hello and welcome to this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm raja pradhan in tokyo with the latest at this hour. rescue teams in turkey and syria are still scrambling to find survivors in the rubble after this week's devastating earthquakes, but the death toll continues to grow. turkey's leader is facing anger over the country's response to the disaster. stories of survival are still emerging three days after the first quake. rescuers pulled a baby out of the debris of a collapsed building on wednesday. media reports say the child was

not seriously harmed. they say rescuers also found a family of four alive in the wreckage elsewhere in the country. the quakes leveled buildings across vast swaths of turkey and syria. more than 16,000 people have been confirmed dead. the u.n. says about 10 million peop in syria he been affected. that's around half the country's population, which has suffered through more than a decade of civil war. the u.n. says it is struggling to deliver aid. >> what we can do, we have to do it togeer, driven by the need we just hopehat the political considerations and so on will get out of the way and let us do our work. >> the quakes are also affecting syrian refugees. some who died in turkey had fled the war. others who survived are now in an even more desperate situation. >> translator: we are helpless. we have no hope.

we lost everything when we fled syria, and now we've lost it all again. no home and no jobs. >> meanwhile, turkey's president is answering criticism over the earthquake response. during a visit to the disaster zone, erdogan acknowledged there have been problems. many complained rescuers were slow to arrive and lacked equipment, support and expertise. north korean leader kim jong-un presided over a military parade in pyongyang wednesday night that showcased his country's intercontinental ballistic missiles. state tv is broadcasting an event that marks the 75th anniversary of the country's armed forces. it was the first large-scale parade since april last year. state media say the parade showed units with tactical nuclear weapons and long-distance cruise missiles. weapons at the event included

the largest icbm, launched last november. new types of missiles could also be seen on a massive mobile launcher. analysts say they may include a new solid fuel icbm. kim attended the parade with his wife and daughter but did not deliver a speech. kim has said the country needs to mass produce tactical nuclear weapons. he ordered his military to exponentially increase production of nuclear warheads and develop a newicbm in 2023, which is the third year of the north's current five-year defense plan. for a closer look at the parade, kawasaki rika earlier spoke to our seoul bureau chief. >> shohei, the photos we've seen of the parade show a lot of hardware on display. what stuck out to you? >> well, these parades are obviously a chance for north korea to show off its overall military might, but pyongyang's

recent icbms really are the main event. as you mentioned, some of the images published appear to show its largest model, the hwasong-17. it is said to be able to hit the u.s. mainland, making it the flagship against what it considers threats from washington. as you also mentioned, something new was on display which could mark a big technological jump. experts analyzing the images say some of the icbms appear to be designed for solid fuel. that would make them much quicker to launch than the liquid fuel variants pyongyang has stockpiled, thus, much more dangerous in a conflict. >> last year, we saw a record number of launches, including missiles that flew over japan. are we expecting more of the same this year? >> most likely. i mean, we haven't seen any indication kim jong-un is intending to back down from what

has been a very hawkish attitude against the u.s. and south korea. on the flip side, washington and seoul have kept up the pressure with joint drills. this month, they held exercises with b-1 bombers and f-35 stealth fighters just off the peninsula. these are tting-edge aircraft that pyongyang knows have a good chance of knocking out their missile launch pads and other defenses should fighting break out. north korea likely won't last long in conventional combat. it doesn't have the technology for that. that's where icbms come in and likely why they're keen to show off these solid fuel models. if they can get their warheads in the air before enemy jets can disable them, that gives them an edge. you have to understand, icbms are so important. they have become cultural tou touchstones in north korea.

