the kospi saw the biggest decline in nearly a month. jakarta's benchmark ran into further pressure after indonesia's straight balance swank into the red in january. thai shares bucked the trend, the index rose more than 1% to a two-month high. investors were relieved after anti-government protesters began to retreat from rally sites in bangkok. the dollar/yen is currently changing hands at 101.20-25. a level not seen in about a month. euro/yen is quoted at 139.44-45. investors are buying safer assets like the yen and gold due

to mounting tensions in ukraine. the spot price of gold jumped to its highest level since last october. the boite coin exchange mtgox has set up a telephone hot line to field inquiries from angry creditors. the move is the latest exercise in damage control by a tokyo-based firm. the company filed for bankruptcy protection last week. ceo mark karpeles says most of the bitcoins have disappeared due to illegal access. the coins are worth over $100 million. about 1277,000 users had deposited their digital coins or cash with mtgox but 99% live outside japan. that means the firm will struggle to hold creditors meetings, standard procedure in civil rehabilitation. officials say they're studying when and where to hold the meetings to explain what's going on. the sales tax in japan is going up from 5% to 8% next month, and people have been rushing to car dealerships before the tax hike, pushing up auto sales to double digit

growth for six months in a row. dealers groups say new vehicle sales totalled more than 565,000 units in february. that's an increase of about 18% from a year earlier. dealers attribute the gain to the consumers' last-minute rush to buy. though they say record snowfalls last month cut into sales. officials of the japan automobile dealers association expect the demand to peak out soon. that's because people have to complete purchases by mid-march to get new cars registered before the tax goes up. prime minister shinzo abe insists his government's economic policies are starting to produce results. abe said the number of business failures in japan has fallen every month for the last six months. abe again stressed the importance of wage hikes on the back of rising corporate earnings. >> translator: it's important for companies to boost wages for their employees in line with

earnings. their efforts are now starting to pay off. >> abe was responding to questions from opposition lawmakers at the budget committee of the upper house. he said the situation has changed from the time when the strong yen forced manufacturers to move production abroad. he said the cheaper yen means business executives should no longer have to make that decision. the head of a u.s. commerce department group says a manufacturing renaissance of sorts is now under way in his country, in the midst of a shale gas boom and he has called on japanese businesses to step up investments. the usa executive director made comments in an interview with nhk and tokyo. his group is pro-moetding foreign direct investment in the united states. >> conditions are ripe for investment in the u.s. we've got the energy, one of the areas with newfound sources of energy in the area of gas and

oil that continues to drag down costs of energy. >> he said lower energy costs stemming from the rising production of shale gas are breathing new life into the u.s. manufacturing industry. he noted this is prompting more firms to shift their production bases back to the u.s. from emerging economies. >> sort of a manufacturing renaissance that we are witnessing now, and we think it's not an aberration. we don't think this is just a three-month affair, or a six-month or one year or two-year. we believe this is at least for the foreseeable future, we believe this trend would continue. >> it was set up in 2011 because of' decline in foreign investments since the 1980s. that's all for now in business. i'll leave you with the latest market figures.

a storm is hovering over parts of the united states. our meteorologist robert speta has more on this. robert? >> yes, gene. we are seeing out here basically everywhere east of the mississippi river is dealing with some sort of severe weather today, albeit may be calmer, but very frigid off towards the north and towards the south. some warmer air, but that interaction between these two air masses, well it really has been triggering off some rough stuff. and here down towards the south we're actually seeing some strong to severe thunderstorms move across the gulf states. very gusty winds coming out of this. but the biggest threat through the next 24 hours is not so much the severe thunderstorms, it is along this warm front and what

we are seeing is this precipitation come down in the form of freezing rain. back towards the south, on your -- or back towards the west on your sunday we saw numerous accidents in parts of arkansas over towards missouri. this whole system is going to continue to track off towards the east and really into the carolinas, parts of virginia, you're going to be seeing some decent ice accumulations on the ground. there is the risk of power outages, also traffic accidents, and over 2,000 flights have been canceled at this time. and as this system does continue to move east, expect more flights. so if you're flying into the southeast, just be very careful with this one. now, farther towards the north, there's this high pressure that is plunging in from the north, some flurries across the great lakes. but that is not the big topic. it is these bitterly cold temperatures. it is the early part of march, you would think that spring would be showing up by now. but my goodness, look at these temperatures. minus 31 there in minneapolis. chicago minus 24. even down towards the south. that cold front pushed by through texas, dallas at minus

18 here on your monday. this is what it's going to feel like with the wind. even without the wind on your monday highs, chicago's going to feel like minus 7, toronto minus 11. even over towards washington, d.c. and new york, you're not even getting up to the freezing mark. frigid. you want to bundle up. spring feels like it should be right around the corner, but not quite there just yet. now where we are getting early spring, at least an early tropical season out here in the western pacific. severe tropical storm banksai continuing to pull off toward the north. just toward the east of guam, the only impact for you is the high waves. look at the rain fall just offshore. towards the north, japan, high pressure is dominating here on monday and even over towards tuesday. a new storm system is developing out of eastern china. this is going to bring some precipitation down towards shanghai. around beijing you have this low developing more of a separate one.

flurries are expected there for you and then over towards north korea. both of these combined will continue to push east. much of mainland japan by wednesday, you're looking at some sort of rainfall. a little too warm for snow in honshu but i do think that hokkaido you could see about 5 to 10 centimeters of accumulation out of this. so tokyo, high of 10 on tuesday. over insured shanghai, up to 11. south to the tropics, 20s and 30s for most of you. in to europe, western europe, we have been dealing with day in and day out these back-to-back lows. it does look like there's going to be a break in the future. right now we do have one here and this is bringing some really high wind advisories across much of spain over towards france, even a separate system moving over towards italy with some thunderstorms. but by tuesday into wednesday, this low is going to taper off, high pressure will be building in. right now london we have a high of 8. it's going to be gradually warming up and thankfully, a little break from this rough weather we've been seeing throughout the rest of the week. temperatures up into the mid teens for many of you. that's a look at your world

weather. here's the extended forecast. today is march 3rd, when people pray for girls' growth and happiness. to celebrate the event, japan

airlines operated a flight with an all-female crew. the pilot, co-pilot and four cabin attendants flew from tokyo to southwestern japan. before the morning flight, the crew along with female maintenance staff welcomed 134 passengers at the boarding gate, handing out sweet rice crackers. >> translator: it's great to see women so active at work. >> the pilot became the first female captain of a japanese airline four years ago. >> translator: the flight is unique because the crew can enjoy girl talk. but the work involved is just as serious as ever. >> the transport ministry says that as of last march, the industry had only 33 female pilots, or 0.6% of the total. only three of them serve as captains. that's "newsline" for this

hour. i'm gene owe tonny in tokyo.

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