hello, and welcome >> reporter: to nhk "newsline." i'm yoshi ogasawara in tokyo. the united nations's assembly has drafted a resolution that could make countries take stronger action against climate change. >> so decided.

>> it calls on the international court of justice to define what obligations all countries have in fighting the global change in temperature. it was spearheaded by the eyelid nation of vanuatu, which is threatened by rising sea levels and powerful cyclones. the country's prime minister said the resolution could have a powerful impact on how the world responds. >> it is a historic resolution, the beginning of a new era in multinational climate cooperation could protect the resolution describes climate change is an unprecedented challenge that will impact small developing states like vanuatu the most. it was cosponsored by over 130 countries. the international court of justice is set to decide what

kind of action could be taken against countries that don't take action. fifa said the decision is due to current circumstances , but israel's participation has provoked anger in the nation. it said they will announce a new host for the three work tournament that starts may 20 as soon as possible. it added that the indonesian soccer federation could face sanctions at a later stage. indonesian protesters, economic groups, and other political parties have demanded that israel should not participate. israel qualified for the first time since. people in indonesia voiced opportunity to host sing the inteational soccer matches for the first time.

>> translator: my colleagues agree with the cancellation. we still have enough time to sort everything out. >> [ speaking non-english ] >> translator: mixing and politics and sports like this will cause a great deal, especially indonesian athletes. >> fifa said the date of the term and currently remain unchanged. turning now to myanmar, where the party headed by the country headed by the out the lead on some shoes he has condemned an early announcement by the middle terry that it be forcibly dissolved. the national league for democracy said in a statement wednesday that the actions of the military counsel are in breach of the law. the commission under that military counsel has neither the right to dissolve nor the right to approve the lawfully established political parties. the military used state media

on tuesday to say the be invalidated as it failed to meet a deadline to register for an election. the nld won the general election held in 2020, but the military claimed irregularities and seized power in a coup early the next year. the nld also said 135 party members have been arrested so far, and that is 26 of them that have died during interrogations or in prison since the coup. they went on to say that the nld is a political party that only carries out the public interests, according to the decision of the people. ♪ china is hosting a major international business summit, sometimes described as the domino's of asia. the country's new premier has

had a chance to promote the world's second-largest economy to foreign investors. premier li qiang spoke at the opening ceremony for the kyiv on thursday. it was a chance to promote china's built-in road initiative and condemn what is called the abuse of unilateral sanctions. li said beijing will launch measures to expand market access and help asia lead a global economic recovery comes as china is trying to bounce back from the financial toll from three years of zero covid policies, but it also comes as japanese companies may be wary of doing more business in the country. tokyo has called on beijing to release a japanese national who had recently been detained on suspicion of espionage. the employee of the japanese pharmaceutical company lviv had worked in china about two decades . the case could come up during a visit by a japanese foreign minister to china,

which is rumored to be planned for this weekend. taiwan's president has arrived in new york for a stop before her tour to central american nations. this is the latest step in the difficult balancing act to strengthen ties with the west while avoiding a crisis with china. after landing, president tsai ing-wen is due to visit what amal and believes, to countries that maintain diplomatic relations with taiwan. about 200 people gathered in front of the hotel to show their support for her. >> we are welcoming our friend some thai want to visit. >> hundreds of people rallied across the street against the president and expressed

opposition to taiwan's independence. >> translator: unified the motherland is the best for the chinese. she is making trouble. we're all chinese. why is she doing this? >> washington is calling on beijing to stay calm over the visit. the white house national security spokesperson john kirby stresses the stopover is private and unofficial. >> the people's republic of china should not use this transit as a pretext to step up any aggressive activity around the taiwan strait. >> tsai will make a stopover in los angeles on the way home next week. she is likely to meet there with you was how speaker kevin mccarthy . a spokesperson for china's taiwan office said tsai is using her trip to promote independence. she wants beijing will take countermeasures if tsai meets with mccarthy.

