INTERNATIONAL The United States military sets up a task force to review and reinforce its sexual-harassment and assault-prevention programs in the wake of an alleged rape in Okinawa. [THE JAPAN TIMES]

INTERNATIONAL The head of a Chinese factory that produced frozen meat dumplings linked to food poisoning cases in Japan said Friday he feels confident that there are no quality problems regarding the factory’s products. [KYODO]

INTERNATIONAL The European Commission on Monday urged EU governments to take a united stand against whaling. (7) [HOUSTON CHRONICLE]

INTERNATIONAL Japan and Russia reached basic agreement Saturday to start governmental talks on a deal under which Japan will purchase some of Russia’s surplus quota for greenhouse gas emissions, as permitted under the Kyoto Protocol. [YOMIURI]

INTERNATIONAL Japan will likely recognize the independence of Kosovo soon after the province breaks away from Serbia as early as this month, sources said. [ASAHI]

INTERNATIONAL A senior Chinese quality control official said Wednesday that Chinese- made frozen meat dumplings that made people sick in Japan may have been poisoned on purpose by those who do not wish to see good relations between the two countries. [KYODO]

INTERNATIONAL Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda said Wednesday he received a letter from Russian President Vladimir Putin which shows the two leaders share a desire to resolve promptly the bilateral dispute over Russian-held islands off Hokkaido. [KYODO]

INTERNATIONAL A group of Chinese experts held a meeting with their Japanese counterparts Sunday over a food-poisoning outbreak allegedly triggered by Chinese-made frozen meat dumplings. [KYODO]

INTERNATIONAL Russia on Friday afternoon released the remaining four of the 11 fishermen it detained Dec. 13 in waters off disputed Kunashiri Island, handing them over to Japan at sea near Nemuro in Hokkaido, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said. [KYODO]

INTERNATIONAL Singapore’s elder statesman Lee Kuan Yew said Friday Japan cannot take the lead role in regional security because Asian countries still mistrust Japan decades after the end of World War II. [KYODO]

INTERNATIONAL Brazilian prosecutors have indicted a 29-year-old Brazilian man on charges of murdering and robbing a moneylender in 2003 in Japan at the request of the Japanese government, sources familiar with the case said Thursday. [KYODO]

INTERNATIONAL Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda sent a message of condolence Sunday to Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono over the passing away of the country’s former President Suharto, and praised his efforts to build friendly relations with Japan. (1)

INTERNATIONAL Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda held talks Saturday with former British Prime Minister Tony Blair on climate change and the Middle East peace process on the sidelines of an international forum here in Switzerland. [KYODO]

INTERNATIONAL Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda will hold talks Saturday with Irish rock singer Bono of the band U2, Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade to discuss spurring African development. [KYODO]

INTERNATIONAL A 14-year-old girl and her father were arrested by police Thursday after staging a sit-down protest over whaling inside the Japanese Embassy in London. (1) [KYODO]

INTERNATIONAL Japan agreed Friday to provide Malaysia with a 473 million yen grant to upgrade its surveillance system along the busy Malacca Strait.

INTERNATIONAL A female alpinist succeeded in reaching the South Pole, becoming the first Japanese woman to accomplish the feat, her supporters said on Thursday. [MAINICHI]

INTERNATIONAL Australia’s free trade agreement negotiations with Japan and an expansion of security cooperation will be among the key topics for discussion when Foreign Minister Stephen Smith visits Tokyo next week, Smith said Wednesday. [KYODO]

INTERNATIONAL Japan urged Australia Tuesday to take legal action against two anti-whaling protestors who climbed aboard a Japanese whaler in Antarctic seas last week, a foreign ministry statement said. [AFP]

INTERNATIONAL The war against whaling turned into a war between anti-whalers Monday as Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd traded barbs while pursuing the Japanese fleet in the Southern Ocean. [THE AUSTRALIAN]