wednesday. i'm james tengan in tokyo. here's some of the stories we're following this hour. russia's president is warning of consequences after the turkish military shot down one of his country's war planes. french president francois hollande has met with president obama in washington. they vowed to increase cooperation to defeat the

islamic state militant group. and the united nations has condemned new border restrictions on refugees and migrants that some balkan countries have imposed. fresh tensions are rising in one of the most watched conflict zones. turkish military officials say a russian war plane they shot down on the border with syria violated their airspace. russia's president is warning of consequences. nhk world has more. >> reporter: the drama unfolded tuesday morning on the other side of turkey's border. russian military officials say the area is controlled by anti-government militants. the crew members escaped by parachute but one was killed by gunfire from the ground. russian helicopters were sent in to rescue them but were attacked as well. this video posted online by militants shows the helicopter attack. a crew member on board was also killed. these are the first combat casualties since the start of

russia's airstrikes in syria. >> translator: today's loss for us was a stab in the back from terrorist accomplices. >> reporter: russia is warning of consequences. foreign minister sergei lavrov has canceled a trip to turkey and has urged other russians to refrain from traveling there. the turkish president shot back. erdogan argued that the russian crew ignored repeated warnings to leave turkish airspace. he's criticizing moscow's air strikes near his border. russia claims they're targeting islamic state militants, but erdogan says they're not involved there. the united nations is seeking to dampen tensions. >> the secretary general urges all relevant parties to take urgent measures with a view to de-escalate the tensions. >> reporter: u.s. president obama also emphasized the

importance of de-escalating the situation. over the phone wither doegan. he expressed the nato support for turkey's right to defend its sovereignty. it comes at a time when terrorist attacks had boosted momentum. but concerns are rising that the tensions between moscow and ankara could be a setback. the leaders of france and the united states are vowing to step up their fight against islamic state militants. francois hollande and president obama following the meetingt the white house. nhk world's susan cook has more in washington. >> reporter: hollande is making his first trip abroad since the terrorist attacks in paris earlier this month which killed 130 people. obama says the u.s. will stand together with the people of france as they grieve. and he reiterated the two countries have been coordinating

their efforts in the fight against the militant group. >> u.s. assistance has supported recent french strikes in syria, and we're going to keep stepping up that coordination. >> reporter: obama said their countries will play a central role as a multi-national coalition sets up airstrikes against islamic state militants. he also spoke about boosting intelligence sharing to select airstrike targets and to trace foreign fighters. the two leaders said the syrian civil war must be brought to an end, eradicating a hotbed of islamic state militants. president hollande said a peace plan agreed upon in vienna earlier this month is key to ending the bloodshed. >> translator: on the diplomatic front, we're working on a credible transition plan in syria. we need to put in place a cease-fire, the faster the better. and open a process that will lead to the exit of bashar al-assad. >> reporter: tharemark was

apparently aimed at russia and iran. both countries continue to support syrian president bashar al-assad. an expert on u.s./russia relations says it's hard to predict whether the kremlin will cooperate in the fight against the militants. and the downing of a russian war plane by the turkish military has complicated matters even more. >> prepared to go after islamic state and make that the focus of their activities, then you can see a basis of cooperation between russia and the united states and the western coalition, but i'm not yet sure we've seen that decision taken in moscow. >> reporter: following his visit to washington, french president hollande will fly to moscow this coming thursday. there, he will meet with president putin to try to persuade him to work together in a broad international coalition to counter the islamic state group. sara cook, nhk world, washington.

