Korean test last week. A commentary accusing the u. S. Of bringing the political situation to the brink of war. Describing the u. S. Move as foolish for using force in an attempt to provoke the north into action, the commentary stressed that north korea will continue to step up its Nuclear Deterrence if the u. S. Maintains what it describes as a hostile policy. Japanese Prime Minister shinzo abe is taking a hard line. It says its a serious threat to japan. Translator japan will impose harsher sanctions on north korea, using a reference of proposals made last june by the liberal partys task force on abductions of japanese nationals by the north. One of the proposed sanctions is a ban in principle on money transfers to north korea. Another is to reimpose restrictions on travel between the two countries that were lifted in july 2014. Abe says as a nonpermanent member of the u. N. Security Council Japan will cooperate with the United States and other countries to firmly respond to north koreas action. Arab League Ministers have condemned iran following recent events in the middle east. The Saudi Arabian foreign abde adel al jubeir, told an emergency meeting of the league that iran deliberately failed to protect riyadhs embassy in tehran. Arab League Ministers released a statement saying iran is inciting sectarian strife and interfering in the internal affairs of syria and yemen. They said theyll take their concerns to the u. N. Security council. Lebanon did not agree to the statement. The country is home to the iranianbacked hezbollah militant group. Theres growing concern about how tensions between the two countries could affect talks aimed at resolving the crisis in syria. Irans foreign minister says tehran will act responsibly and constructively. Mohammad javad zarif held discussions on sunday on the syrian conflict with u. N. Special envoy to syria stefan de mistura. He was quoted as saying tehran will not allow it to negatively affect efforts to end the crisis. He reportedly said iran has an Important Role to play. The meeting was held amid rising tensions between iran and saudi arabia. Many nations are worried about the recent break in diplomatic ties between the two countries. Iran supports the government of syrianled bashir al assad. Saudi arabia is lending help to antigovernment forces. Saudi foreign minister jubeir met de mistra last week. A tension is now focused on whether iran and saudi arabia can Work Together to that end. The Egyptian Parliament has held its first formal session since the military took power in 2013. Members who support president Abdel Fattah Al sisi have a majority. Groups are worried the government may become more authoritarian. Legislators elected constitutional expert ali abdelaal as speaker, belonging to a group of lawmakers who support sisi. Parliament has 13 days to decide whether to approve some laws by decree. One law allows security organizations to ban demonstrations. Another puts restrictions on the media in the name of fighting terrorism. Critics say such laws run counter to the spirit of democracy. Supporters of the governments top Security Policy won a major victory in elections held from october to december last year. Prodemocracy party are set to take the reins of power in myanmar. Buddhists, who make up 90 of the population, and muslims. Nhk reports. Reporter a law requires buddhist women to get permission from authorities before marrying someone from another religion. The law also forbids no s conv to another religion. One monk flaunts his hostility toward muslims. Translator muslims are different. Theyre trying to destroy buddhism and take over the country. Theyre thinking those things all the time. Reporter tension between buddhists and muslims in myanmar is palpable and its giving hard line buddhists a chance to. Half a century of military rule but now the country is on a path to democracy, people are beginning to voice their feelings, sometimes aggressively. The marriage law was passed several months before the general election. An Attorney Says leaders of the party hoped it would help them pick up votes from conservative buddhists. They want people to see them as patriotic fighters. They are the defenders of buddhi buddhism. And they blame Aung San Suu Kyi as a traitor of buddhism. Reporter they say its intended to protect women but a founder of Civil Rights Organization argues it will only act as friction. We want the government and parliament, the authorities to focus to eliminate violence against women. But now that these laws came and in place, it makes more confusing and more misunderstanding with the different religious. Reporter Muslim Leaders say the law is fueling their concern about discrimination. We talked to one who declined to show his face on camera, concerned about violence against muslims. Translator if the government protects people, no matter what their religion, ethnicity, appearance and skin color are under the rule of law, our fear will go away. Reporter the law would prevent couples like this one from making a life together. When they married eight years ago, he was muslim and she was buddhist and she later converted. They do not want to show their face on camera either. Translator i married my husband because i love him. And i converted to islam because my husband is devoted to it, and it appeals to me. Reporter the man says when people of different religion married for love has become a thing of the past. Translator i think muslim men are becoming cautious about marrying buddhist women. Reporter members of Aung San Suu Kyis party, largely buddhist vote and under scrutiny abroad, the party itself faces the difficult challenge of how to bring together everyone in the country as it looks toward the future. Experts from the interne at agency met on monday. This mission will assess the new Regulatory Framework established in japan after the Fukushima Daiichi accident. We will listen to you and tell you frankly what we believe is consistent with the iaea standards and what needs to be improved. The iaea sends teams of experts to countries at their request to assess regulators and nuclear inspections. During the 12day mission, expert also interview nra officials and visit power plants including Fukushima Daiichi. Beef is famous for its rich flavor and fat. Its also pricey. It can only come from cattle raised in western japan. Since 2012, the beef has been available outside of japan but its so popular that supply is barely keeping up with demand. Now, breeders are turning to new methods to try to increase their stock stocks. Reporter fighting over kobe beef at auction. 