her trip to central america comes as countries have faced pressure to cut ties with her administration . just days ago, hunters agreed to stop recognizing taiwan and instead established relations with beijing. the president is set to visit china soon. the honduran government tweeted on wednesday president xiomara castro will travel on lateral agreements but it did not provide a date for the trip. taiwan'sforeign minister said sunday that the establishmen of ties between china and honduras would likely coincide with tsai's overseas trip . u.s. president joe biden said he has seen unprecedented unity as people stand with ukrainians. he said that as evidence of progress as he hosted one of his signature initiatives, the

summit for democracy. the leaders of more than 100 countries shared ideas with others in the business community. biden says together, they are turning the tide. >> i believe this is the defining challenge of our age, and today, we can say with pride that the democracy of the world is getting stronger, not weaker. >> biden pledged $690 million to shore up transparent governments come support freedom of the press, and fight corruption. resident volodymyr zelenskyy said the fight for democracy in his country ukraine can serve as an example. >> this is deciding not only the fate of ukraine. this is deciding the fate of everyone who is used to living freely. >> japanese prime minister kishida fumio spoke about his visit last week to kyiv. it is chairing a group of seven

nations and is serving as a nonpermanent member of the u.s. security counsel. kishida maintained the desire to maintain the rule based on international law. ♪ some of japan's biggest electric companies are being punished for forming a cartel. the trade watchdog has ordered them to pay fines that come up to $760 million, the biggest ever financial penalty for breaking the antimonopoly law. the firms are chugoku electric power, chubu electric power, and its subsidiary kyushu electric power. the fair trade commission says those four companies formed a cartel with kansai electric. officials say kansai electric is exempt from the fine as it reported the violation before they begin an investigation.

the company's collusion on of factories and office buildings. officials said the companies agreed not to target each other's customers and to limit competition and bid for government projects. they found the companies began negotiations for the cartel in 2017. that was the year after japan's retail electricity market was fully liberalized. officials suspect the firm's wanted secure profits and prove rent electricity from going down. a japanese government panel has met for the first time to discuss removing the nuclear fuel degree at the and aichi power station. experts in japan and abroad will discuss how to remove an estimated 880 tons of waste. the debris includes multi- nuclear fuel and pieces of metal structures in reactors

one, two, three. removing it all is the biggest hurdle to decommissioning the plant. does methods include covering the area and filling the reactor building with water or not using water and removing the debris by other means. they will spend a year examining options for safety and feasibility. the operator will make a decision based on the panel's recommendation and other factors. spring has sprung in south korea, as the cherry blossoms are back, and people can gather to enjoy them and enjoy them for the first time in four years. the report. >> reporter: one of south korea's most beautiful resources is in season. it's estimated 360,000 cherry blossom trees. before the pandemic, crowds came here. when restrictions eased, tourism is once again

booming. >> [ speaking non-english ] >> translator: it feels more festive with lots of people here. i was cooped up at home last spring. it is great to be out sightseeing and to go on a date with my husband. >> reporter: while people take interviews, shopkeepers are welcoming taking and customers. >> [ speaking non-english ] >> translator: i'm so happy to see so many people coming and going . fortunately, the flowers bloomed early this year , and flowers bloomed in my heart. >> jinhae is located in the southern house and holds a major military post. in fact, the local festival is also said it's named after a famous south korea general.

♪south korea's navy, the festival is a time to celebrate their legacy and the cherry blossoms. each year, the the natural beauty. >> translator: it's my time at the naval base, and i was surprised. it is so huge, and the performance was fun to see it it was a fascinating experience. >> reporter: organizers estimate about 3 million people will come to jinhae this year, but time is running out, so they are hoping to make the most out of cherry blossom season. the festival runs through monday. and it's k world, jinhae .

it's time for world weather with our meteorologist sayaka mori. heavy rain fell over oman this week, causing massive flooding in parts of the country. sayakahas the details. protected as a country of oman, one of the oldest cities in the country was hit hardest, and the people waited in waist deep water. take a look at this footage. heavy rain costa flooding in home on thursday. videos uploaded online showed muddy water overtaking roads in the city. >> cars were almost underwater. the flooding happened in the region. it looks like rain has stopped in the country, but southern portions, you can see another round of rain. let's go to japan. it has been a wet day for southwestern areas of the country.

record breaking rainfall. one island had 170 millimeters of rainfall. most of the occurred in six hours, and this is the record for the month of march. due to another low-pressure system, more rain is in the forecast until friday. i hope you had a fun day after experiencing gloomy, wet weather. 20 for the high on friday. sake and nagasaki, you'll get the temperatures in the 20s every day into the weekend, and it's going to go into last we get to enjoy the cherry blossom views. today, the cherry blossoms will bloom, so it will be northward. that was toronto. this is the footage taken on wednesday. it looks really cold.

