exit straeng strategy. president obama outlines it. welcome to nhk "newsline." >> u.s. soldiers have been fighting in afghanistan for more than a decade now. their commander in chief made a surprise visit to the country to talk about his plans to bring them home. president obama promised 23,000 soldiers will withdraw by the end of the summer, and he also solidified a u.s. roll in afghanistan one all combat troops go home. >> today i signed a historic agreement between the united states and afghanistan that defines a new kind of relationship between our countries. a future in which afghans are responsible for the security of their nation, and we build an equal partnership between two

sovereign states. >> obama and afghan president karzai signed a strategic partnership agreement. it cements of u.s. commitment to afghanistan after american combat troops leave in 2014. it will be effective until 2024. the deal allows u.s. forces to train afghan soldiers and engage in sweep operations against al qaeda. >> our goal is to destroy al qaeda, and we are on a path to do exactly that. >> this was obama's first visit to afghanistan since december 2010, and a third since he took office. it coincided with the one-year anniversary of the death of al qaeda leader osama bin laden. the u.n. security council is considering black listing about 40 more north korean companies. the new sanctions would be in response to pyongyang's failed launch of what it called a sat

lie-carrying rocket. the council members adopted a presidential statement on april 16th. they strongly condemned the launch, which they said used ballistic missile technolotechn. it gave them 15 days to propose new restrictions. japan, south korea, united states have submitted a list of 40 north korean firms. sources close to the u.s. say china has not said its reluctan provoke north korea. china is seen as having a decisive influence on the number of companies that will make the final list. the u.n. peace heef keeping chief is urging member countries to send the cease-fire monitors to syria. they want to send 300 observers and the secretary-general says only half that number has been secured. >> the fact is that the numbers

are still small at the moment, but already they have had a visible impact, an effective impact underground. >> he says u.n. observers are operating in five locations including damascus, the central city of homs and dara in the south. he said the observers have reported cease-fire violations, but he says the use of heavy weapons and shelling has subsided since the mission's arrival. they're negotiating the conditions with syrian authorities. he says the government has denied visas to some observers. japan's foreign minister asked israel's leaders to show restraint in dealing with iran. israeli officials have repeatedly refused to rule out an attack on iranian nuclear facilities. gemba made the appeal in

jerusalem at the meeting with his israeli counterpart lieberman. he said the unprecedented international pressure against iran is working. he also said any military action would give iran another pretext to push guard with nuclear development. gemba warned that a military action by israel would trigger global turmoil. lieberman said all the israelis can protect israel and all options are on the table. gemba met later with israeli prime minister benjamin netanya netanyahu. he warned that the oil market will fall into chaos if iran acquires nuclear weapons. gemba said japan wants to work with other countries to solve the issue diplomatically. u.s. news car sales grew a modest 2.3% in april from a year

earlier, a downshift from the double-digit growth of recent months. u.s. market research first auto data says care makers sold over 1.1 mill new vehicles last month. stronger previous growth was thanks to a recovery in consumer spending. april's dip came as the month had three fewer business days this year than last year. automakers showed varying results. among japanese makers, toyota saw an expansion of more than 11%. unit sales of the popular prius hybrid doubled amid-rising gasoline prices. nissan and honda had slight declines. performance varied among u.s. makers. chrysler saw a surge of over 20%, but general motors new car sales declined over 8%. the figure was negative for the

first time in three months. ford also fell more than 5%, marking its first year-on-year decline in 11 months. japanese trade authorities look it to their counterparts in the united states for guidance. they're deciding whether to participate in trans pacific partnership negotiations. the wide-ranging international pact would tier dn trade barriers among a number of nations. japanese authorities are holding consultations with the nine countries that have already started tpp talks, but they haven't won support from the united states, australia and new zealand to participate in the main negotiations. president obama told prime minister noda on monday his administration is concerned about japan's automobile, insurance and beef sectors. american trade officials want noda to further liberalize the country's markets. japanese government representatives say the discussions with the u.s. will help them assess the benefits of

joining the tpp talks. the nine nations in the tpp negotiations aim to reach a deal this year. observers say it is not clear if japan can have much influence on the discussions within this time frame. japan will get help from kazahkhstan to clean up at the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant. japan's economy, tray and industry minister met his counterpart on tuesday. the national nuclear center has over 20 years of experience in decontaminating nuclear testing sites of the former soviet union. he asked for the nation's cooperation in cleaning up and rebuilding the fukushima plant. he said his country will offer its experience and if he can nee

techniques to help japan. he believes sharing information on decontamination will greatly assist the reconstruction of fukushima. japan airlines began flights using boeing's state-of-the-art 787 jet on tuesday. the dreamliner flew from tokyo to new delhi, india. jal filed for bankruptcy protection in 2010. the air carrier is introducing the energy efficient dreamliner on the international routes as part of its restructuring plan. jal is the first carrier to use the 787 on regular routes in asia. >> translator: it was very comfortable. >> we enjoyed the flight very much. looking forward to doing it again. >> india's economy is growing rapidly. the number of japanese companies in the country has more than doubled in the past five years. jal says it chose india as the 787's first destination because it expects strong demand for this route.