we have images from an event on tuesday where we can see kim jong-un's wife wearing a pendant in the shape of what looks like a hwasong-17. now, this might look silly to an outside observer, seeing a country's first lady with a mini missile on a necklace, but i think it shows how important the symbolism of the country's nuclear and missile program has become. so i wouldn't be surprised if the north picks up where they left off last year, with frequent ballistic missile tests. people in eastern parts of japan are bracing for a winter storm on friday. it could cause problems here in the capital, where snow is not a common sight. weather officials expect the snow to fall in a wide area, including central tokyo. they're calling on drivers to be

careful on the roads as low temperatures are forecast to extend through saturday morning. people are being asked to avoid non-essential outings to avoid getting stuck in the snow. officials are also worried about large trucks in the region that may not be equipped with winter tires. they're telling commuters in the greater tokyo area to keep a close eye on weather and traffic updates. our meteorologist jonathan oh has more on the storm's path and what people in the region should watch out for. >> hello. we do have a system that is moving in from the west, and it is going to be traveling along the pacific side of the country. that's going to be leading to the possibility of some snow into the etern areas of japan. not something we talk about very often in the tokyo area. we've been talking about snow to the north, but this is going to be the issue. as the low moves to the north and east and high pressure brings in the cold air, we'll see the snow during the daytime hours. that can cause a lot of issues when it comes to travel and things like that. here's the forecast. we'll start things off early on friday morning. keep an eye out for the white

colors which indicate snow and blue areas indicating rain. we go through the early to mid-morning hours, and we'll see the rain spraying toward the north and east. by time we go to the noon hour, we're looking at widespread snow possibilities into the region, then spreading to the north and east, northern portions in the latter part of the day into saturday. here's a look at the timeline for tokyo. looking at snow picking up likely around 9:00 and going through the day time hours. we're looking at the possibility of up to -- i want to emphasize that -- up to 5 centimeters of snow in tokyo. the higher totals will be further to the north and west, closer toward the mountain areas. make sure that if you have to go out, make sure to add a lot of extra time for traveling. the snow can get things messy. and be careful when you're walking out and about because these shoes can be very slippery under the slick conditions. we'll have more coming up in a few minutes. staying with japan, nhk has

learned the government is set to lift its recommendation people should wear masks. it could happen as early as next month. the government currently recommends that masks be worn indoors to prevent coronavirus infections. but it plans to suggest people make their own decisions on masks starting in the first half of march. to help people decide, the health ministry is considering issuing notices about situations where masks would effective, such as when elderly people and others at risk of serious illness go to crowded places. the move comes as the government is preparing to recategorize the coronavirus into the same group as seasonal influenza on may 8th. ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy is on his second trip abroad since the start of russia's invasion.

he's set to join eu leaders at a summit in brussels. before that, he stopped in paris to meet with french president emmanuel macron and german chancellor olaf scholz. the three spoke to reporters before the talk. zelenskyy said france and yerm ge germany can be game-changers and asked for more military support. >> translator: russia cannot and must not win. as long as it continues to attack, it will be necessary that we continue and adapt the military support vital to preserving ukraine and its future. >> scholz pledged ongoing support for as long as necessary. zelenskyy visited britain earlier on his trip. he pushed prime minister sunak for more weapons. zelenskyy added to the pressure in an address to parliament.

>> a simple and yet one of the most important wars, aircraft for ukraine, wings for freedom. >> sunak has british pilots will train their counterparts on how to fly nato aircraft, but he pushed back against zelenskyy's request to send jets for now. >> nothing is off the table, and that's because we're determined to ensure that the president and his people can be victorious against russian aggression. >> sunak has tasked his defense secretary with looking into whether the government can provide jets over the long term. russian diplomats warn any such deliveries would have consequences for europe and the world. in other news, the u.s. defense department says the chinese balloon that flew over the country last week was part of a large-scale surveillance program. the device was shot down off the u.s. east coast on saturday. beijing says it was civilian

craft mainly used for weather research but washington believes it was a spy balloon. the pentagon says there were at least four other flight over the united states by chinese spy balloons in the past few years, including above sites that would be of interest to beijing. officials say chinese balloons have also been found operating over five continents. >> the prc continues to remain our challenge, and i think they have a lot of explaining to do when it comes to conducting these types of programs and violating nations' air space and sovereignty. >> similar objects were spotted over japan in june 2020 and september 2021. tokyo says it is checking for any possible links to the incident in the u.s. members of the town assembly of japan's western most island have asked the central government to set up evacuation shelters. the request comes as china ramps up military activities in waters around the taiwan strait.

the members submitted the proposal thursday to defense minister. the island in okinawa is about 110 kilometers from taiwan. last august, six baa mystic missiles fired by china landed in waters near yonoguni when they conducted military drills near taiwan. members say the lives and safety of residents will be threatened in the event of an attack involving taiwan. >> translator: people in the town are worried. we told the minister it is necessary to set up shelters as temporary evacuation sites in order to dispel their concerns. >> hamada told them his ministry would consider setting up the shelters while coordinating with the cabinet secretariat.

