Taro Katsura

Taro Katsura

Born on Nov. 28, 1847 in Yamaguchi Prefecture and deceased on Oct. 10, 1913. Katsura served as prime minister three times -- between June 2, 1901 and Jan. 7, 1906; between July 14, 1908 and Aug. 30, 1911; and between Dec. 21, 1912 and Feb. 20, 1913. During his terms in office as prime minister, Japan signed the 1902 Anglo-Japanese Alliance, won the 1904-05 Russo-Japanese War and annexed Korea, becoming a major imperialist power in East Asia.

Hirobumi Ito

Hirobumi Ito

Ito became Japan's first prime minister (1885-1888) under its modern cabinet system. Ito, who was the chief architect of Japan's first constitution, later served as the country's fifth (1892-1896), seventh (Jan. 12, 1898-June 30, 1898) and 10th (1900-1901) prime minister. Ito signed the Korean-Japanese Convention of 1905, which awarded Japan full control of Korea's foreign relations. Ito, who became the first Japanese resident general in Korea of 1906, was assassinated on Oct. 26 in 1909 in Harbin, Manchuria by Korean nationalist An Chung Gun. Born Sept. 2, 1841.

Abandoned coal mine in NE China embraces green transformation

STORY: Abandoned coal mine in NE China embraces green transformation DATELINE: May 24, 2022 LENGTH: 00:01:44 LOCATION: FUSHUN, China CATEGORY: ENVIRONMENT SHOTLIST: 1. various of the West Open-pit Coal Mine of Fushun Mining Group 2. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): LI ZHAOFU, Party secretary and chairman of Fushun Mining Group STORYLINE: An abandoned coal mine here has turned green thanks to years of ecological restoration efforts. With an area of over 10 square kilometers and a vertical depth of more than 400 meters, the West Open-pit Coal Mine of Fushun Mining Group is the largest one of its kind in Asia. The coal mine was first excavated in 1901. With an annual capacity of over 10 million tonnes, the city used to be a major source of coal for China in the 1960s and 1970s. However, the city's heavy reliance on its coal reserves also brought environmental pollution and other problems. In June 2019, the West Open-pit Coal Mine was officially shuttered. To restore the environment, various measures have been taken b