evasive action. u.s. president obama won't comment on the case of a missing chinese dissident but encouraging them to improve the human rights. people around the world are talking about him but not obama in public. he escaped house arrest last week. obama is refusing to comment on reports he's hiding out at the american embassy in beijing. he's only speaking with u.s./china relations and outlining how they could benefit if certain conditions were met. >> we also believe that that relationship will that much stronger and china will be that much more prosperous and strong

as you see improvements on human rights issues in that country. >> obama says he's aware of the reports regarding chen, but he's refusing to make a statement on the issue. chen is blind. he's campaigned against forced abortions under china's one-child policy. activists say he fled his home and arrived in beijing four days later and seven-day outlook protection at the american embassy. u.s. assistant secretary of state arrived earlier than expected for talks between the two countries. he's discussing chen ace case with chinese authorities. the u.s. and philippines are holding high level talks. they agreed to strengthen ties through joint military drills. there are territorial disputes in the south china sea. top foreign and defense

officials from u.s. and philippines have their first ever meeting in washington on monday. u.s. defense secretary leon panetta and secretary of state hillary clinton met with philippine foreign affairs secretary and the secretary of national defense. clinton spoke about the ongoing standoff between the philippines and china over the shar burrow shoal in the south china sea. she said they have an interest in maintaining open seas. >> as a pacific power, we have a interest in freedom of navigation, the maintenance of peace and stability, respect for international law. >> dell rosario said he hopes the u.s. will increase they are presence in the region. >> we underscored the necessity of ensuring that our alliance remains robust, agile and

responsive. >> the two countries adopted a statement calling for large scale joint military exercises. the leaders of japan and the united states have vowed to continue working together to deal with north korea, its military development and nuclear ambitions. the prime minister and obama met at the white house on monday. noda and obama spoke about the issue of north korea's expected nuclear test. they agreed to warn authorities in their reclusive nation against further provocative acts. >> the mother you engage in provocative acts, the more isolated you will become and diplomat ittically and internationals. >> we will act according to the u.n. security council's statement. we will talk to china and russia and the international community

as a whole will convey a strong message to north korea. >> obama and noda agreed to seek help from china. they have a long-standing alliance with north korea. south korea's president bak has fired a warning at north korea. he spoke of unmistakable counter measures if north korea carries out the recent threats. north korean officials vow to launch special actions against nir neighbor. any say the aattacks will sh harsher thanle deadly shelling of the island in 2010. >> translator: we won't allow any provocations against us. we will retaliate with unmist e unmistakable countermeasures. >> he referred to the popular movements in arab countries that toppled long-term dictatorship. he said no kwone can deter this trend. he said north korea's new

leadership under kim jong-un has a chance to change the country a's course. he called on north korea to abandon the military first policy since a failed missile launch in april, but the north has only hardened its stance. japan and the u.s. have also agreed to step up collaboration in nuclear energy and natural resources. their governments released statements after a summit meeting in washington on monday. they say the two nations will set up a vice ministerial panel to look at nuclear power based on lessons learned from last year's accident at the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant. possible areas for tie-up include decommissioning of reactors, decontamination and boosting measures to combat

terrorism that targets nuclear power plants. they agreed to join forces on rare earth minerals. japan and the u.s. will work together on recycling rare earth and developing alternatives. japan has also reached an agreement with india on cooperating on the development of infrastructure and rare earth minerals. the two nations held a minist ministerial level dialogue in yand on monday. they agreed to come up with a plan for japan to help with environmental projects in india. they include solar-powered generation and industrial water development using seawater. these will be part of a large scale infrastructure project worst over $80 billion. also under the agreement japanese trading houses and india will stop producing rare earths in the summer. it's to export the minerals to japan. >> translator: india is a huge

market and also has potential as a key production base. infrastructure development will make those factors more significant, to that will be a big advantage for not only india but also japan. japan will intensify discussions on overcoming inflation after the holiday that ends this weekend. the japanese government believes unleashing potential demand is needed and hopes to take effective measures by the next month. topics including deregulating the medical and nursing care secretaries sectors to expand business opportunities. another topic is setting up a system to support earthquake-resistant and energy-saving housing. our issues are improving the job market for young people and easing regulations to include foreign investments into japan. prime minister noda hopes to

pass a bill to increase consumption taxes in the diet session. some lawmakers insist that pulling country out of deflation should be considered. although we have the jobs issue, japanese companies are stepping up hiring of local workers overseas. the move comes as the strong yen forces more firms to expand their operations into emerging markets. the labor ministry polled over 700 firms. the figure shows more than half of them plan to make inroads into china and southeast asia over the next three years. companies were asked how they would fill a nonmanagerial positions. 30% said they would recruit local employees. the figure exceeds 22% that up plan to hire japanese. the trend is morneae noticeable with large makers. only half plan to employ japanese workers. many firms say not enough