>> sara, thank you. the european commission is offering financial aid to turkey to help curb the massive flow of asylum seekers and migrants into europe. the aid package will total $3.2 billion. or three billion euros. nearly 900,000 people have arrived in europe. the turkish government does not supply sufficient support. there's no sign that the flow of refugees will slow any time soon. to tackle the issue, the eu and turkey agreed last month on coordinated efforts to deal with the refugee crisis. but eu member nations are becoming reluctant to accept asylum seekers, especially after the paris attacks earlier this month. there are fears extremists could be among the refugees. they are planning a summit sun to discuss ways to discuss the refugee crisis.

the u.n. has condemned some refugee restrictions based on nationalities. >> it has worsened for people seeking asylum. and that's a very major concern. but the point we've consistently made that border protection and asylum are compatible objectives. >> edwards says the governments of macedonia and serbia e only allowing nationals of syria, iraq and afghanistan to enter. about 1,000 people have been stranded at the border between macedonia and greece. he said with winter approaching, countries should accept refugees and migrants regardless of nationality. the canadian government has reaffirm its plan to accept 25,000 refugees, but the deadline will be extended from the end of this year to the end of february. >> we want to do it fast, but we want to do it right. and i have heard canadians across this country saying yes, you have to do it right.

and if it takes a little bit longer to do it wright -- right, then take the extra time. >> the government says the project will cost about $510 million u.s. over six years. that includes airlifting refugees from turkey, lebanon, and jordan. the canadian government says it will tighten screening measures including the use of biometrics to allay security fears. in the united states, the house of representatives passed a week last week to suspend barack obama's plan to admit at least 10,000 refugees from syria. investigators in belgium have issued an international arrest warrant for another suspect in the paris attacks. the investigators on tuesday leased photos of 30-year-old mohammed abrini. they say security camera footage shows abrini with another suspect who is on the run. they were at a gas station in

northern france in a car that was used in the attacks on november 13th. the footage was taken two days before that. belgian officials are appealing for any information to help capture abrini, but warn people should be on the alert because he could be armed. in the past week, investigators have raided numerous places in belgium and arrested five people for their suspected involvement in the attacks. in the previous "newsline" we stated the paris attacks occurred last week, but they did in fact occurred november 13th. we apollogise for that. japan's supreme court has ruled that a disparity in the value of one vote in last year's lower house election was in a state of unconstitutionality,

but the court dismissed the plaintiff's demand to nullify the election. two groups of lawyers had filed lawsuits around the country, demanding that the results of last december's election be nullified. in that election, a ballot cast in the least-populace constituency was worth 2.123 times of a more populated one. they claimed that it violated voter equality. before reaching the supreme court, the case was heard by high courts and high court branches. none of them nullified the election. one found it to be unconstitutional. 12 said it was held in a state of unconstitutionality and four said it was constitutional. on wednesday, the highest court's grand bench ruled that the disparity was in a state of unconstitutionality. it was the third time in a row that a top court judged a lower house vote to be in such a state. the earlier rulings came in 2009 and 2012. >> translator: the court ruling that the situation is in a state of unconstitutionality is very serious to this country. >> translator: the judgment avoided clearly ruling the

situation to be unconstitutional. the result wasn't new, and so it was a disappointing one. >> translator: i'm taking the ruling very seriously. the issue is being considered by a third panel under the lower house speaker. i want to take a close look at what the panel finds. >> the panel is expected to submit a report to the lower house speaker as early as the beginning of next year. japan's policy makers have come up with a road map to get the most from a free trade deal and jump start the economy. gene otani from the business desk has more on that and other headlines, gene. >> thanks, james. the japanese government has adopted new guidelines on the tpp. it aims to aid the impact on domestic farmers. there was a broad agreement on

the tpp last month. >> translator: we will take advantage of what the tpp offers, with public understand ing and support, we will make the japanese economy stronger. >> the guidelines decided on wednesday set a numerical target for food-related exports, including agriculture and fisheries. the deadline for the target has been brought forward from the original date of 2020. the government plans to support farmers who demonstrate outstanding management skills. it will also i am implement regulatory and tax system reforms. the government will buy domestic rice for stockpiling as a measure to protect agriculture. the amount of rice to be bought will be equivalent to extra imports from the u.s. and australia. measures are also included to

help cattle farmers if they suffer losses. 90% of lost income will be covered up from the current 80%. the government also wants central and local authorities to cooperate more closely in helping smaller businesses establish themselves globally. the target is 60% or higher. the new out line is not the final details. minutes from a bank of japan meeting last month showed many of its board members said they should carry out further easing if the slowdown in emerging economies affects the underlying inflation trend in japan. the policy makers at the october 30th meeting decided to maintain current monetary easing measures. they also pushed back the expected timing for inflation to reach the boj's target of 2%. the new time frame is around the second half of the next fiscal year.

