2005.08.03

DPRK reportedly fails to turn up for meeting of chief envoys (AFP). A source close to negotiators says the scheduled meeting of the top envoys to talks on North Korea's nuclear program failed to take place because delegates from Pyongyang did not show up. 2005.08.03

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Japan-Nuclear Japan on Saturday marks the 60th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima – the first time nuclear weapons were used in warfare. The American aerial attack, followed three days later by an plutonium bomb dropped on Nagasaki, prompted the Japanese to surrender the following week, ending the Second World War. For Japan, the unprecedented attacks scarred the national psyche –-creating what many there call a “nuclear allergy” – putting the nation at the forefront of the post-war anti-nuclear movement. But six decades later Japan has become a nuclear power of a different sort in its own right and even the taboos concerning nuclear weapons are receding. More in this Tokyo Newspod report from Steve Herman. 2005.08.03

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Toyota profit down on global expansion costs as sales hit new high (AFP). Japan's top automaker says its net profit slipped slightly as it raised spending to expand global operations and catch up with the strong demand that boosted sales to a new record. 2005.08.03

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DPRK Talks May End Without Agreement (AP). Delegates to North Korean disarmament talks say they're approaching the final stages of discussions but that a resolution to the dispute over the communist nation's nuclear weapons program ultimately lay in its own hands. 2005.08.03

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PRC says Japan defense paper undermines ties (Reuters). China dismisses a Japanese defense report urging vigilance against its military modernization, saying the "irresponsible" move will lead to suspicions and antagonism and undermine bilateral ties. 2005.08.03

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