Japan, N. Korea fail to agree on economic aid formula
February 6, 2006Japan and North Korea failed Monday to agree on an economic cooperation formula presented by Tokyo as a method to make up for its past wrongdoings, the two countries' chief negotiators on diplomatic normalization said after their meeting in Beijing. ''We cannot accept (a situation in which the discussions cover) only that method. There are all kinds of issues so we did not reach an agreement,'' Song Il Ho, North Korea's ambassador to normalization talks with Japan, told reporters.
Koizumi sees difficulty in solving abductions with N. Korea
February 6, 2006Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said Monday that difficulties still remain for Japan and North Korea in resolving the issue of Japanese nationals abducted by the North because of differences in their positions on the issue. ''There remain gaps in the positions and ideas so it will be difficult,'' Koizumi told reporters at his official residence in Tokyo after the two countries failed to make progress in Sunday's talks on the matter.
Singapore's Goh urges Japan to strike deal with China on Yasukuni
February 6, 2006Singaporean Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong said Monday Asian countries cannot support Japan on the issue of the war-related Yasukuni Shrine, urging Tokyo to compromise with Beijing to improve their strained relations. He proposed what he called a ''grand bargain,'' by which Japanese leaders should stop visiting the Shinto shrine, which honors convicted Japanese war criminals including wartime premier Gen. Hideki Tojo along with the war dead.
Malaysian daily apologizes, editor quits for reprinting Danish cartoons
February 6, 2006A local Malaysian newspaper apologized Monday and said its editor has resigned for reprinting controversial Danish cartoons that depict Islam's Prophet Muhammad. The Sarawak Press Sdn. Bhd., publisher of the Sarawak Tribune, an English-language daily circulated mainly in the Sarawak state in Borneo, expressed ''profound regret over the unauthorized publication of a news extract from a foreign newspaper.''