the minutes show most members argued the delay is mainly due to the decline in crude oil prices but they agreed the underlying trend in inflation has been improving steadily. some members acknowledged prices would not reach 2% by the projected period. the policy makers agreed that risks to economic activity and prices were skewed to the down side. the u.n. high commissioner for refugees has called on japanese companies to provide jobs and relief supplies to assist displaced people. antonio batares spoke with the operator of a clothing chain. it's been providing clothing and other support to refugees. >> i would like to see other companies in japan and around the world assume the same kind of engagement in favor of humanitarian causes and

engagement is more necessary than ever. >> the u.n. executives spoke as calls grew following the deadly attacks in paris to help refugees. >> translator: the government and the united nations alone cannot handle all the challenges we face. private businesses and individuals should play a role. >> fast retailing also plans to provide $10 million in relief funds and send 150,000 clothing items to refugees in europe. moving on to markets, tokyo stocks closed lower on wednesday as the douning a russian jet by turkey weighed on investor

sentiment. >> stocks were lower all day here in tokyo as the stronger yen as geopolitical concerns increased. tokyo snapped its five-day winning streak. let's see where they ended their day on wednesday. the nikkei closed down .4% at 19,847 and the broad every topic fell .7% to 1,594. currency markets, dealers sold the dollar on news of the downing of the russian military jet. airlines took a hit on geopolitical concerns because people might now refrain from traveling abroad. japan airline is down .9% and ana holdings down 1.7%. on the other hand, sharp ended the day flat. we saw some volatility in the

markets partly caused by geopolitical developments but one analyst said by judging by the solid recovery, the trend may have hit its peak, and he said since russia and turkey have strong trading ties. it's better for them not to take drastic actions when the economy at home is luggish. moving on to other markets in the asia pacific region. in china, the shanghai composite climbed 0.9%, shares of high tech companies led the index. higher commodity prices led to a boost. the philippines rose .95%. singapore lost 1.1% after the

government revised down the country's gop outlook for the year. hong kong slipped .04%. now a look at some of the other business stories we're following. japanese government officials say the nation's economy remains on a moderate recovery path although weakness remains in some areas. the cabinet office kept its economic assessment for november unchanged from the previous month. the monthly report cites improvements in employment but says companies are cautious about investigating dsh investing in plants and equipment due to the economic slowdown. officials say the services producer price index was up 0.5% from a year earlier, a 28% increase. a jump in the amount of foreign tourists helped push the index higher. japan will support a bid by thailand to join the tpp trade

pact. amari says tpp member nations will sign the agreement in february at the earliest. it offers thailand great advantages. a recent survey suggests many young singles want to get married but are having difficulty finding that special someone and more businesses are coming up with ideas to find them the perfect match. nhk world has more. >> reporter: this party might seem like a typical get together for young people. but not everyone is allowed to attend. each person must sign a pledge that says they aren't married. a leading company organized the event. company officials know that some

singles don't want to seem like they are desperate to find a partner. so they attend the party on shared interests like japanese sake. >> translator: i know people who went to events like this and met someone special, even life partners. >> translator: i can't meet many people at work. it's real exciting to meet single men with different careers. >> reporter: the party drew a total of 250 people. and about 20 of them were able to find a boyfriend or girl friend. >> translator: many people these days don't like to give the impression that they're so serious about finding a partner. so these parties can help satisfy the need of the younger generation. >> reporter: the publisher of a leading magazine is taking a different approach to matchmaking. it began an online dating system.

