Search｜Photos & Images & Videos｜KYODO NEWS IMAGES INC

TonenGeneral to buy Mitsui Oil to create 3rd largest oil wholesaler

TOKYO, Japan - Jun Muto, president of oil wholesaler TonenGeneral Sekiyu K.K., announces at a news conference in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013, that the company will acquire a stake of nearly 90 percent in Mitsui Oil Co. for 24.9 billion yen from the trader on Feb. 4. The acquisition would allow the TonenGeneral group to rival Cosmo Oil Co. as Japan's third-largest oil wholesaler in terms of sales following JX Holdings Inc. and Idemitsu Kosan Co.

E

2 Japanese food firms to set up instant noodle JVs in India, Nigeria

TOKYO, Japan - Masatoshi Ito (L), president of Ajinomoto Co., and Kazuo Obata, president of Toyo Suisan Kaisha Ltd., shake hands after a news conference in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013. They announced that their companies have agreed to set up instant noodle joint ventures in India and Nigeria as they aim to meet growing demand and catch up with foreign rivals.

E

New political party launched to fight powerful ruling bloc

TOKYO, Japan - Kenji Eda (R), head of the newly formed opposition "Yui no to," speaks in a news conference at a hotel in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013. Earlier in the day, Eda, former secretary general of Your Party, and 14 other Japanese Diet members launched the party.

E

New political party launched to fight powerful ruling bloc

TOKYO, Japan - Fifteen members of the Japanese Diet -- 14 who bolted from the opposition Your Party and one independent -- pose for photos at a hotel in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013, after launching the new party "Yui no to." Kenji Eda, former secretary general of the opposition Your Party, heads the new party.

E

U.S. Ambassador Kennedy talks with New Komeito's Yamaguchi

TOKYO, Japan - Natsuo Yamaguchi (L), leader of the New Komeito party, the junior partner in Japan's ruling coalition, and U.S. Ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy shake hands at New Komeito's headquarters in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013, prior to their talks. Kennedy asked for Yamaguchi's cooperation in securing an early conclusion to the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade talks. (Pool photo)

E

Osaka court rules July election vote gap unconstitutional

OSAKA, Japan - Lawyers hold a sign saying the Osaka High Court has ruled the July 2013 House of Councillors election unconstitutional, in front of the court in Osaka on Dec. 18, 2013. The high court said the disparity of up to 4.77-fold in the weight of votes in the election was unconstitutional but dismissed the plaintiffs' demand that election results in six western Japan constituencies be nullified.

E

U.S. Ambassador Kennedy talks with New Komeito's Yamaguchi

TOKYO, Japan - Natsuo Yamaguchi (L), leader of the New Komeito party, the junior partner in Japan's ruling coalition, talks with U.S. Ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy (R) at New Komeito's headquarters in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013. Kennedy asked for Yamaguchi's cooperation in securing an early conclusion to the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade talks. (Pool photo)

E

New political party launched to fight powerful ruling bloc

TOKYO, Japan - Fifteen members of the Japanese Diet -- 14 who bolted from the opposition Your Party and one independent -- gather at a hotel in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013, to launch the new party "Yui no to." Kenji Eda, former secretary general of the opposition Your Party, heads the new party.

E

TEPCO decides on permanent shutdown of 2 Fukushima reactors

TOKYO, Japan - File photo taken in September 2013 shows the No. 5 reactor (L) and No. 6 reactor at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima Daiichi power plant in Fukushima Prefecture. The company decided at its board meeting on Dec. 18, 2013, to permanently shut down the two reactors that avoided meltdowns in the 2011 nuclear disaster.

E

New political party launched to fight powerful ruling bloc

TOKYO, Japan - Kenji Eda speaks at a meeting to launch the new political party "Yui no to" at a hotel in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013. Eda, former secretary general of the opposition Your Party, heads the new party consisting of 15 lawmakers -- 14 of whom, including Eda, bolted from Your Party, and one independent.

E

Tokyo Tower still popular after ending relay role

TOKYO, Japan - The Tokyo Tower is seen from the newly named Tokyo Tower street leading up to it in the Japanese capital on Dec. 18, 2014. The tower, designated as a national cultural property in June 2013, remains a popular sightseeing spot, drawing some 2 million visitors annually to its observatory deck, even after ceding its role as a radiowave transmission tower to Tokyo Skytree in 2012.

E

City assembly passes ordinance for revue troupe

TAKARAZUKA, Japan - The Takarazuka Grand Theater, built for the Japanese all-female Takarazuka Revue musical troupe, stands in the namesake city in Hyogo Prefecture, western Japan, as seen in this file photo taken in July 2013. The Takarazuka municipal assembly passed an ordinance on Dec. 18, 2014, to create an environment matching the troupe on the occasion of the 100th anniversary this year of its creation.

E

Widow of subway gas attack victim shows photos to journalist

TOKYO, Japan - Shizue Takahashi, widow of a 1995 subway gas attack victim, shows photos during an interview with U.S. journalist Charlie Lyons in Tokyo in this file photo taken on Dec. 18, 2013. The interview took place as part of Lyons' work to produce a film about weapons of mass destruction on behalf of the United Nations.

