IN BRIEF (Page 11)

Korean Peninsula

Summit to focus on denuclearizing

At their upcoming summit, Moon Jae-in, president of the Republic of Korea, and Kim Jong-un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, are expected to focus on issues of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula and defusing inter-Korean military tensions, a special security adviser for Moon said on Thursday. Moon and Kim agreed to hold their third summit in Pyongyang for three days from Sept 18. They agreed to the peninsula's complete denuclearization after their first summit in April at the border village of Panmunjom.

Japan

Country to open to foreigners

Japan's foreign minister said his country is bound to accept more foreign workers as its own population is on the brink of a steep decline. Taro Kono told a World Economic Forum meeting in Vietnam that Japan gains "value added" by accepting foreigners willing to assimilate. He cited tennis star Naomi Osaka, daughter of a Japanese mother and a Haitian father, as an example of the benefits of diversity. Kono said Japan is drafting a new work permit system and gearing up to open its labor market. Japan's quickly aging population has been shrinking for several years.

United States

Florence closes in on east coast

Hurricane Florence edged closer on Thursday to delivering a powerful blow to the east coast of the US, with forecasters warning of life-threatening rainfall and flooding even as it weakened to a Category 2 storm. Georgia joined four other coastal states issuing an emergency declaration. As Florence closed in, US President Donald Trump and state urged residents in the path of the storm to evacuate before it was too late. Appeals to stay safe came from as far away as space as German astronaut Alexander Gerst tweeted pictures of the monster storm taken from the International Space Station along with the warning: "Watch out, America!"

India

High fever deaths cause panic

Health authorities are rushing medical supplies to some north Indian towns and villages where at least 50 people have died from fever over the past two weeks. Doctor Vineet Shukla, a top Uttar Pradesh state health official, says patients suffering from fever and bouts of shivering are crowding hospitals in the Rohilkhand region. One hospital had received more than 1,500 patients since Aug 30. He said the cause of these deaths was not immediately known. More than 200 million people live in Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state.

Xinhua - Ap - Reuters

(China Daily 09/14/2018 page11)