. >> i'm mayor katsunobu sakurai of minami-soma. this year's noma-oi festival, in the hopes of recovery for our residents affected by the nuclear crisis, is being held per the custom. >> reporter: at 20 miles north of the dai-ichi plant, minami- soma was cut off from the rest of the world two years ago by radioactive plumes. not even aid trucks would come near. mayor sakurai uploaded a plea for help on youtube. >> the banks are closed. the people are literally drying up as if they're under starvation tactics. >> reporter: eiju hangai, a tokyo-based businessman born and raised in minami-soma, felt a particular responsibility to help. he'd spent 32 years working for tepco, the utility that operated the stricken nuclear power plant. he'd wanted to work at the utility since he was a little boy. >> my grandfather took me to the construction site of the fukushima dai-ichi reactor one. this was where japan's energy was going to be made with nuclear power for the first time. that left a powerful impression on me. >> reporter: but now the cr

more from nhk world's reik reiko sakurai. >> reporter: abe has faced pressure from all sides in reaching his decision. he has said his number one priority in foreign affairs is strengthening ties with the u.s., and u.s. president barack obama has been urging japanese leaders to join the talks. most countries belong to the world trade organization, but the wto's third round of talks has been stalled since 2008 and negotiators have been unable to strike a major deal for years. that leaves japanese leaders with few choices in order to advance free trade with partners in the asia pacific. but they're running out of time. those who have been at the table want to reach an agreement by the end of the year. so the japanese would have to join now if they want to shape the discussions and win some favorable conditions. for example, they want exceptions on eliminating tariffs for rice. u.s. negotiators want a certain grace period for car tariffs. all of this will be determined during negotiations. japanese government officials estimate removing tariffs will add 0.66% to gdp growth. some u.s. econom