the unique point of this service is this web page. users complete a survey with qutions, like what they joy doing during their down time. the system uses an algorithm to find the most suitable matches. then it suggests four potential partners to clients each day. when clients choose a profile, the system adjusts the algorithm to better select the future candidate. >> translator: we don't just consider criteria like age and location. things like sharing similar values are very important. >> reporter: another matchmaker is trying to stand apart by tailoring its services to individual customers. these two people look like they are on a date, but their relationship is of a different kind.

the woman is matchmaker, and the man is her client. she will not only introduce him to potential partners, she'll give him tips on how to carry out a relationship. >> translator: now, let's enjoy the meal. don't just concentrate on eating. >> reporter: the client usually eats alone at work. so he's not used to enjoying a pleasant meal with a woman. >> translator: it's really nice to have a professional give me advice. because she knows things that a lot of men don't know. >> reporter: she works with clients until they find the

exact person they are looking for. she gets a contingency fee when one of them gets married. >> translator: many men aren't so smooth the first time they meet someone. the goal of the lessons is to make potential partners want to see them again. >> reporter: with more japanese people seeking out help to find a life partner, the business relationship is getting serious. keiko aso, nhk world, tokyo. >> that's it for business news. i'm going to leave you with the markets. ♪ ♪

you are watching "newsline" live from tokyo. jonathan oh joins us with this forecast starting with southern europe. i think we're going to see things calming down just a little bit. we have a low pressure system that is still located in the northern portions of the mediterranean sea and it is slowly moving its way toward the east, so still tapping into the moisture and it's going to bring some areas of rain, heavy rainfall and also some thunderstorms. we're talking about areas south of rome into athens and the southern portions of the balkan peninsula as this low slowly pushes toward the east. that's not the only area dealing with rain. north of the peninsula is going to shoot in more rain into the alps. you will need your jackets because look at the highs here.

we're talking about single digit highs from stockholm, 3 with a cold rain in place. 2 in vienna. 9 in paris also with a cold rain and even into spain we're seeing highs in the teens as opposed to in the 20s that we're used to looking at there in terms of looking at the forecast. make sure you bundle up because it's going to be a bit cold as we go throughout the day. moscow, you are not going to reach freezing as we go through the afternoon hours. the forecast for japan, we're talking about also a bit of cool air mass in place because of that flow coming in from the north and we're also seeing some snowfall into the northern portion of japan. 48 centimeters and we're talking about possibly even more snowfall as we go throughout the day thursday. yes, the big low forcing mechanism has moved toward the east but we have more moisture back toward the west and the cold air is going to be

lingering in the area and rainfall will be part of the story for central and western japan as we go throughout the day thursday, you need your umbrella there. the forecast, sapporo, you are looking at flurries, thursday and friday. nagana, a chilly day thursday. nagasaki looking a bit wet. north america, a big travel day coming up as we're dealing with a big holiday on thursday. those of you located to the pacific northwest and points southeast ward, we're talking about the possibility of snow extending into portions of the rockies and as far north as wisconsin into ontario. flash flooding may be a concern. those of you flying through dallas and chicago, it may be a little bit of a delay with all

the rainfall taking place. hopefully we won't be dealing much in terms of snowfall. that would be mainly concentrated over toward the rocky and maybe over nevada as we go throughout the day wednesday and thursday. travel forecast, oklahoma city and los angeles, chilly to vancouver and seattle, dry in the east coast looking pretty good. los angeles, you'll need your umbrella along with chicago as we go through the next few days. i hope you have a good day wherever we are. here's your extended outlook. ♪ ♪

don't forget to watch "newsroom tokyo" at the top of the hour. in the meantime, stay with us ú

1r >> the time is now. >> 12 hours for the planet. >> welcome back to the france 24 newsroom. time for 60 minutes around the world. these are the headlines. russia warns there could be serious consequences following the downing of one of its military planes. turkey says it shut down that aircraft after it warned several times to leave its airspace. the french president gets support from the u.s. but not the firm backing he was hoping for.