US Navy: UN sanctions on N.Korea effective
A top US Navy officer says a North Korean ship suspected of carrying illicit weapons was forced to change course thanks to a recent UN resolution that imposed tougher sanctions on the North.
US Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Gary Roughed, now visiting Japan, spoke to reporters in Tokyo on Saturday.
Roughed said the ship, the Kang Nam, which was initially seen as heading for Myanmar, made a turnaround and is currently navigating in the East China Sea, off southeastern China.
Roughed said he believes he is seeing the effect of a UN Security Council resolution that called on member states to inspect North Korean ships suspected of carrying weapons and other banned items.
He stressed that the effect of the clause asking countries to inspect cargo made it difficult for the North Korean vessel to enter foreign ports. The US military has been closely monitoring the Kang Nam since last month.
Roughed also expressed confidence that his country and Japan can work together to fend off any ballistic missile attacks by the North targeting the 2 nations.
He said that the US Navy and Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force jointly have the world's highest missile defense capability.
IAEA board appoints Japanese diplomat as new chief
The International Atomic Energy Agency has appointed Japanese IAEA Ambassador Yukiya Amano as its new director general.
The agency's board of governors made the appointment on Friday.
The board picked Amano in a vote on Thursday in Vienna as successor to Director General Mohamed ElBaradei, who will retire in November.
Amano is the first Japanese to have been appointed to the top post of the UN nuclear watchdog since the agency was founded in 1957.
Speaking to reporters, Amano said he will do his utmost to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
Amano said Japan has adopted a policy of not owning nuclear weapons and seeking arms reduction in the postwar period while making peaceful use of nuclear energy. He said he wants to share Japan's experience with the rest of the world.
Amano will formally assume the post in December after the IAEA general assembly approves his appointment in September.
Honduras interim gov. rejects Zelaya's return
The Honduran interim government has rejected a demand by the Organization of American States, or OAS, to reinstate ousted president Manuel Zelaya.
OAS Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza arrived in Honduras on Friday for talks with Supreme Court president Jorge Rivera, who ordered Zelaya's arrest, and members of Congress supporting the coup.
Insulza told reporters after the meeting that the discussions were not fruitful, saying the interim government had no intention of restoring Zelaya to power.
Insulza did not meet Roberto Micheletti, named as the caretaker president by Congress, in order to avoid legitimizing the interim government.
The OAS is to hold an emergency foreign ministers' meeting on Saturday to discuss the suspension of Honduras' membership.
By rejecting the OAS demand, the interim government is likely to become further isolated from the international community. Neighboring nations have already suspended trade with Honduras, and international financial institutions have cut new loans to the nation.
EU protests Iran's detention of UK Embassy staff
The member states of the European Union have summoned Iranian ambassadors across the 27-country bloc and demanded the immediate release of detained British Embassy staffers.
The Iranian authorities detained several local staff of the British Embassy in Tehran who they allege instigated street protests by reformists after last month's presidential election.
Diplomatic sources in the EU said ambassadorial level talks were held in Brussels on Friday. The EU criticized Iran for keeping 2 local staffers in custody, and member states decided to suspend the issuance of new visas to Iranian diplomats.
The member states of the EU are said to be considering recalling their ambassadors to Iran. The attention of the international community is focused on Iran's next move.
Recession helps cut CO2 from electronics firms
The amount of greenhouse gas emissions from Japan's major electronics companies significantly fell last year thanks to substantial output reductions amid the global recession.
Panasonic produced a total of 347,000 tons of emissions from all of its domestic and overseas plants in fiscal 2008, which ended in March. The figure was down 12.5 percent from the previous year.
Mitsubishi Electric saw a 7.1 percent cut in its combined emissions in and outside Japan, while NEC Electronics reported 20.7 percent less emissions from its plants in Japan.
Sony estimates that the group's overall emissions decreased 13 percent.
These reductions are attributed to massive production cuts due to a slump in global demand.
Greenhouse gas emissions could turn upward again if the economy recovers.
The manufacturers face the government's medium-term target of 15 percent reductions from the 2005 level.
Panasonic's environment department chief Kuniaki Okahara says electronics firms must join hands to reach the goal, which is hard to achieve.
最終更新：2009年07月05日 09:59