♪ all right. we now bring back our meteorologist jonathan oh for more on the weather here and elsewhere. >> hello. japan is bracing for the possibility of some good winter weather in terms of the amount of snow that will be taking place in the eastern areas of the country as we go into friday. low pressure developing out of china, moving toward the north and east, and moving parallel along the pacific coastline. it is going to be leading to that snowfall with the high pressure bringing in that chilly air from the north. and so we are looking at anywhere up to 5 centimeters of snowfall possible in the central areas of tokyo in the 23 ward. then as you go from the north and west, closer toward the mountainous areas, we could see

up to 40 centimeters of snowfall up until saturday morning, during a 24-hour period. i want to emphasize that if you're going to be in the area where we expect snow, timing wise, we're looking somewhere from daytime hours, mid-morning all the way through the rest of the day. you need to be on the lookout to be careful on the roadways especially if you have to be out. if possible, you may want to be able to stay home. that would be the best approach to this. snow from tokyo points northward on friday, back to the west and south. it's wet, so it is going to be a wet and chilly place in fukuoka and osaka on friday. speaking of winter weather, we look at new mexico. i wanted to show you video coming out of there. as the mountainous areas of the state were coated in snow wednesday, several roads were difficult to pass due to slick conditions. authorities in the area say freezing fog could also cause disrupti disruptions. motorists were urged to take

measures to stay safe. the low moving to the south and east. another low ahead of that bringing storms into the southeastern areas of the united states, bringing snow to the upper midwest throughout the day on thursday. be on the lookout for that. here's the forecast. denver, snow with a high of 2. rain and thunderstorms for oklahoma city to atlanta as we go through the day. hope you have a good day wherever you are. ♪ ♪

♪ that wraps up this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm raja pradhan in tokyo. coming up next is "newsline biz" with ramin mellegard, so don't go away.

♪ this is "newsline biz." i'm ramin mellegard. now, it's no secret the japanese government wants to get foreign visitor numbers back up to pre-pandemic levels, but officials also hope that returning tourists will spend more than before. now, a draft plan calls for measures to push spending per visitor up 25% by 2025. it is the first time officials discussed revising japan's basic tourism strategy in six years. they want individual spending reach 200,000 yen or $1,500, an

increase of $300 from 2019. now, the previous approach focused on visitor numbers. the new draft plan aims more at extracting economic benefits from tourism. prime minister kishida fumio has also set a goal for the inbound tourism industry. he says it would -- should generate 5 trillion yen or 38 bl billion dollars annually. the government plans to work out the basic plan next month. now, one hotel operator in tokyo is already taking steps to increase the appeal to wealthy foreign visitors by offering more spacious accommodation. the palace hotel introduced six remodelled suites with a floor space of 90 square meters each last march to attract guests with a budget of several thousand dollars a night. now, the hotel saw the number of foreign guests rise after the government eased coronavirus restrictions on arrivals in

october. foreigners accounted for about 70% of its occupancy the following month, returning to pre-pandemic levels. now, the operator says the average room rate hit a record high of more than $600 a night in december. >> translator: we hope foreign guests will experience good service in japan and will want to come back again. we're aiming to create this virtuous cycle. >> some foreign chains plan to open luxury hotels in tokyo, kyoto and other parts of japan by the middle of the decade. now, toyota motors says it posted record sales for the april to december period, helped by the weak yen, but net profit was dragged down by high raw material costs. the japanese automotive giant says group sales came to 27 trillion yen or $209 billion in the nine-month period, up 18% from a year earlier in yen

