hello, and welcome to nhk "newsline." i'm yoshi ogasawara in tokyo. japanese officials have withdrawn a warning for people to take shelter in the country's north. it alert came after north korea fired what appeared to be at least one ballistic missile towards the sea of japan. about 30 minutes later officials canceled the warning. the defense ministry says north korea fired a suspected icbm

class missile at 7:26 a.m. on thursday. it says it did not likely fall or fly through japan's exclusive economic zone. south korea's military says it was launched from near pyeongyang. it says it was an intermediate or longer range ballistic missile and flew about 1,000 kilometers. it's the 12th time this year that the north has conducted a launch. the launch triggered what's called an alert warning across the country for the first time since last fall, but there are concerns about its accuracy after it sent out false alarms last october and november. japan's chief cabinet secretary defended thursday's warning saying it was not a mistake because officials believed it was a threat to public safety. >> translator: i think it was appropriate to have activated

the j alert warning for this particular incident considering the role it was supposed to play. >> some politicians are calling for the governmt to look into possible issues with the jay alert system. the warning rattled commuters in the northern city of sapporo. many people took cover in an underground mall on their way to work. they used their smart phones to get updates on the alert. >> translator: my colleagues and i are taking shelter here. north korea has launched many missiles this year, and i'm worried. >> translator: i'm very concerned that the missile could cause damage this time. >> office workers filed out of the mall shortly after the warning was canceled. north korea and its missile

launches in particular figure prominently in the 2023 edition of japan's diplomatic blue book. it presented the annual report on japan's foreign policy it a cabinet meeting this week. earlier we spoke about japan's security. >> so what is the diplomatic move say about japan's security environment and the threat posed by north korea. >> north korea poses a grave and imminent threat to japan's national security. it points out that company has repeatedly launched ballistic missiles in an unprecedented frequency and manner. it's just the latest example. in fact, the diplomatic blue book describes the environment around japan as the most severe

since the end of world war ii. this is not just because of north korea's nuclear and missile development. it is also because of china's military buildup. >> and suyoshi, what is the biggest feature of this year's diplomatic blue book. >> last year's invasion of ukraine, it strongly condemned russia's inaggressiaggression a outrageous act. it says the war in ukraine is a global crisis, and the international community is at the turning point in history. china is also prominent in this year's report. the group says it's the biggest strategic challenge to international order. it argues this is a key issue for japan and all like minded nations.

it also warns that joint actions by china and russia's military forces around japan are an effort to strengthen military cooperation between the two countries. it says the japanese government is greatly concerned and it monitors the situation very closely from the viewpoint of japan's security. >> okay, and suyoshi, what else should we pay attention to in the diplomatic blue >> it was referring for the first time to the global south. these are mainly developing countries such as india and many asian and african nations. the blue book points out that many of the global south countries remain in the middle ground politically between the west and russia. when it comes to sanctions against russia, for example, the blue book stressed that

cooperation with emerging countries is extremely important to maintain international order and resolve global issues. japan is expected to announce plans to step up its involvement with these countries when it chairs the g7 summit in hiroshima next month. >> thank you, tsuyoshi. >> my pleasure. we turn now to a scandal in japanese entertainment. a former j-pop star says he was sexually assaulted by one of the most powerful men in the industry. he used to be in a boy band under contract with talent agency jani and associates. the company was run by -- who died in 2019. he went public with a claim he had sexually abused him 15 to 20 times. he said he began getting abused at the age of 15. he said being liked by him was a

must if one hoped to succeed in japanese entertainment. he says he's grateful to kitagawa but that kitagawa was wrong to subject him to sexual acts when he was 15. representatives for johnny and associates issued a statement. they said e managers who took over after kitagawas death attaches transparency to safety. >> search efforts continue for a japanese ground self-defense helicopter that went missing one week ago with ten people aboard. the helicopter dropped off of radar last thursday soon after taking off from the island. personnel and coast guard are searching the seabed where the chopper may have sunk. two mine sweepers and a submarine rescue ship were in the area on thursday. an nhk helicopter crew

con-termed a larger minesweeper that can search deeper seabed locations headed to the area. the zfs force has employed personnel to search for items that may have washed ashore. the coast guard has added a large patrol boat to scan the search area. among the missing is a gsdf division chief. an eyewitness to a military air strike in myanmar that reportedly left more than 100 people dead says the attack is a war crime. myanmar's military has acknowledged through state media that it carried out the air strike in the northwestern region on tuesday. it said it targeted a ceremony to mark the opening of an office for the pro-democracy national unity government. local media report at least 100 civilians including women and

children were killed. >> translator: at the timeood was being handed out to celebrate myanmar's new year. villagers including children came to get the i arrived after the air strike, and buildings were on fire. people were dying, and there were dead bodies everywhere. it was a horrific scene. >> the eyewitness called on the international community to help stop the military's attacks. >> translator:hey committed an indiscrinate attack. it can be calle a war cri and a violation of t gena convention. >> the association of southeast asian nations or asean has issued a statement strongly condemning the air strike. it called for an immediate end to all forms of violence particularly against all civiliansch the united nations