from next year, the carrier plans to increase the number of flights to india from the current five a week to seven to handle the growing number of travelers. greek workers filled the streets of athens on mayday. they marked international workers day with a protest against austerity measures, and they warned greek leaders they may not stay in power beyond parliamentary elections on sunday. we report from athens. >> reporter: thousands of greeks hit the streets on the day meant to honor workers. major plab unilabor unions calll their members to turn out. their messages are chanted and it's their belief that the ruling party has to go. the government cut spending and increased taxes. demonstrators say plans to slash the number of government workers and their salaries infringe on

their rights. >> it's killing most of our workers in every way that austerity can. >> we have lost all our labor rights. they're going to ruin the country. >> reporter: the european union and the international monetary fund prescribed the measures to rein in greece's debt. in return, they agreed to a bailout of more than $100 billion. voters are expected to punish their leaders for agreeing to the deal. opinion polls suggest the two parties in the ruling coalition will lose many of their seats in an election that will serve as a referendum on austerity. >> nhk world, athens. manufacturers around the world are trying to get their hands on some metals used in

everything from cars to consumer electronics. the chinese produce more than 90% of the world's rare earth metals, but chinese officials restrict exports. now, some innovators in japan are finding way to recycle these resources. we get more from nhk world. >> reporter: this recycling plant is operated by japanese electronics giant panasonic. products for recycling end up here. they're air-conditioners, tvs and washing machines. neodymium is a rare earth metal used to make magnets. the magnets are a key part in motors for air-conditioners, mobile homes and hybrid cars. china produced 90% of the

world's neodymium, but there's a drastic rise in prices and raise concerns over a possible shortage. now, fran they are recycling nem in ernest. one type of magnets are found in the motors of air-conditions' compressors. >> translator: neodymium is inside this motor. >> reporter: the compressor is pressed in the machine to remove the motor.

the magnet is in the same place. it cannot be removed initially because the magnetic force is too strong. so it's worth pressing the device that can neutralize the magnet. now the magnetic field has been removed. the metal pressers are taken out of the motors. panasonic plans to recycle 1.2 tons of neodymium this fiscal year. just about $220,000 worth. >> translator: until now we've been recycling materials that are easily recovered like iron,

copper and aluminum. but i think our mission must now be to recover and recycle neodymium and other rare metals as well as precious metals. >> reporter: securing stable supplies of rare earth metals is a challenge. new recycling technologies are offering one promising solution. people in japan's northeast are focused on overcoming the challenges of the 2011 disaster, but it woen n't be easy. they have to rebuild homes, businesses, entire communities. we'll show you their struggles and their successes on "the road ahead" every wednesday at 1:00 p.m. japan time here on "newsline." harley davidson

representatives are planning to reunite a man with a prized possession. the tsunami swept his motorcycle out to sea. it drifted across the pacific and ended in canada. harley-davidson's spokespersons say they will send the buy back and repair it for free and give it to him. a canadian man found the motorcycle in a container last month on a beach off the coast of british columbia. the harley traveled 6,500 ki kilomete kilometers. its license plate helped identify him as the owner. the 29-year-old is from miyagi prefecture. the march 11th earthquake and tsunami devastated the region. he lost three family members and his house in the disaster. >> translator: i'm very grateful that my motorcycle was found, and i'd like personally thank the man that found it but i don't center any way to do this.

i'd like to take this opportunity to thank him. >> he added he thought he would never see the bike again. he said he bought it about five years ago and used a cargo container as a garage to store it in his yard. these photographs show what life was like in a small foun in miyagi prefecture before last year's tsunami. if it weren't for the pictures, former residents would hardly have anything to kindle memories of happier time, so the owner of a local photo shop decided to publish them in a book for all to see. nhk world has more. >> reporter: former residents are receiving a copy of this photo book. >> translator: this was before the disaster. now it's all gone.

unbelievable. >> reporter: the pictures reawaken memories of the hometown. he's the man behind the lens, but the tsunami washed this photo studio aaway. however, his father celebrates the hard disk that holds the photos. the nonprofit organization then published the images in this book. >> translator: i want people to say, this is what our town looked like, and then we'll make a new town just as wonderful. >> reporter: the photos of custom cherry trees along the riverbank unlock special feelings for this woman. she used to live very close to these trees.

