er to honor the victims and pray for a world without war. welcome to "newsline." i'm keiko kitagawa in tokyo. in the final phase of world war ii the imperial japanese military and u.s. and allied forces engaged in fierce battles throughout the pacific. okinawa was the site of the last major ground confrontation of the war. more than 200,000 people were

killed nearly half of them civilians. japanese military operations there ended 70 years ago on june 23rd. prefectural officials organized a ceremony at the peace memorial park. around 5,400 people participated. japanese prime minister shinzo abe and ambassador caroline kennedy attended. at noon a moment of silence was observed. [ silence ] okinawa governor takeshi onaga said they continue to bear a heavy burden. >> translator: okinawa prefecture accounts for only

0.6% of japan's land area but it is home to as much as 73.8% of the u.s. military facilities that are in japan under the japan/u.s. security treaty. this excessive burden continues to affect people's everyday lives and okinawa's development. >> onaga called on the central government to hold efforts to relocate a u.s. base within his prefecture. prime minister abe expressed a sense of mourning for the victims of the battle. >> translator: i think about the countless sacrifices and fathomless blood and tears shed on this land. and i calmly bow my head filled with pain and emotion. >> abe said he will do all he can to reduce the military burden on the people of okinawa. people in okinawa marked the

anniversary by paying tribute to those who died and reliving what people went through 70 years ago. the final confrontation in the battle took place in the city of itommin. the names are carved in a wall at the peace memorial park. a 77-year-old man lost his father grandparents, and younger brother in the war. >> translator: whether it's the battle of okinawa or any other war, all wars are bad. things were difficult during the war. even afterward, we had no food and there was an outbreak of malaria. >> more than 1,000 people from inside and outside the prefecture took part in an annual peace march. among them were school children and bereaved families. participants walked for eight kilometers recreating the long

trek undertaken by the people fleeing the u.s. attacks 70 years ago. >> translator: i want the world to be a peaceful place where things are resolved through discussion rather than fighting. >> 24 sixth graders re-enacted the school girls mobilized to work as nurses. children followed the route of the nurse who is risked their lives to take food to wounded soldiers in a military hospital. >> translator: i think it's important to pass on what took place and help prevent the tragedy of war from happening again. nhk world's mingo takao reports. >> reporter: we've seen people come here to pray, lay flowers, and pay their respects. many are those who experienced the war. some were in tears. we also met some american war veterans who are back on this

island for the first time since they fought in 1945. now, this park is situated where one of the bloodiest battles was held. when the fighting escalated, many resident hs nowhere to run. what they did was instead of being captured they threw themselves off cliffs like the one we're seeing in front of us. so this park was built so that such tragedies would never be repeated. now, if you can follow me over here, this is the center of the park. you can see many stone monuments. they're called the corner stones of peace. this is where the names of people whose lives were lost in the battle of okinawa, their names are listed. it includes not only the military personnel, but also civilians who lost their lives. every year those newly identified as having lost their lives during the battle their names are added.

87 names were engraved this year. many family members and friends were never able to recover the remains of their loved ones so for them this is really the only lasting evidence of their existence. i'd like you to note though it's not just the japanese people. but also engraved on these monuments are the names of u.s. and british soldiers and people conscripted from taiwan and the korean peninsula. these monuments are symbols of respect for everyone regardless of nation, race, or religion. now, as time passes the memories of the war fade with it. so park staff are concerned and they want young people to learn more about what happened 70 years ago. we were able to witness some of those events last night. yesterday the pathways here were

lit with 7,000 candles. in one area they spelled out the word which means peace. we also were able to see the number 70 to mark this anniversary. visitors also wrote messages on paper lanterns and then they floated them on a pond. this kind of ritual is done to comfort the souls of those who lost their lives in the battle. >> reporter: in the coming hours, we will be seeing more events being held to commemorate this 70th year. so for the people of okinawa, it will be a day of reflection prayer and remembrance. remnants of the war's lethal legacy is still being found reminding people of a time they

would rather forget. nhk world's june yoe samoto reports. >> reporter: construction workers in this suburb have uncovered a sleeping monster. a u.s.-made world war ii bomb. and their discovery sent people within the radius of 160 meters fleeing for safety. residents from this neighborhood have been ordered to leave so that crews can get rid of the bomb. it's a danger they've been forced to live with for 70 years but one they've never grown accustomed to. >> translator: i never get used to it. i've had more than enough of the war. >> reporter: it's just one of

the battle scars left over from iron typhoon. 200,000 tons of ordinance was dropped on the island. spread out, it would equal one bomb for every postcard sized piece of land. more than 2,000 tons are believed to still be hidden underground. and they're still wreaking havoc. at least 700 people have been killed since the war. and six years ago, a construction worker lost his sight after a 250 kilo bomb exploded in the city on okinawa's main island. self-defense forces experts are deployed to okinawa to deal with the issue.