has also condemned the attack. it's believed to be the deadliest air strike by the myanmar military since it seized control in a coup two years ago. china's president xi jinping has inspected the nation's naval fleet that operates in the south china sea. he urged it to enhance its training and combat radiness as the u.s. and philippines step up their regional cooperation. china's state tv reported xi visited the naval forces of the southern theater command in the province on tuesday. xi said the navy should enhance its ability to respond swiftly and properly to complex situations. he urged it to deepen its study on warfare and military operations while strengthening its training under combat cessions. china claims most of the south china sea and has been ramping up its military presence there.

beijing is growing increasingly at odds with manila over disputed territory in the region. xi's remarks come as the philippines and u.s. conduct their largest ever joint military drills. he apparently aims to show he'll not back down on china's territorial claims as tensions rise. french president emmanuel macron is once again urging europe to stay out of the u.s.-china rivalry over taiwan. he said france's position on the issue has not changed. in a news conference on wednesday macron said france and europe support an open indo-pacific. he said they also want the status quo in taiwan maintained and stressed that doesn't mean following washington's lead. >> translator: this is the position of europeans, and it is a position that has always been compatible with the role of an ally, but being an ally does not

mean being a vassal. >> macron says france supports the one china policy and hopes to see a peaceful settlement of the issue. this comes after a visit from the french president to beijing last week. it's not the first time that -- it's not the first time macron has made controversial comments about taiwan. in recent interviews he said the worst thing would be to follow the american rhythm or cause china to overreact. national public radio in the u.s. says it's quitting twitter after being labeled a state affiliated and government funded media. npr said wednesday that the labels are inaccurate and misleading. it said less than 1% of its annual budget comes from government sources and that the descriptions give the wrong impression that the government can influence its content. as a result npr said it will no longer post to twitter.

it's it first major news organization to stop using the platform. it's asking listeners to visit its accounts on other social media sites instead. npr isn't the only news organization that's taken issue with the new labels. twitter had also used the government funded media tag for the bbc. twitter changed that to publicly funded media after the british broadcaster objected. heavy rain is pummeling the u.s. gulf koecoast bringing flooding to parts of south florida. our meteorologist jonathan oh has a look at the details in

world weather. >> hello. we have a low pressure system located over the gulf of mexico, and as it continues to spin in the area with its subtropical characteristics it has a lot of juice with a lot of rain. and it's been pummeling the coasting areas especially down toward places like miami and especially fort lauderdale dale. take a look at this video, and you're going to see, yeah, that is rainwater across the streets there as heavy rain and thunderstorms impact the south eastern florida on wednesday. footage capture a man trying to swim in this flooded street with the national weather service reporting up to 550 millimeters of rain had fallen in broward county in about a 24-hour period and that also impacted the fort lauderdale dale hollywood international airport wednesday. they had to suspend their flights and they probably won't be able to get back up until around noontime thursday. this low is not a quick mover, and it's got so much energy with it we're looking at the possibility of seeing severe thunderstorms as you go through the day thursday in the region.

so be on the lookout for that. different type of weather situation in the up rockies. we're talking about snow as the low drops out of the areas. we're talking about plenty of the white stuff for ontario and places like calgary. thunderstorms from atlanta down to miami, and it's hot along the eastern sea board. 30 degrees for the high in new york and washington, d.c. as you go through the day. meanwhile ilsa, a powerful tropical cyclone, is now about to make its way onshore in western australia in the north coast, and powerful storms already bringing some really strong winds, and it's packing a punch with the rain as well. so for those of you in the coastal areas you've been warned and hopefully you're in a safe location if this storm comes onshore heading into friday. now, we have another tropical system that's weakened a bit but still bringing some rain into the central and northern areas of the philippines and that'll continue to be the story as you go through the next day or so. and we'll still have some thunderstorms popping up with this particular system. hope you have a good day wherever you are.

and before we go, people across thailand are celebrating the traditional new year holiday

with a splash as full-scale festivities return for the first time in four years. the song kran holiday began on thursday including its famous water festival. people took to the streets to soak each other as part of a cleansing ritual and forget about the scorching heat. temperatures in the capital bangkok have topped 35 degrees celsius in recent days. >> we were going to come a couple years ago, no festival. so we came out. >> translator: i've been waiting for this for a long time. i wish everyone good health in the coming year. >> the celebrations will continue through saturday, and they won't all be wet. people will also be welcoming the new year by getting together with family and visiting temples. and that's all for this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm yoshi ogasawara in tokyo.

