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Japanese ambassador to Russia

TOKYO, Japan - Photo taken on Nov. 3, 2010, at Narita international airport in Chiba Prefecture shows Japanese Ambassador to Russia Masaharu Kono. The Japanese government is considering replacing Kono over his information gathering on Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's November visit to a disputed island, sources said Dec. 23, 2010.

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White-naped cranes in Kagoshima Pref.

TOKYO, Japan - Photo taken on Dec. 3, 2008, shows a flock of white-naped cranes in the Izumi Plains in Kagoshima Prefecture. A white-naped crane in the plains is suspected of being infected with avian influenza, a local official said on Dec. 23, 2010.

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Yeonpyeong Island after attack

YEONPYEONG ISLAND, South Korea - Debris of destroyed houses is left untouched on South Korea's Yeonpyeong Island on Dec. 3, 2010, following North Korea's artillery attack the previous month.

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Maharaja disco in Roppongi

TOKYO, Japan - Women on a stage heat up the floor with their dance moves at Maharaja Roppongi disco in Tokyo on Dec. 3, 2010. The original Maharaja, popular back in the 1980s, was once considered a symbol of Japan's booming bubble economy.

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'Santa48' display charms Kobe

KOBE, Japan - Photo taken on Dec. 3, 2010, shows Santa Claus figures ''Santa48'' decorating ''Urokonoie'' (The House of Scales), one of dozens old Western-style houses in the ''Ijinkan'' district, a popular tourist spot in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture.

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Seven-colored Rainbow Bridge

TOKYO, Japan - Tokyo's Rainbow Bridge is illuminated with by lights in seven colors Dec. 3, 2010, to give an appearance true to its name. The 798-meter-long bridge crossing northern Tokyo Bay is being lit up between nightfall and midnight until Jan. 3, 2011.

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Yeonpyeong Island after attack

YEONPYEONG ISLAND, South Korea - An area is sealed off on Yeonpyeong Island, South Korea, on Dec. 3, 2010, which came under an artillery attack by North Korea the previous month.

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Nissan's EV Leaf

YOKOHAMA, Japan - Toshiyuki Shiga, chief operating officer of Nissan Motor Co., unveils its Leaf electric vehicle at its head office in Yokohama on Dec. 3, 2010. The automaker plans to begin selling the EV on Dec. 20 in Japan, by the year-end in the United States and in early 2011 in Europe.

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Fishing boats hit by gusts

TOKYO, Japan - Fishing boats lean on each other at a port in Kamogawa, Chiba Prefecture, on Dec. 3, 2010, after being hit by wind gusts.

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Storms sweep through Japan

OTSU, Japan - People try to fix a broken house roof following strong winds in Otsu, Shiga Prefecture, on Dec. 3, 2010. A rapidly growing low-pressure system brought storms in a wide area of Japan on the day, disrupting transportation systems and causing casualties.

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Takanohana visits elementary school

FUKUOKA, Japan - Sumo stablemaster and former yokozuna (grand champion) Takanohana conducts a gym exercise with children at an elementary school in Fukuoka on Dec. 3, 2010. Takanohana was invited as a guest teacher to the school as part of a program organized by the Japan Football Association.

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Nissan's EV Leaf

YOKOHAMA, Japan - This photo shows Nissan Motor Co.'s Leaf electric vehicle being unveiled at the automaker's head office in Yokohama on Dec. 3, 2010. The automaker plans to begin selling the EV on Dec. 20 in Japan, by the year-end in the United States and in early 2011 in Europe.

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Nissan's EV Leaf

YOKOHAMA, Japan - Nissan Motor Co.'s Leaf electric vehicle is unveiled at its head office in Yokohama on Dec. 3, 2010. The automaker plans to begin selling the EV on Dec. 20 in Japan, by the year-end in the United States and in early 2011 in Europe.

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Kan, Sengoku at Diet session

TOKYO, Japan - Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan (R) and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku talk during a House of Representatives plenary session in Tokyo on Dec. 3, 2010, the final day of an extra Diet session. Sengoku told reporters he will do his best in both posts -- chief Cabinet secretary and justice minister -- after saying he may concentrate on the justice minister role, amid increasing pressure from opposition parties to leave the Cabinet.

