News Headlines - 04 January 2019
▽Trump says he has considered national emergency powers to build wall - CNNPolitics
President Donald Trump said Friday that he is considering using emergency powers which would allow him to use military funding to build a wall on the US-Mexico border, saying "I can do it if I want."
Thirteen Canadians have been detained in China since the high-profile arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver on Dec. 1, Ottawa says.
Global Affairs Canada spokesman Guillaume Bérubé said in a statement to The Globe and Mail that the government is aware that 13 Canadians have been detained in China, excluding Hong Kong, since Dec. 1, 2018. Previously, only Michael Kovrig, Michael Spavor and Sarah McIver were publicly known to have been detained in China since Canada arrested Ms. Meng, chief financial officer of Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. They were taken into custody after China promised retaliation for Ms. Meng’s arrest.
Mr. Bérubé said in the statement that at least eight of the 13 have been released. Global Affairs Canada did not disclose the identities of the other 10 Canadians.
▽South Korea discloses video of maritime incident to dispute Japan claims - Nikkei Asian Review
South Korea on Friday released a video of an alleged radar lock-on incident involving a Japanese plane and a South Korean warship, repeating its demand that Japan stop "distorting" the truth about the case and apologize for a low-altitude flyby by one of its planes.
The South Korean move marks another twist in a dispute that has pitted two U.S. allies against each other and comes exactly a week after Japan released a video of its own in claiming that a South Korean Navy ship had locked a fire-control radar on a Maritime Self-Defense Force patrol plane over the Sea of Japan.
South Korea has steadfastly denied Japan's claim, saying the destroyer was on the scene on Dec. 20 to rescue a drifting North Korean fishing boat. It said the destroyer used an optical camera but did not direct its radar.
▽Abe: New era name to be announced April 1 - The Japan News
The name of the nation’s next era will be announced on April 1, ahead of the change from the current Heisei era on May 1, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Friday.
The era name release one month before the switch is intended to “minimize the impact on the lives of the public,” Abe told a press conference, held after his customary New Year visit to the Ise Grand Shrines in Ise, Mie Prefecture. The Abe Cabinet is set to formalize the new era name at a meeting earlier on April 1, he said.
The Emperor is scheduled to abdicate on April 30, to be followed by Crown Prince Naruhito’s accession to the throne on May 1. This will mark the first Imperial succession from a living emperor in Japan in about 200 years.
▽Japanese monks: 'I can do this in monk's robes' videos shared online - BBC News
Japanese monks have been skipping, skating and juggling to show how unrestrictive their traditional attire is.
It comes after a monk was fined by police for driving while wearing a kimono because it "could affect safe driving", according to the Yomiuri Shimbun.
He has refused to pay the traffic ticket of 6,000 yen ($55; £43).
