TOKYO: Japanese in Tokyo and along the northeast coast are marking the seventh anniversary of the tsunami that took more than 18,000 lives and triggered meltdowns at the Fukushima nuclear power plant.
Residents in coastal towns observed a moment of silence Sunday after sirens wailed at 2:46 p.m., the moment the magnitude-9.0 offshore earthquake that triggered the tsunami struck on March 11, 2011. The tsunami overwhelmed sea walls and washed away buildings, cars and entire neighborhoods as it swept inland.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said at an official ceremony in Tokyo that reconstruction is making steady progress, but more than 70,000 people are still displaced from their communities and many will never be able to return.
Cleaning up the still-radioactive nuclear plant remains a daunting challenge that will take decades.
Japan marks 7th anniversary of tsunami that killed 18,000
Japan marks 7th anniversary of tsunami that killed 18,000
Putin and Trump discuss Iran and Ukraine wars: Kremlin
- Putin and Trump held a one-hour call in their first talks since December
MOSCOW: Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump on Monday discussed the Iran war and Ukraine conflict during a “frank and constructive” telephone call, the Kremlin said.
Putin and Trump held a one-hour call in their first talks since December and Washington sought the discussion, Putin’s diplomatic adviser Yuri Ushakov was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.
“The accent was placed on the situation surrounding the conflict with Iran and the bilateral negotiations underway with the representatives of the United States on settling the Ukrainian question,” Ushakov said.
Ushakov said Putin called for a “quick political and diplomatic settlement” to the US-Israeli war against Iran, which has been a key ally for Russia.
The Russian leader also gave Trump “a description of the current situation on the line of contact where Russian troops are progressing with a lot of success,” he added, referring to the Ukraine war.
Putin “positively evaluated the mediation efforts undertaken” by Trump in the Ukraine conflict, the adviser said. A series of talks have been held between Russian and US officials and between Russian, US and Ukrainian officials, but with no breakthrough in efforts to reach a ceasefire.
Ushakov said Washington had wanted to “discuss a series of extremely important questions linked to the current international situation.”
“The conversation was serious and constructive,” he added.
Trump and Putin held a summit in Alaska in August last year.
