Kyodo News Digest: March 4, 2025
Photo taken from a Kyodo News helicopter on March 2, 2025, shows cherry blossom trees in full bloom along a river in Kawazu, Shizuoka Prefecture. The cherry blossoms in the central Japan town are known for their early flowering. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
———-
U.S. pauses all Ukraine military aid amid Trump-Zelenskyy rift
WASHINGTON – The United States has paused all military aid to Ukraine, a White House official said Monday, following a verbal clash between President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office last week.
“We are pausing and reviewing our aid to ensure that it is contributing to a solution,” the official said on condition of anonymity, adding Trump is focused on peace and hopes other countries will also work toward that end.
———-
A-bomb survivor’s son repeats call for elimination of nukes at U.N.
NEW YORK – The state parties to a U.N. treaty on banning nuclear weapons met in New York on Monday, with a Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor’s son repeating his call for the eradication of such arsenals.
The participants gathered for a full session at the world body’s headquarters for the first time since Nihon Hidankyo, Japan’s leading group of atomic bomb survivors, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize last fall.
———-
Japan lower house OKs minority gov’t’s revised FY2025 draft budget
TOKYO – Japan’s House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a revised 115.2 trillion yen ($773 billion) draft budget for fiscal 2025 after Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s minority government made concessions to win sufficient opposition backing.
The draft budget for the year through March 2026 was initially crafted by the government in December. But it was amended for the first time in 29 years after parliamentary deliberations earlier this year, with the first reduction in its amount since 1955.
———-
U.S. doubles additional China tariff to 20%, sparking trade war fears
WASHINGTON – U.S. President Donald Trump’s additional tariff on Chinese imports was doubled Tuesday to 20 percent, raising the prospect of a trade war with the Asian powerhouse.
Along with the change to duties on imports from China, U.S. tariffs of 25 percent on goods from Canada and Mexico took effect after midnight, with Trump claiming the three countries are not doing enough to clamp down on the smuggling of illegal drugs such as fentanyl into his country.
———-
Japan warns of snow in central Tokyo, traffic disruptions feared
TOKYO – The Japanese weather agency warned of snow in central Tokyo and neighboring areas from Tuesday evening that could disrupt traffic due to icy roads.
Heavy snow is expected in mountainous areas in western Tokyo, while some of the capital’s 23 wards are expected to see snowfall through Wednesday morning, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.
———-
Russia adds Japanese foreign minister, 8 others to entry ban list
MOSCOW – Russia said it has added nine Japanese individuals including Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya to its entry ban list amid the Asian country’s sanctions on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine, triggering an immediate backlash from Tokyo on Tuesday.
The indefinite ban, which Moscow said is in retaliation for the sanctions, also targets former and current ambassadors to Ukraine, Kuninori Matsuda and Masashi Nakagome, as well as the presidents of private Japanese companies that used to operate businesses in Russia.
———-
ispace to attempt June Moon landing, would be 1st by Japan firm
TOKYO – Japanese space startup ispace Inc. said Tuesday its lander will attempt a Moon touchdown on June 6, following a 2023 failure, which could make it the first Japanese private company to accomplish the feat.
Its lunar lander Resilience, carrying a rover and experimental equipment, lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Jan. 15 as part of a mission to reach the Moon’s northern hemisphere. The lander is currently en route and is expected to enter lunar orbit in early May.
———-
Record 4.5 bil. yen in lost cash turned in to Tokyo police in 2024
TOKYO – Tokyo police saw a record 4.49 billion yen ($30 million) worth of cash turned in as lost property in 2024, up 1.8 percent from the previous year, amid a surge in inbound tourists and as more people went out after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted.
The largest single amount of cash brought to the police totaled around 11.6 million yen, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s lost and found center has also revealed.
Video: Girls’ Day festival in Wakayama Prefecture
