The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.

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Japan to sanction Russian entities over N. Korean arms procurement

TOKYO - Japan's government said Friday it has decided to impose sanctions on nine entities based in Russia and a national of the country as well as two Cypriot firms over Moscow's weapons procurements from North Korea amid its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told a press conference that Japan "strongly condemns" arms transfers to Russia from North Korea, which are in violation of related U.N. Security Council resolutions.

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Japan to join large-scale U.S. Pacific military exercise in June

TOKYO - Japan's Self-Defense Forces will join a large-scale U.S. military exercise in the Pacific for the first time in June, Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said Friday, amid mounting security challenges posed by China and North Korea.

Kihara told a press conference that the SDF will participate in "various tactical trainings" mainly in the skies and waters surrounding Japan to be held from June 7 to 18 as part of the biennial "Valiant Shield" exercise, at the invitation of the U.S. side.

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Transport ministry reviews safety at JAL after spate of incidents

TOKYO - Japan's transport ministry carried out an inspection at a Japan Airlines Co. office at Haneda airport in Tokyo on Friday following a series of incidents involving the company's aircraft, including one the previous day in which two jets touched wings while taxiing, officials said.

Four officials of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism entered the office, located next to an aircraft maintenance facility, to conduct an extraordinary audit involving hearings to assess the airline's safety procedures and processes.

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Japan to work with ASEAN to train 100,000 digital professionals

TOKYO - Japan aims to work with ASEAN to train 100,000 highly skilled digital professionals in the fields of artificial intelligence and semiconductors over the next five years, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Thursday.

Kishida also said in a speech in Tokyo that the second ministerial meeting of the Japan-led Asia Zero Emission Community framework, which involves Australia and Association of Southeast Asian Nations members excluding Myanmar, will take place in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta in August.

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Japan's core inflation slows to 2.2% in April on food, services

TOKYO - Japan's core consumer prices rose 2.2 percent in April from a year earlier, but the pace of increase slowed for the second straight month as price pressure on food and services eased, government data showed Friday.

The increase in the nationwide core consumer price index, excluding volatile fresh food, followed a 2.6 percent gain in March, and it remained at or above the Bank of Japan's 2 percent target for the 25th straight month.

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Philippines, Japan to seal defense deal at 2-plus-2 meeting in July

MANILA - Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said on Thursday that there is a "very strong possibility" for his country and Japan to sign an agreement allowing their defense forces to train in each other's territories during a meeting involving the two nations' foreign and defense ministers in July.

In an interview with Kyodo News, Teodoro stated that negotiations on a reciprocal access agreement were nearing conclusion, with no remaining contentious issues. These negotiations commenced in late November, following an agreement earlier that month between Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to initiate talks aimed at enhancing security ties.

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China continues military drills surrounding Taiwan for 2nd day

BEIJING - China continued Friday its large-scale military drills surrounding Taiwan for a second day, aiming to test its capabilities to "seize control of crucial areas" in a move to increase pressure on the island's new leader Lai Ching-te.

The two-day exercises involving China's army, navy, air and rocket forces followed Monday's inauguration of Lai, whom Beijing condemns as a separatist. The mainland has deployed dozens of warplanes as well as destroyers and escort ships, according to state-run China Central Television.

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S. Korean, Japanese, Chinese leaders to hold summit in Seoul on Mon.

SEOUL/TOKYO - South Korea said Thursday that a trilateral summit involving Japan and China is scheduled to be held in Seoul on Monday, the first of its kind in more than four years amid an increasingly unstable regional security environment.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese Premier Li Qiang are expected to discuss a wide range of topics, including people-to-people exchanges and economic cooperation.

==Kyodo

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