terms. sales increased in north america and southeast asia, but net profit dropped 18%, slightly less than $11.9 trillion yen or $14 billion. p there was losses due to toyota's withdraw from russia. toyota trimmed the goal to 9.1 million units, a cut of 100,000. it blamed a shortage of semiconductors. banks doing business with toshiba want the firm to allow more monitoring as a precondition for future loans. now, toshiba has been trying to end turmoil caused by ongoing tension with foreign activist investors. the firm is now considering a plan by an investment fund to take it private. the proposal by japan industrial

partners calls for a fall takeover. this would be done through financing from a group of japanese companies and loans from major banks. on thursday, lenders mizuho, smbu and a trust advised them of intentions to raise loans of 1.2 trillion yen or $9 billion. they also plan to offer a separate loan program totaling just over $1.5 billion. sources say the banks want to set up a panel of monitors in cooperation with toshiba's management and the investment fund. the panel would report on progress in a bid to boost corporate governance. the banks plan to send executives to toshiba's board. the role would be to advise toshiba on potential sales of certain businesses and assets. japanese companies have started raising funds to provide emergency assistance to people affected by the earthquakes that struck turkey and syria.

retail giant aeon installed boxes across japan and will accept donations until february 26th. the money will be channelled through the turkish embassy in tokyo to support disaster-hit areas. >> translator: we like to ask for donations together with our customers nationwide so that we can help turkey recover as soon as possible and rebuild the lives of those affected by the disaster. >> two of the major retailers, seven & i holdings and family mart are also soliciting donations at their supermarkets and vooeconvenient stores. seven & i through february 26th. family mart's drive on behalf of the world food program and ngo save the children runs until february 22nd. tech firm yahoo! japan raised almost 60 million yen or $460,000 online as of 7:00 p.m.

wednesday. you can use loyalty car points. the campaign runs through the end of march. beverage maker suntory is giving $75,000 each to the turkish embassy and the world food program. now, many people feel that getting bitten by a mosquito is just a nuisance, but in some parts of the world, it brings worries of dengue fever which has been spreading to new regions. scientists in southeast asia are fighting back, developing new ways to stop it. >> reporter: at this public housing complex in the northern part of singapore, the government is stepping up the fight against dengue by releasing mosquitos into the air. about 1,600 captive males were set loose in this complex this day. >> hello. >> hi. >> we're releasing the male mosquitos so they don't bite. >> reporter: it's part of the government project to reduce

mosquito numbers and cases of dengue. researchers have been releasing males over the past six years in 30% of singapore's public housing. the virus is carried by mosquitos but only females bite. ingesting human blood and affecting people with a deadly disease. after mating, a female needs protein to lay her eggs, so she bites a person, giving them the disease. the singaporean project hopes to countert the spread with wolbachia which alters reproductive biology. when a male mosquito mates with an unaffected female, her eggs do not hatch. >> we can get up to 98% reduction in the mosquito population in the community. then at the same time, because dengue is a reportable disease

in singapore, we also track the number of dengue. we he seen up to 88% reduction in dengue. >> reporter: meanwhile, in thailand, researchers are taking a different approach to stopping the spread of dengue. the past eight years, a japanese household goods maker has been working with a thai university to study mosquito behavior. their efforts have shed light on new ways to prevent bites. >> translator: dengue fever is very common in thailand, so i think it is important to work on mosquitos in this country. >> reporter: they've developed this new repellant. the researcher applies it to his forearm. he then sits his arm in a box with 250 mosquitos but does not get bitten. on the right, a skin replica with the repellant shows what happens. a mosquito lands but quickly

flies away without biting. the key is the oil. the substance envelopes the mosquitos legs in an instant, pulling them down. this makes mosquitos feel in danger, triggering an escape reaction. >> translator: not getting bitten is the only guaranteed form of prevention. i think we can stahelp save liv. >> reporter: in the long running battle between mosquitos and humans, researchers are developing new technologies that are raising hopes in the fight against disease. let's get a check on the markets. ♪

that's it for "newsline biz" from tokyo. i'm ramin mellegard. thank you very much for watching. óçóç own the conception.

adrian: nationwide strikes in france as parliament debates to raise the retirement age. present macron and is government says the choices reform or. whether the proposal is unfair to workers. this is inside story. welcome to the program. a day after france's national assembly started to deba