japanese are willing to work overseas. the labor ministry will provide more support for professionals studying overseas in the hope it may increase interests in foreign assignments. china's economy is developing rapidly. as a result, people in smaller cities are becoming more fashion-conscious. recently foreign companies have tapped into this market. in this report we see how a japanese firm is doing. nhk world reports. >> caller: this clothing chain is about a two-hour drive from shanghai. a companied based in fukushima, japan, runs the chain. this customer drops by once a week. she said that the prices are

reasonable. she adds she never gets tired of the selection because it's changing so often. >> translator: i love it here because the prices are low and the clothes are comfortable. the designs are cute and japanese. it's just my style. >> reporter: these chains first doors in china opened six years ago. between last april and this march the chinese tourists earned $72 million in sales. that's 50% higher than the year before. one reason for the chain's success is the good sales of its stores in smaller cities. they face less competition than the companies outputs in big, urban centers. last year the expect opened 170 new stores to bring the total

number to 360. here an employee who finds new store locations visits a shopping center and the construction. he's looking for a new spot for a shop. >> translator: china is developing very quickly. if we don't move fast, we might miss out on great locations. >> reporter: the company stresses training in shanghai where the headquarters are. the company's selling point is the latest japanese style. the company briefs employees on the new products that seem to arrive nonstop. managers say the training improves sales.

>> translator: the training on displays and the staff are really helpful. our profits definitely go up. >> translator: we see china becoming more profitable than japan. within the next four years, we want to operate 1,000 stores here. >> reporter: now that many chinese women have more money to spend, they are buying fashionable clothing. the competition to attract fashion-conscious women is building up. nhk world, shanghai. ninch in other news ang sue chi are getting ready to join the parliament. they decided to end their boy cat and safeguard the country's pro-military constitution. suh chii are going with the

aspirations of the people. they will start to attend parliament on wednesday. they skipped last monday because they objected to the wording of the oath of office. nld representatives said the pledge to protect the country's constitution is essentially approving military superiority as made out in the document. u.n. secretary-general moon spoke on monday in myanmar's parliament. it was the first speech by a foreign dignitary to the legislature of the country. he praised the country's democratic progress. >> the traumatic changes we see in myanmar have inspired the world. we know that your ambitions for the future reach higher still. i have no doubt that myanmar will quickly regain its place as a respected and responsible member of the international

community. >> reporter: he said the country has the potential to become a 21st century model for peace, democrat stee and prosperity. he said it should stay on the path of democracy. the u.n. chief urged other countries to go further in lifts or suspending sanctions on myanmar. he said the country needs more foreign aid and investment. he met earlier with the president. he pushed him to address tensions with ethnic might not groups. he asked the president to attend the u.n. general assembly in september to explain the country's democratic process. he's going to meet suh chii. they have agreed to set up joint drills and work out a framework for ministerial level talks.

they hadtrategic discussions in new delhi. they confirmed the self-defense force and india's navy will take part in the first joint drills this year. they plan to start dialogue on measures do counter cyber attacks. the ministers criticized north korea for the failed launch of a satellite rocket. they plan to inform them not to resflort to nuclear provocation, including a third nuclear test. >> we express satisfaction that the india/japan strategy and global partnership is stronger than ever before. >> translator: india is an important partner for our country. we share democratic values and strategic interests. >> he added india is in a

strategic ceiling linking japan and the middle east. he said strengthening ties would lead to peace and stability in asia and the rest of the world. here's more news and brief around the world. a christian preacher in florida inflamed religious tensions on saturday burning a copy of the koran. he said he was protesting the detention of a christian pastor. jones also set fire to a koran in march last year. the iranian foreign ministry said the kuncountries condemns . it demanded the u.s. government take prompt action to ensure no americans do the act. the u.s. state department called the act deplorable. three taiwan womens visits the island. they visited tie pin, one of the sprattly islands.

the trio is calling on taiwan's government to aggressive protect taiwan niz territory and sovereignty. other countries claim ownership of the various islands in the sprattley chain. australia for the first time listed it's iconic koala as a threatened species in parts of the country. it is native to australia. the koala population has decl e declined due to urban expansion and an increasing number of accidents involving car. they have designated areas in eastern australia. people in japan's northeast are focused on overcoming the challenges of the 2011 disaster, it's not busy, thoef rebuild homes and entire communities. we'll show you the struggles and successes on the road ahead,

every wednesday at 1:00 p.m. japan time here on "newsline." people living on japan's northeast coast has been wary of the sea ever since it rose up and ravaged towns and villages after last year. now a new poll suggests the majority of municipal representatives are planning to rebuild residential areas away from the pacific ocean's reach. they surveyed 200 communities in iwate, miyagi, and fukushima prefectures. 12% hope to build up ground levels and heighten levees in areas that were flooded and move there. 18% hope to construct or strengthening levees where homes used to stand. the survey suggests people live in areas that could be hit by