>> reporter: members take calls 24 hours a day. they never know when an uninvited guest will show up from underground. on average they get sent out twice a day. okinawa is going through a building boom with condos and resort hotels. unexploded bombs are most often found on construction sites. so strict safety measures are now enforced. one architect demonstrated those measures at the site of a new apartment building in naha. >> translator: we need to do a survey covering the whole construction site. >> reporter: he says while the measures are necessary, there is an economic loss. the survey itself takes two weeks. and if a bomb is found, there

will be a delay of at least a month for disposal work. he says the underground threat is slowing okinawa's development. >> translator: work that's unimaginable for mainland japan is being done in okinawa as if it were normal. that's a part of the war we inherited from our parents and have to pass down even though we don't want to to our children and grandchildren. >> reporter: experts estimate the bomb disposal operations will draw out the consequences of the war for another 70 years. jun yotsumoto, nhk world, okinawa. personnel from japan's maritime self-defense force and the philippine navy have held a

full joint drill in the sea. it's the first time they've done that. the exercise comes as china increases activities in the region. those taking part used a philippine military base on the island as the center of operations. japanese personnel flew a p-3-c patrol plane in a search and rescue drill. the base is near the spratly islands where china has carried out reclamation. the philippines began a separate drill with u.s. forces on monday. the philippines, china, and several other parties in the region are involved in a territorial dispute over the spratly islands. some u.s. officials have expressed the hope that japan will cooperate in surveillance of the south china sea. officials from the united states and china are getting ready to sit down to seek common ground on sensitive issues. they'll be meeting in washington on tuesday for the annual talks known as the strategic and economic dialogue. the discussions will be cochaired by u.s. secretary of

state john kerry and treasury secretary jack lew along with yang jiech and wang yen. u.s. officials are demanding that the work be stopped. they say it deviates from international rules. but chinese authorities insist they won't give up on plans to build a military stronghold in the area. another item on the agenda will likely be the china-led asian infrastructure investment bank. u.s. officials have declined to take part in the project. delegates will also discuss deregulation of china's currency exchange system. china' vice foreign minister sat down with u.s. officials ahead of the dialogue. they discussed issues such as cyber security and military cooperation. the four co-chairs are scheduled to hold a news conference on wednesday after the close of discussions.

u.s. president barack obama says sanctions against north korea will stay in place for another year. it's a response to the north's nuclear and missile development program. american leaders aim to put further pressure on the country with support from japan and south korea. obama notified congress about the extension. the sanctions were set to expire on friday. they include freezing north korean assets. and u.s. citizens are barred from owning north korea-registered vessels. the sanctions have been extended every year since first put into place in 2008. american officials added fresh financial sanctions earlier this year. they were imposed in response to a cyber attack on a sony subsidiary. leaders in pyongyang have seemed to not change their stance over the programs. they announced last month they had successfully test fired a ballistic missile from a submarine. foreign ministers from the

european union are keeping up the pressure on russia's leaders. they have decided to extend economic sanctions over ukraine for six more months. the ministers announced their decision. the sanctions were set to expire on july 31st. members agreed to keep them in place until the end of january. ukraineian government officials reached a cease-fire agreement in february. but the minister says it hasn't been implemented and sporadic fighting continues in eastern regions. >> everybody wishes that the situation can be overcome as soon as possible but this needs to be linked to an improvement of the situation in the east of ukraine. >> russian officials expressed deep disappointment. one said it's wrong for

upholding the truce on russia. the japanese government's top spokesperson says the dates for next year's g7 summit are may 26 and 27. it will be japan's turn to host the annual meeting of major industrialized countries. yoshihide suga says the government decided the dates together with other group of seven nations. he says the government will do its best to ensure that the ise-shima summit will be a success. it will be held in central japan. suga says that officials from the cabinet secretaryiat ministries will take place along sooitd the summit. suga says it has not been decided whether to invite russian president vladimir putin. talks on greece's future has been continuing in europe. gene otani from the business desk has the details. so what's happening now? >> some very important meetings going on there. leaders of the eurozone have

been holding emergency talks as they try to keep greece from defaulting on its debts. some hope a deal can be reached this week but not everyone says an agreement is possible. the leaders met in brussels on monday to discuss. eurozone leaders and the international creditors have been pressing greece to carry out such reforms as a condition for financial aid. >> the negotiations have been stalled for too long. with the greek proposal today, i believe that we have taken that step. >> tusk says negotiators need to meet again this week to discuss the proposal. but some leaders appear to be skeptical of the plan. >> translator: there is still a lot of work that needs to be done and we are running out of time.