every year she and her husband enjoyed strolling among the cherry blossoms. but she lost him to an illness six months before the disaster. then during the disaster last march she lost the cherry trees, too. >> translator: i feel sad and frustrated. i was so confused. >> reporter: this picture brings back happy memories. >> translator: i can't let the disaster depress me. i want to move on, and remembering the good things that happened in my life. >> these pictures before the disaster holds the key to a brighter future. this couple noup spend their

days in temporary housing. he was a fisherman for 35 years. the sea was his life. but after the tsunami he hasn't gone into the ocean. >> reporter: when someone mentions the tsunami, tears well up right away. this never used to happen. i can't control my feelings. >> neighbors sat outside his temporary home. the couple received the notebook. they saw pictures of their favorite spots by the sea. >> translator: i miss this place. we used to walk there every day. what a wonderful gift. >> reporter: then it happened.

they asked to go for a walk, the same disaster. together walking just like they did before the tsunami. >> translator: i feel brighter. i think i shouldn't go on like this. i really have to pull myself together. >> reporter: the photos help survivors leave the trauma behind and begin the next phase of their lives. . rachel ferguson joins us now with the world weather forecast. hi, there. yes, we're talking about japan at the top of this hour, because there is some very heavy rain impacting much of the country's central locations, particularly seeing a torrential rain, as much as 250 millimeters is possible in just a space of 24 hours. now, we had reports of about 150

millimeters of rain falling in the space of three hours in okinawa. so definitely raising the risk of flooding and landslides. another thing, factor to consider with this is it's a slow-moving system so conditions into thursday will spread into the north. heavy rain could cause flooding and landslides. also there's going to be thunder and lightning and some high waves. we're looking at sustained winds of 72 kilometers per hour along the pacific edge of the country. high waves and rough seas. the other end of that front line is still impacting parts of southeastern china. somewhere that gets a lot of rain over the last couple of days, so another 50 millimeters or so, it's not going to be as heavy as it was on the tuesday, but still enough to add to any problems with flooding and also as i say it's falling on stat rated land. that ups the risk of landslides. down towards the south, scattered thunderstorms across

indochina and also the philippines and it's fairly hot here as well. we're looking at temperatures around the 40-degree mark for bangkok. all right. we head into north america. severe weather is taking place across parts of ohio as well as kansas and michigan. now, after one system leaves and moves out towards the northeast, weakening as it goes, yet another low comes in. that will spread severe weather in much the same area. if we look at the outlook today, widespread rain across canada and the u.s. thunderstorms right along the u.s./canada border here towards the east, and they're going to be particularly severe in the upper midwest into the central plains. that's because it's getting very hot here. we have 27 degrees in chicago, up to about 29 on your thursday. out towards the west it's going to be a different story. it's a snow event here across b.c. and into the intermountain west. 14 degrees in seattle and 12 in vancouver, 14 in winnipeg but 7

on the high for thursday. let's look at europe. the setup has been the same for the last week or so. we have this very stubborn low sitting offshore in the atlantic. it's moved a bit further down towards the south. still sending fronts in with heavy rain and western spain as well. the british isles getting a break with good spells of sunshine in the north in scotla scotland. we see heavy rain moving across the alpine region and into southern parts of the u.k. that could exacerbate the flood problem already there. 25 in berlin, 28 in vienna. these kinds of -- these areas are going to see temperatures moderating as we head into the weekend. however, further out towards the east, 25 in kiev, 31 in bucharest and 31 in athens. we'll see the heat into the beginning of next week. i'll leave you now with your extended forecast.

finally he here's a recap of our top stories. u.s. president barack obama made a surprise visit to afghanistan to talk about his military's exit strategy following more than a decade of war. he promised 23,000 american soldiers will withdraw by the end of the summer, and he also outlined the u.s. role once all combat troops go home. >> today i signed a historic agreement between the united states and afghanistan that defines a new kind of relationship between our countries. a future in which afghans are responsible for the security of their nation, and we build an equal partnership between two sovereign states. >> obama had afghan president karzai sign a strategic partnership agreement. it cements the u.s. commitment

to afghanistan after american combat troops leave in 2014, and it will be in effect until 2024. the deal allows u.s. forces to train afghan soldiers and engage in sweep operations against al qaeda. >> our goal is to destroy al qaeda and we're on a path to do exactly that. >> this was obama's first visit to afghanistan since december 2010 and a third since he took office. it coincides with the one-year anniversary of the death of al qaeda leader osama bin laden. the u.n. security council is considering a black listing about 40 more north korean companies. the new sanctioning would be in response to pyongyang's failed launch of what it called a satellite-carrying rocket. the council members unanimously adopted a presidential statement on april 16th. they strongly condemned the launch, which they said used ballistic missile technology.

the statement gave the council sanctions committee 15 days to propose new restrictions. japan, south korea, and united states and the european union have submitted the list of around 40 north korean firms. sources close to the u.n. say china has not yet qualified its stance, as a traditional ally, china has been reluctant to provoke north korea. china is seen as having a decisive influence on the number of companies that will make the final list. and that concludes this edition of "newsline." on behalf of our team, thank you for staying with us.

tavis: good evening from los angeles. i'm tavis smiley. first up tonight a conversation with "good morning america" anchor robin roberts. just in time for mother's day. she's penned a new book along with her mother about lns