waver higher than two meters raise it. those hit by smaller waves hope to stay where they are. it started with a ship and then a couple of sports bowls. now more is sucked out to sea by japan's tsunami are making their way across the pacific and washing ashore in north america. a man in candidate found a motion from the northeast. peter mark came across the moto bike in mid-april. it was a storage container that washed up on a beach in british columbia. it was registered in miyagi prefectu prefecture. it drifted across the pacific. mark told nhk he hopes the owner survived the march 2011 disaster. he would like to return the bike if possible. the japanese cost in vancouver is trying to locate the owner through the foreign minister in tokyo. two sports balls washed up in

alaska in march. their owners have been identified. up next, rachel ferguson is standing by for world weather forecast. >> it's a pleasant run of days and long weekend it was here in japan and very pleasant. however, it is going to change. there's a long front across the southern japanese islands and through southeastern china. that is really going fob impacting much of the southern half of japan anded korean peninsula. we expect gusty winds accompanied by heavy spots of rain and showers. down towards south, the southern islands are hit by this front. 50 millimeters of rain could accumulate in the space of one hour. back across eastern china it's heavy here, 50 to 100 millime r millimeters in a 24-hour period which is very significant. further to the south light, scattered showers across the

philippines and scattered thunderstorms, too. it's hot here, but nothing particularly heavy today. let's go into north america, because we have severe weather erupti erupting. thunderstorms erupting today in the southern plains and up towards the ohioduring your ove see some pretty nasty storms already in kansas and oklahoma. we've had reports of large hail, and also tornadoes touching down. the good news is on tuesday this is going to start to weaken off as it heads east, however, there's another storm coming in from the west. this one is moving along the u.s.-canada border. it will create severe weather for you from southern central canada into the central plains. quite a wide area of severe storms expected on your tuesday from the afternoon. one of the reasons that it's going to be so far north, we don't usually see the severe weather reaching quite as far is because the heat is reaches up towards central canada. we have temperatures now in the

low 20s. winnipeg, 23 for you and 23 in chicago. that will increase to 30 into tomorrow, 28 in oklahoma city, hitting 30 already in atlanta and 29 in houston and mechanixi city. 12 in seattle and 11 in vancouver. widespread snow in the northwest. another 30 centimeters of fresh snow in the cascades and elsewhere. in europe nothing much as changed for the last several days. out west, wet and wild. meenl while, the rest of the continent is seeing unseasonable heat. we have pictures to show you what was going on in southern belarus the last day of april, yesterday, monday. that was record-breaking hit. temperatures up to 31 degrees in some places. people hitting the beach there, and it was also hot in austria, but the heat was accompanied by very strong winds that caused

structur structural damage and also helped to get a wildfire going. this particular fire was extinguished which was good new. very unstable weather altogether even in central locations. to the west it was really wet. this is somerset in england and we're looking at flooded rivers here. it looks like they will have more wet weather until the forecast. there have been warnings posted for the heavy rain towards the south. you can see it here. the low is sitting offshore but was sending in fronts with heavy rain across the british isles and france and we see heavy rain for the alpine region, to. the heat will continue across the east, 30 in kiev and war sow, 31 in bucharest. i'll leave you now with your extended forecast.

once again, our headlines this hour. u.s. president obama is refusing to comment on reports that a chinese activist is hiding out at the american embassy in beijing. he's only speaking about u.s./china relations and outlining how they can benefit in certain conditions are met. >> we also believe that that relationship will be that much stronger and china will be that much more prosperous and strong. as you see improvements on human rights issues in that country. >> obama says he's aware of the reports regarding chen, but he's refusing to make a statement on the issue. chen is blind. he's campaigned against forced abortions under china's one-child policy. activists say he fled his home on april 22nd. they say he arrived in beijing four days later and sought protection at the american

embassy. assistant secretary of state arrived earlier than scheduled for strategic and economic talks between the two countries. he's discussing chen's case with chinese authorities. the u.s. and philippines are holding high level talks. they've agreed to strengthen ties through joint military drills. it's with growing attention among china and the philippines with territorial disputes in the south china sea. top foreign and defense officials from the u.s. and philippines held their first ever meeting in washington on monday. he was defense secretaryive leon panetta and hillary clinton met with the de rosario and gasmin. clinton spoke about the ongoing standoff between the philippines and china. she said the u.s. doesn't take

sides in the dispute but has an interest in maintaining open seas. >> as a pacific power we have a natural instinct of free am of navigation, respect for international law. >> del rosario says they hope the u.s. will increase their involvement in the region. >> we reaffirmed our shared obligations under our mump defense treaty and jurnd scored the necessity of ensures that our climate is robust and responsive. >> they want large scale joint military exercises. that concludes this edition of "newsline." thank you to watching. fo watchi. .

tavis: good evening from los angeles, i'm tavis smiley. tonight a converson