>> greek prime minister alexis tsipras says the creditors have accepted the proposal as a basis for discussion. he says that european leaders now have to decide whether to accept it. greece needs bailout funds to avoid defaulting on a loan worth $1.8 billion. payment is due at the end of the month. during the meeting, around 7,000 people gathered in athens. protesters called on the government to compromise and remain in the eu. >> we would like our government to negotiate to get the best deal for greece but in the same time we do not want our membership in the european union to be questioned for any reason. >> scuffles broke out between demonstrators and people opposed to austerity measures. the latest poll shows more than half of respondents want the government to strike a deal with the eu even if it means

accepting austerity. investors around the world regained their risk appetite hoping a deal will come out of the talks. nikkei closed at its highest level in about 15 years following rallies in europe and the u.s. the index finished the day up nearly 1.9% at 20,809. that's the biggest one-day gain this year. investors are buying a wide range of shares especially in the insurance and banking sectors. and a weaker yen pushed up export-related issues. a government draft released yesterday also boosted sentiment. the report outlines the new growth strategy with the aim of raising industrial productivity. moving onto china, the latest numbers came out this morning. hsbc manufacturing came in for june as 49.6%. slightly higher than market estimates. the shanghai composite reacted with a big bounce. it touched a one-month low and

shot up to the end of the session more than 2% higher at 4,576. the index recovered from a plunge last week. seoul's kospi extended its winning streak to a fifth day. it ended up 1.3% at 2,081. that's the sharpest gain in nearly two months. let's look at other markets of the asia pacific region. hong kong .9%. but the philippines composite index fell more than 0.7%. two top executives at one of japan's biggest tire companies are set to step down to limit damage over a scandal involving their products. the executives of toyo tire and rubber are taking responsibility for the faulty shock absorbers. the products are designed to

help buildings resist earthquakes, but the maker had illegally obtained approval for its substandard equipment. the chairman will resign as of july 1st. the president will step down only after the project to replace the parts is near completion. he says he will resign by the end of the year at the latest. it has been revealed that shock absorbers not up to standard were used in 450 buildings nationwide. the president of nissan motor has reported taking home a hefty payment last year. carlos ghosn's earnings topped 1 billion yen or $8.4 million. ghosn made the announcement. his payment was 1 billion 35

yen. company officials attributed it to brisk earnings, but some questioned whether the executive's pay was too high. ghosn said he's seen some head hunted by rivals. that's it for business news. i'll leave you with the markets. it's time to check in on the world weather. a tropical storm is bringing rains and high winds. jonathan oh has the details. >> hello. this particular storm that's moving closer toward the mainland portion of china is not

particularly strong in terms of a typhoon status but it is packing a lot of wet weather with it. i wanted to show you some video. keep a close eye on what you see on the ground level. when it comes to the trees, might not look as impressive but the winds created rough seas. you'll see it in a just a bit. authorities having to evacuate 40,000 people in more than 20,000 fishing boats being called back to the harbor. you can see here some of the boats still out there bouncing out in the rough seas. so firefighters have to rescue people trapped on those boats. also it brought about 300 millimeters of rainfall in about 24 hours. the flip side of the equation yes, it's a lot of rain. but several reservoirs have dried up in that region so this rain is a bit helpful with that situation. this system is a slow mover though. moving toward the west at 10 kilometers per hour. packing winds of 72 with gusts

up to 108. we're looking at the rainfall totals to pick right back up as we go throughout the next 72 hours. some areas could see close to 200 millimeters of rainfall over a period of 72 hours. that's something we'll keep an eye on as we go into the next couple of days. meanwhile the rainy season continues extending into the western portions of japan. that's going to continue to bring some rainfall into the next few days. here's a look at the forecast. we're looking at rain and thunderstorms from beijing down to shanghai and down into hong kong and chongqing. we may see the sun peek in from time to time. but relatively cloudy conditions as we continue to see the rainy season in place. the rain picks up friday and saturday. kagoshima back to the west seeing wet weather. and towards naha seeing the dry conditions and sunny conditions. highs in the low 30s for the rest of the week. we're going to look at the forecast for north america.

notice the clouds building into the great lakes. there were 13 tornado reports that came out of this particular system as we went through the day. cold front pushing towards the east. wrapping this around. this is slamming into the warm air. that's where we're seeing the high chance for another severe weather situation as we go through tuesday. enhanced risk north of new york into massachusetts and also into places like vermont and new hampshire. so look out for that. but even a slight risk extended out to washington, d.c. and as far south as kentucky. and also back over into the dakotas is a lookout for the possibility of tornadoes with flash flooding and strong thunderstorms in place. again, very active weather pattern on the eastern seaboard of the united states as we go through tuesday. a quick look at what's happening in europe. we have a low pressure system moving across central portions of the continent through tuesday. hope you have a good day wherever you are.

here's your extended outlook. one more story before we go. the prestigious berlin fill har monic orchestra has elected its new conductor. officials announced petrenko was chosen by a vote.

he will take over in 2018. he was described as an introvert and a perfectionist. the berlin philharmonic is known for their conductors. ♪ petrenko is 43 years old. he was born into a musical family in siberia. the family emigrated to austria in 1990. he has been serving as director of the state opera since 2013. his selection seems to have surprised many classical music fans. the berlin philharmonic had held rounds of voting in may. opinions were split over german venezuelan, and other candidates. that concludes this edition of "newsline." i'm keiko kitagawa in tokyo. thank you for joining us.

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' register a new bailout deal by thursday. fighting in eastern ukraine continues despite the four-month-old cease-fire. new talks with russia are set for tonight here in paris. and another paris news, the french capital may have lost it olympic bid for 28 and 2012, but it is doing all it can to lock in its bid for 2024. the classic piece