Hello and welcome to NHK Newsline. I'm Keiko Kitagawa in Tokyo. NATO defense ministers gathering in Brussels face the crisis moment they've been bracing for. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hexas told them that America seeks to end its role as their guarantor of European security. The Trump administration has been openly frustrated with NATO members, saying they're too dependent on the U.S. Member countries say they need to boost their own defense spending and support for Ukraine.
We need to do more. Much more. And we need to do it faster. It is clear from our discussions today that allies recognize the need to invest much more. Ruta says NATO's continued freedom and prosperity is on the line. He added that to ensure its deterrence and defense in the future, the Allies need to shift to a wartime mindset.
While Hex has promised that the U.S. will remain committed to Ukraine, he says everyone needs to contribute their fair share. This administration believes in alliances, deeply believes in alliances. But make no mistake, President Trump will not allow anyone to turn Uncle Sam into Uncle Sucker. Hexer stressed that Europe should be primarily responsible for defending the European continent.
European foreign ministers issued a statement expressing concern that the US and Russia are trying to take the reins on ending the war in Ukraine. They say Ukraine and Europe must be at the negotiating table. Part of the concern stems from Trump's phone talks with Russia's leader. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Trump calling Vladimir Putin before him was, quote, not very pleasant.
It's important everything does not go according to Putin's plan, in which he wants to do everything to make his negotiations bilateral. between him and the United States of America. We, as a sovereign country, simply will not be able to accept any agreements without us. After speaking with Putin over the phone on Wednesday, Trump said he thinks they'll arrange a ceasefire soon.
We talked about the possibility, I mentioned it, of a ceasefire so we can stop the killing and I think we'll probably end up at some point getting a ceasefire in the not too distant future. Opinion is divided in Ukraine. The most important thing is that talks are taking place. There have been no talks for three years. I think everything is working in Russia's favor. Trump just wants the war to end.
Ukraine's military says it currently holds about 500 square kilometers of territory it captured during an offensive in western Russia's Kursk region. That's less than half of the area it once controlled, indicating Russia has been intensified. Authorities in southern Germany say 30 people have been injured after a car plowed into a crowd in a suspected attack.
It happened as people had been participating in a strike organized by a labor union. One of the group's officials tells NHK about 1,500 people were there. Police say they've detained the car's driver, a 24-year-old asylum seeker from Afghanistan. It comes about a week and a half before a national election. Security and the increasing number of immigrants and refugees have been major campaign issues. The largest center-right opposition party leaves opinion polls.
policy and in response to Thursday's incident has stressed its commitment to ensuring security. The U.S. president has taken another step to correct what he calls unfair global trade practices. He signed a plan to impose reciprocal tariffs. That means the U.S. will match the levies other countries have placed on American goods.
Whatever they charge, we charge, so nobody can complain. The plan calls on officials to consider new tariffs on trading partners that have targeted American exports with high levies. For many years, the US has been treated unfairly by other countries, both friend and foe. This system will immediately bring fairness and prosperity back. Tariffs will be determined on a case-by-case basis with the decisions coming at the beginning of April.
Trump says other nations can avoid economic calm by reducing or eliminating their own levies on the U.S. Japan is one of the countries scheduled for review. A White House official has reportedly noted that while its tariff rates are relatively low, its structural barriers remain high. President Trump says his 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports will protect domestic industries. He adds that as a result, U.S. steel does not need to be bought by Japan's Nippon Steel.
As you know, in Pennsylvania, US Steel is through the roof. They're all through the roof. That's why I didn't want US Steel to make a deal with Japan or anybody else. He didn't clarify if he would meet with Nippon Steel executives. Trump on February 7 said Nippon Steel had agreed to invest in U.S. steel as opposed to own it. He also indicated he would hold talks with the Japanese company's executives this week. Those comments followed his summit talks with Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru.
The U.S. defense chief says his country has to prioritize deterring China, so it plans to strengthen cooperation with allies in the Indo-Pacific region, including Japan. working by, with, and through allies and partners in that region who understand the reality of the ascendant Chinese threat will be critical. It can't be America alone. It won't be America alone if we are to deter that.
Pete Hexas says the Chinese Communist Party's ambitions are a threat to free people everywhere. But he stresses the U.S. does not seek conflict with China. And he says President Trump has a good relationship with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. A French Navy frigate is making a port call at a U.S. military base in Japan's southwestern prefecture of Okinawa. The warship is taking part in a joint exercise with Japan and the United States in the Pacific Ocean.