snow was accompanied by some thunderstorms, and the country. the city also experienced thunder snow. that's it for me. stay safe. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ that's all for this edition

of nhk "newsline." i'm yoshi ogasawara in tokyo. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ this is "newsline" biz. japan looks to send out the possibility of issuing a digital yen. central banks in the

states, china, and europe are already exploring the viability of digital currencies. they can be used in the same way as bank notes and coins. the ministry's panel is expected to discuss how to create a framework for a central bank digital currency. they will use findings from a technical study the bank of japan conducted the past two years. the launch of the panel coincides with the start of a digital yen pilot program involving the doj financial institutions, and other private- sector participants. doj officials said they have no concrete plans to issue currency. it is expected to take time to hammer out the legal and framework issues. the ministry plans to take into account the opinions of the panel and prepare for the possible introduction of a digital yen.

japan has come up with a plan to strengthen its power grid by significantly expanding the use of renewable energy. it envisions total investments of around $50 billion by 2050. japan is working toward a carbon free for society. they consider solar, wind, and other renewable major components. the plan has gone up by an industry body made up of large and small utility firms, energy- related companies, and different levels of government. it mandates to coordinate effective power transition across japan reasons. the plant will account for around 50% of the country's total energy mix by 2050. it says any transmission network is needed connecting tokyo's northern regions home to many solar and wind plants. the plan also suggests power transmission lines connecting western and eastern japan need

to be improved. estimates a total of around $50 billion that should be invested in these projects by 2050. the ministry of economy and industry set it will begin consultations with power companies and other entities to work out those specifics and determine how to cover the costs. the operator over this in the japanese financial group says they are scrapping plans to launch smart phone banking services. the two companies announced the decision friday. they originally unveiled the plan five years ago. they need to begin operations in 2020. the firm's is more time and investment are needed to provide safe, secure, and user- friendly online banking, but they cannot see when or if it would be able to offer services that meet customer expectations . the partners say they will liquidate a company they established for the project.

a group of ai experts and prominent figures in the i.t. industry are sounding the alarm for artificial intelligence here they are calling for a pause in the development of that technology, citing unforeseen risks. . the u.s. nonprofit future of life institute, at least an open letter asking for labs to halt work on ai more powerful than chatgpt open ai has picked up a chat about development place among major tech force. the major one is getting one out of control. it says that powerful eight ai system should only be developed once there has been confident that the president is the risks are manageable.

more than 1300 people have signed the letter, including tesla ceo lee elon musk and apple cofounder steve wozniak. of city in western japan is using modern technology to resurrect its rich pass. it is created a virtual simulation that allows people to see how many it was years ago. >> officials say the project will involve digitalization. more than 205,000 cultural assets in the city. >> we aim to preserve cultural heritage and digital data, and we hope people we included who maybe have never seen them, will take a look and experience it. >> the re-creation allows people to

the simulation is set in the ed o'ke period, which lasted from the 1700s to the 1900s. they created the structures using information from historical documents. you can take a close look at a virtual space is accessible to the city's website. ♪ researchers in japan are rolling out technologies that take the concept of greed energy to a whole new level they have developed ways of generating power from plants and even moisture in the air. >> this exhibition is showing off a new kind of power part.

that is the way the power is generated for the system that is there. >> it is brewed in the dirt and generates electricity. >> this is how it works. as plant grow, their roots really start. the starch is absorbed by microorganisms swallowing the part. endown, el are released into the ground. they should have this generating electricity. one installation can produce the equivalent of about two 1.5 pack of batteries. >> doing so makes the micro-isms stronger and more active, boosting things up further. the

technology has already been used . as a measure for these last moments, it can provide lighting in the event of a power outage. it is one use case the company is working. >> [ speaking non-english ] >> translator: in the future, when there is a disaster , you might be able to recharge your cell phone, but the plant generated electricity. >> researchers in japan are also looking at other novel ways of generating power from the environment. this small device is actually a battery that is powered through. when that evaporates, electricity is generally connected to a motor, and it gradually starts spinning. if the humidity falls by just a percent, a power outage would

make the appointment faster. by using changes in humidity, it could run almost indefinitely. the battery's outlook is still pretty low. it maxes out at 60, which is not enough for an l.e.d. light, but it's size means it can be used anywhere. researchers believe it could power senses. >> [ speaking non-english ] >> it requires this a reality in five years. >> electricity generated by plants and even moisture in the air around us. while the technology is used for the energy source giving potential to grow.

here is a quick look at the markets. ♪ óróxór[r

>> photos across israel force benjamin netanyahu to delay controversial changes but he claims he will push ahead with judicial overhaul. what does this mean for his government coalition and for israel? this is inside story. hello and welcome to the program. prime minister benjamin netanyahu announced delay his controversial judicial