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Takanohana visits elementary school

FUKUOKA, Japan - Sumo stablemaster and former yokozuna (grand champion) Takanohana does sumo warm-up exercises with children at an elementary school in Fukuoka on Dec. 3, 2010. Takanohana was invited as a guest teacher to the school as part of a program organized by the Japan Football Association.

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Japan-U.S. defense drills begin

SASEBO, Japan - A ceremony is held at the U.S. naval base in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture, on Dec. 3, 2010, to mark the beginning of Japan-U.S. defense exercises. South Korea is taking part for the first time as an observer in the largest-ever joint exercises, which run through Dec. 10, amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

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Bird flu in Shimane

MATSUE, Japan - An Environment Ministry employee collects samples of wild bird droppings at the side of Nakaumi lake in Yasugi, Shimane Prefecture, on Dec. 3, 2010, near a poultry farm hit by avian flu. Genetic tests have found the infection was caused by a highly virulent strain of virus.

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Nobel laureate Suzuki departs for award ceremony

SAPPORO, Japan - Akira Suzuki, a winner of the 2010 Nobel Prize in chemistry and a professor emeritus at Hokkaido University, leaves his home in Ebetsu, Hokkaido, on Dec. 3, 2010, to attend the award ceremony in Stockholm on Dec. 10. Suzuki shared the prize with another Japanese scientist, Eiichi Negishi, and American chemist Richard Heck.

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Japan-U.S. defense drills begin

SASEBO, Japan - A ceremony is held at the U.S. naval base in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture, on Dec. 3, 2010, to mark the beginning of Japan-U.S. defense exercises. South Korea is taking part for the first time as an observer in the largest-ever joint exercises, which run through Dec. 10, amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

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Sharp, Sony start taking orders for Galapagos

OSAKA, Japan - Women operate Galapagos multifunction tablet computers during a home electronics event at a store in Osaka on Dec. 3, 2010. Sharp Corp. and Sony Corp. began accepting orders the same day for Galapagos and Reader digital reading devices, which are scheduled to be released for the Japanese market the following week.

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Nissan's EV Leaf

YOKOHAMA, Japan - Toshiyuki Shiga, chief operating officer of Nissan Motor Co., introduces its Leaf electric vehicle at its head office in Yokohama on Dec. 3, 2010. The automaker plans to begin selling the EV, which Nissan describes as 100 percent electric and zero-emission, on Dec. 20 in Japan, later in the month in the United States and in early 2011 in Europe.

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Nissan's EV Leaf

YOKOHAMA, Japan - Nissan Motor Co. unveils the Leaf electric vehicle at its head office in Yokohama on Dec. 3, 2010. The automaker plans to begin sales of the EV, which Nissan describes as 100 percent electric and zero-emission, on Dec. 20 in Japan, later in the month in the United States and in early 2011 in Europe.

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Japan loses 2022 World Cup bid

TOKYO, Japan - Japan Football Association vice president Kuniya Daini (R) bows in the early hours of Dec. 3, 2010, in Tokyo after Japan lost its bid to host the 2022 World Cup. FIFA awarded the hosting rights for the 2022 tournament to Qatar.

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Japan loses 2022 World Cup bid

TOKYO, Japan - Japan Football Association vice president Kuniya Daini (C) and other people involved in soccer react in Tokyo as they found that Japan lost its bid to host the 2022 World Cup in the early hours of Dec. 3, 2010. FIFA awarded the hosting rights for the 2022 tournament to Qatar.

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Legendary racehorse Oguri Cap dies

TOKYO, Japan - This file photo shows legendary racehorse Oguri Cap (8) winning the Arima Memorial on Dec. 23, 1990, at Nakayama Racecourse, east of Tokyo. The dapple-grey horse died at 25 on July 3, 2010.

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Conductor Ozawa cancels December trip to Europe

TOKYO, Japan - Eminent Japanese conductor Seiji Ozawa (file photo), who is undergoing treatment for esophageal cancer, has decided to cancel a concert tour of Europe scheduled for December, people close to him said on June 3, 2010. Ozawa, 74, will appear in a music event beginning on Dec. 14 at Carnegie Hall in New York as scheduled.