The frigate and the French supply ship arrived at the White Beach Naval facility in Uduma City on Thursday. The two vessels are part of a French aircraft carrier strike group participating in the Pacific Stellar exercise aimed at improving mutual operational capabilities. The drill includes refueling of Japanese maritime self-defense for ships at sea.
This is the first time since 1968 that a French carrier strike group has been deployed to the Pacific. The French military is stepping up its involvement in the Indo-Pacific region amid China's increasingly assertive maritime. activity. The area is more and more contested, especially the rule-based order. The frigate's captain said the aim of the exercise is to demonstrate the ability to react together to any crisis in the region.
Australia says a Chinese fighter jet released flares in close proximity to an Australian Air Force patrol aircraft over the South China Sea, a move it condemned as unsafe. The incident occurred on Tuesday when an Australian aircraft was conducting routine surveillance, the Australian Defence Department said in a statement on Thursday. Both the aircraft and its crew were unharmed.
Australian Defence Minister Richard Miles condemned the incident. That is an action that we've declared as being unsafe. We have made representations about our concerns to the Chinese government. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said the Australian plane violated China's sovereignty by deliberately intruding into its airspace. We took legitimate, professional and restrained measures to expel the Australian plane. Guo added China has lodged solemn protests with Australia.
The Australian Defence Department separately released two photographs it says show a Chinese frigate within Australia's exclusive economic zone. Miles said Navy and Air Force assets were deployed to show that Australian forces are shattering the Chinese group and have a clear understanding of what's going on. Hamas sparked concern earlier this week by announcing a pause in its release of hostages.
That still concerns about a breakdown of the ceasefire deal with Israel, but the group now says it will free the captives on Saturday as planned. The Islamic group made the announcement on Thursday after its delegation had visited Egypt for talks. It said mediators in Egypt and Qatar confirmed that they would follow up on aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip to remove obstacles. On Monday, Hamas announced a delay to the hostage release accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire deal.
It said Israel was not fully allowing relief supplies into Gaza, including mobile homes for displaced people and heavy machinery to clear debris. It also said Israeli forces were attacking residents in the enclave. An Israeli government spokesperson said on Thursday the ceasefire will end unless Hamas releases three living hostages on Saturday.
For more on those stories, please visit NHK World Japan's website. Warmer than usual weather conditions are expected in parts of Northeast Asia this weekend. Our meteorologist Seth Simonara has all the details up next. Hi there, temperatures are starting to feel a lot like mid-March across many parts of central Japan. And on top of that, sunny skies will prevail for much of the weekend.
Dry weather to persist across Main Island, going all the way down towards southwestern Japan. Also, people along the Korean Peninsula and the east coast of China will experience similar conditions. Temperatures for those in Tokyo, 14 degrees. Quite a lovely Saturday coming your way. Just one thing to look out for is the amount of pollen in the air. So that could be a little bit.
Challenging for those with allergies. For those in Australia, we're dealing with azalea just across the northern part of Port Headland, bringing strong gusts and heavy rain. some of the wind speeds could topple down trees and cause communities along the coast.
to just be in a little bit of the distressful pathway of the storm. So please do be extra careful along those paths. The conditions are going to be quite warm towards the south, though. Perth at 35, early spring 32, a bit of an alleviation there. in terms of the higher temperatures across South America. Here we've been dealing a lot with droughts, high temperatures, wildfires. Now we've got heavy rain that's causing flooding. Take a look at this following video coming in.
from Peru. As severe downpours cause landslides and overflowing rivers on Tuesday, eyewitness footage shows muddy waters gushing through the streets and destroying several homes. Local authorities See, dozens of families needed emergency assistance and they are also just trying to provide.
humanitarian relief to as many people as possible. Showers will continue into most parts of South America. And if you're in Paraguay, do look out for those high temperatures still continuing. The African continents along the north, where you'll have lovely and cool weather.
Some rainy conditions expected down towards the south. And also Johannesburg is quite cool, 24th of February. February is normally the hottest month in that region, so it is a bit cooler there. That's all for the weather. Do take care. Thank you. That wraps up this edition of NHK Newsline. I'm Keiko Kitagawa in Tokyo. Thank you for joining us.