E

Urban Animal Album

OSAKA, Japan - A capybara relaxes under a hot-water drip at Nagasaki Bio Park, a zoo and botanical garden in Nagasaki Prefecture, on Dec. 18, 2013. The rodent native to the Amazon river basin dislikes cold weather and likes to soak in the open-air bath built at the park for exclusive use by the animal in winter.

E

ANA jumbo jet

TOKYO, Japan - A Dec. 18, 2013, file photo shows a Boeing 747 of All Nippon Airways Co. at Tokyo's Haneda airport. The Japanese airline plans to withdraw the jumbo jets from its domestic service at the end of March 2014.

E

ANA jumbo jet

TOKYO, Japan - All Nippon Airways Co. pilot Michihiko Tanaka sits in the cockpit of a Boeing 747 at Tokyo's Haneda airport on Dec. 18, 2013. The Japanese airline plans to withdraw the jumbo jets from its domestic service at the end of March 2014 in Tokyo.

E

Mandela statue

PRETORIA, South Africa - Photo shows a 9-meter-tall statue of the late former South African President Nelson Mandela in Pretoria on Dec. 18, 2013. The South African government ordered the removal of a sculpted rabbit from inside one of the ears of the statue.

E

Mini model of N. Korea's Unha-3 rocket on display

TOKYO, Japan - A miniature model of North Korea's Unha-3 rocket is on display at the Three Revolution Exhibition museum in Pyongyang on Dec. 18, 2013. The rocket, suspected by Japan, South Korea and the United States to be an improved model of the Taepodong-2 ballistic missile, is said to have carried the Kwangmyongsong (Shining Star) 3-2 satellite when it was launched on Dec. 12, 2012.

E

Teenage pair wins world Latin dance contest

TAKAMATSU, Japan - Photo taken Dec. 18, 2013, in Takamatsu shows Takaaki Fujisawa (R) and Honoka Miyaji, a Japanese teenage pair who won the amateur division of the New York style salsa dancing called "On 2" at the World Latin Dance Cup in Miami, Florida earlier that month.

E

Emperor turns 80

TOKYO, Japan - Japan's Emperor Akihito holds a press conference at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013, ahead of his 80th birthday on Dec. 23. (Pool photo)

E

Emperor turns 80

TOKYO, Japan - Japan's Emperor Akihito holds a press conference at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013, ahead of his 80th birthday on Dec. 23. (Pool photo)

E

Emperor turns 80

TOKYO, Japan - Japan's Emperor Akihito holds a press conference at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013, ahead of his 80th birthday on Dec. 23. (Pool photo)

E

Emperor turns 80

TOKYO, Japan - Japan's Emperor Akihito holds a press conference at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2013, ahead of his 80th birthday on Dec. 23. (Pool photo)

E

Suzuki's Alto Eco

TOKYO, Japan - Photo shows the updated Alto Eco minicar that Suzuki Motor Corp. will release on Dec. 18, 2013. The updated Alto Eco provides fuel economy of 35.0 kilometers per liter, Suzuki Motor said Nov. 19.

E

Dreamliner probe

TAKAMATSU, Japan - U.S. aviation experts examine a Boeing 787 Dreamliner at Takamatsu Airport in western Japan on Jan. 18, 2013. The team is investigating the plane's emergency landing at the airport following the appearance of smoke inside the aircraft on Dec. 16.

E

Dreamliner probe

TAKAMATSU, Japan - U.S. aviation experts examine a Boeing 787 Dreamliner at Takamatsu Airport in western Japan on Jan. 18, 2013. The team is investigating the plane's emergency landing at the airport following the appearance of smoke inside the aircraft on Dec. 16.

E

Dreamliner probe

TAKAMATSU, Japan - U.S. aviation experts examine a Boeing 787 Dreamliner at Takamatsu Airport in western Japan on Jan. 18, 2013. The team is investigating the plane's emergency landing at the airport following the appearance of smoke inside the aircraft on Dec. 16.

E

Dreamliner probe

TAKAMATSU, Japan - U.S. National Transportation Safety Board investigator Lorenda Ward is surrounded by reporters upon her arrival with other U.S. aviation experts at Takamatsu Airport in western Japan on Jan. 18, 2013. The team plans to investigate the emergency landing at the airport of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner flown by All Nippon Airways Co., following the appearance of smoke inside the aircraft on Dec. 16.

E

Dreamliner probe

TAKAMATSU, Japan - U.S. aviation experts arrive at Takamatsu Airport in western Japan on Jan. 18, 2013, to investigate the emergency landing at the airport of Boeing 787 Dreamliner following the appearance of smoke inside the aircraft on Dec. 16.

E

Railway fare cards to become mutually usable

TOKYO, Japan - Representatives of railway and bus operators pose with their respective electronic fare cards in a gathering at the East Japan Railway Co. head office in Tokyo on Dec. 18, 2012. A total of 10 regional railway and bus fare cards such as Suica and Pasmo in Tokyo and Icoca in Osaka will become mutually usable in all their operating areas in Japan, starting March 23, 2013.