thanks for watching and do stay with us for more. this is "newsline biz." i'm gene otani. japan's fair trade watchdog has cautioned mizuho securities against pricing for startups unfairly low. the scrupan fair trade commission says it got two domestic companies to accept a wer price for their shares and the issuers and the cases

happened between 2020 and 2021. the watchdog says the practice could lead to abuse of a brokerage's bargaining power because it is difficult for firms to change lead underwriters before ip os. when share prices gain to more than the preipo price investors would bump the shares before they debut on the market could profit from the difference. the mizuho underwritten stocks cited by the ftc more than doubled on their first day of trading. the commission says that might have prevented the issuers from raising more funds from the sale. group of seven finance ministers and central bank governors said they've yet applied on the need to ensure global financial stability. they issued a joint statement on wednesday after their meeting in washington. the gathering was held as bank rescues in the u.s. and europe have driven up economic

uncertainty. the statements says financial sector developments highlight the need to stay vigilant. it also reaffirmed the financial system is resilient and supported by regulatory actions and reforms. the officials say they will continue to closely monitor financial conditions and are prepared to take action if necessary. the statement also reiterates the commitment to sanctions and other economic measures against russia and expresses support for ukraine. japanese finance minister and the bank of japan governor attended the meeting. >> translator: participants at the meeting share the view the stability of the financial system is maintained as a result of swift and appropriate responses by relevant authorities. on the other hand, participants also expressed a view that it's necessary to pay attention to new factors such as the speed of the spread of information through social media.

>> ueda said he td the officialshe bank of japan will continue monetary easing toward a sustainable and stable inflation target. italy's data protection authorities have ordered the developer of chatgpt to respond to a set of demands to ensure private data is protected. the italian authorities temporarily banned the use of the ai powered chat bot in the country last month. they said collecting vast arrays of data may be -- the officials made the request on wednesday to open ai, the u.s. startup that developed chatgpt. one requirement is that the company allows users to revise or delete their personal data. the firm must introduce stricter age verification measures to protect children. theuthorities are also demanding open ai run a tv and internet campaign that educates

the public on the use of personal data to train ai. the officials plan to lift the temporary ban if the company complies with the instructions by the end of this month. the united states plans to tighten greenhouse gas emission rules for automobiles in a step that is likely to speed up the shift to electric vehicles. the environmental protection agency on wednesday said it would introduce stricter pollution standards in phases starting in 2027. the agency projects the plan will reduce emissions 56% by 2032 from estimated 2026 levels. the agency says tougher regulations could result in evs accounting for 67% of new light duty vehicle sales by 2032. the agency hopes to complete the new regulations early next year, and after hearing from industry officials and other stakeholders the biden administration considers measures against climate change as one of its top

agenda items. it has already targeted making zero emission vehicles half of all autos sold in the country by 2030. japan's tourism industry is on a recovery path after its covid slump. the number of foreign visitors is back to around 60% of prepandemic levelch to attract more inbound tourists one region in the country has started offering a unique experience. nhk world's hatori naoko has the story. >> reporter: in the central prefecture of nagano visitors

can participate in sake brewing during the two. night stay. two members include people from the philippines, brazil, and hong kong. >> keep washing, keep washing. >> the chief brewer guides them through the sake making process step by step. the finished sake will later be sent to the participants and sold as products. the guests even get to stay in the brewery. part of the 300-year-old facility has been renovated into accommodations. during their stay the guests can taste various types of local sake. the project was organized by tazawa marika who used to work for a travel agency.

she thought that offering experiences ufec to this area would help attract inbound tourists. >> translator: by developing great content and adding value to truly attractive products, i think we can boost the region's tourism and turn it into a sustainable business. >> tazawa's aim is to revitalize a community where many businesses remain closed. this is why the only meal offered by the facility is breakfast. the guests are given an english restaurant map. they are encouraged to go out for lunch and dinner and meet local people. the guests went to a japanese restaurant in the neighborhood. hoping to welcome overseas customers, the restaurant has

been developing new menu items including vegan options. >> translator: i heard foreign tourists will bring a breath of fresh air. >> on the last day of the tour each participant receives a certificate for completing the sake brewing experience. >> very enriching, so i think this is a really worthwhile experience. one of my most memorable experiences. >> translator: since accommodation is offered, visitors can stay here for an extended period. the brewing experience also helps them feel an attachment to the region. they might tell other people to come here or make a return visit themselves. >> the tour has been selected as one of the projects supported by the japan tourism agency as part of its efforts to achieve full recovery of inbound tourism.

the business model could spread from nagano to regions across the country. hatori naoko, nhk world. >> all right, let's have a look at the markets.

and from the "newsline biz" team in tokyo, i'm gene otani. thanks very much for being with us. ññññ oç it is

practically a new world. >> par 3 on al jazeera. tom: a major leak of top-secret u.s. intelligence files. they reveal ukrainian military preparations and the pentagon's taking across a range of sensitive international issues. so how serious is this breach for the united states and its allies, and what impact might it have on them and on russia? this is "inside story." ♪