20 more than the previous years top bid. Exports reached almost 50 tons since fiscal 2014, more than a threefold increase in just three years. But production isnt expanding. Many ranchers are aging and not enough Young Farmers are willing to take their place. So, local agriculture officials have had to look around for a new approach. Translator even if we dont increase the number of mother cows we need to ensure we have enough cows. We are feeling the pressure to keep up with therowing demand. Reporter this purebred calf was born last year. Its mother is a holstein dairy cow. It was implanted, called embryo transfer. This farmer has about 100 dairy cattle. He decided to try the new method to produce calves for beef. His first tajima calf was born last march, but raising it proved far more challenging than he expected. Tajima cals are more vulnerable than dairy cattle. He had to check the amount of milk he fed them to their body temperature translator i had to check them first thing in the morning and again at noon. And i take one last look at the end of the day before i go home. Reporter hayashis first calf was auctioned in november. This was the very first time that a calf born through embryonic transfer had been auctioned. The final price was much the same as any other tajima calf. Translator although it was born from a holstein, it seems like a normal tajima cow. Translator my main feeling is relief its final will he out of my hands. Ive never sold a calf for so much before. I would like to continue raising tajima calfs. Reporter right now, only six farmers are using the new method. But cooperative officials are trying to encourage more to take part. With demand from abroad, they want to boost the number of tajima cattle to cash in on this business opportunity. In our series women of vision weve been putting a spotlight on women in japan who are influencing society. Today we go to the front lines of Artificial Intelligence, a technology thats becoming more prevalent. Leading a largescale project involving robotic brains. Shes developing the technology to create a better future. Nhk worlds Keiko Yamamoto has the story. Translator we want to develop Artificial Intelligence programs unlike any other in the world. Reporter trying to enhance the brain in this computer so it can pass the Entrance Exam for japans university it needs multiple ai programs just to read the questions. Robotic brains can absorb a huge amount of data, but they have trouble collectively understanding questions or organizing figures and illustrations, something that comes naturally to humans. She is trying to solve these problems. Translator i felt a strong desire to be the first one to find out the details of what ai can or cannot do. I dont want to have this technology affecting or changing my life when i dont even know what ai is or what its capable of. Reporter arai has faced her own challenges along the way. In school, she was not good with numbers and she never liked math. But while studying law she discovered logical math equations and it won her over. She want to the u. S. To continue her studies and decided to become a mathematician. Eventually she got married and had a child. As a fulltime mom she was continued to keep working. Translator mothers have things they want to pursue in life. Not only as a mother. And they can do them. I also wanted to live my life how i wanted and felt a strong desire to become a mathematician. Reporter since she started her career, she struggled to balance life at work and home. She realized she had to find her own path in such a maledominated field. Translator i realized there was a broader picture in the field. I found my place between the math and information technology. Reporter she forged ahead and won recognition, building the most used system in japanese schools. Her background and experience raising a child both contribute to the ai project. Her colleagues agree translator she can lead the project with a good knowledge of society. Translator its difficult to solve problems only through the lens of the robotics community. Arai always gives us new viewpoints. Reporter discovering the limits to ai. It has difficulty with ethics and language questions that require common sensor reallife experience. Arai says this also highlights strengths that only humans possess. Translator theres a difference in what ai and humans are good at. I think students should spend more time in school to create new things, to find solutions and discover things that are irregular. Reporter she predicts that in the next decade or two, ai will eliminate the need for 50 of all white collar jobs. She hopes that through her project, people can future by ai and take advantage of the uniquely human trait of curiosity. Keiko yamamoto, nhk world. Today, were going to take a bath in public. As you may know, a trip to a public bath is a japanese tradition. Recently, public baths are on the decline. 50 years ago, the tokyo area had about 2,000 of them. Now its down to 600. That sharp decline has them thinking of ways to appeal to customers in new, artistic ways. This sento in tokyo has welcomed bathers for years. Something quite rare in bathhouse murals. The sento is located in the neighborhood where the print artist was born. The bold layout and clear blues draw upon his work. Basking in the presence of the painting is the next best thing to being by the mountain itself. Its so beautiful. I feel so relaxed. Reporter this mural shows golden folding screens, a copy of an 18th century set of screens of red and white plum blossoms. It also offers the view of a more contemporary sight. Bathing there is like taking a tour from the edo period to modern times. Translator sento, like it tabuki and wrestling has been around. Reporter through the ages its been about more than just cleaning up. They served as social gathering spots. These days, a movement is under way to introduce their appeal to younger generations. The painting is by a modern artist who primarily ds street art. He made a Cartoon Version of the seven gods of good fortune, associated with prosperity and wealth. Another appeal of the sento is its mosaic tile art. The moon reflecting on the sea. Though tiles are often used in sento, the colors here are modern. The man behind this project to redesign the bath house with a touch of pop art aims to build a sento that neighborhood residents can relate to. So far he has worked on ten similar projects in tokyo. Translator i want to create spaces that are both nostalgic and new. I look for spaces where i can combine both those ideas. I think bath houses are one genre of architecture and i see Great Potential there. Reporter younger people have also stepped up to play a part in preserving the sento tradition. This painting was created through a traditional method. One of the three masters of the method, she became entranced by sento when she was a College Student and began studying with an experienced sento painter. After eight years of training, she began her own practice in 2013. Tanaka painted a picture at a sento as part of a monthlong Advertising Campaign for an auto manufacturer, featuring a car next to mt. Fuji. Translator i wanted to help preserve the sento tradition by painting this by the water. Reporter a trip to the sento can be the same as before and quite different. Bath time is the right time for tradition and innovation to soak in. Marie yanaka, nhk world. Its time now for the World Weather with our meteorologist sayaka mori. Whats the forecast for tomorrow . It will stay chilly into tuesday in the tokyo area. It will be the chilliest day of the season. So wear your warmest jacket and stay warm. Heavy snow is falling across northern japan. Some areas have seen 42 centimeters of snowfall over the past 24 hours and very strong winds are blowing. Blowing snow is occurring and well continue to see a similar situation throughout the week. And then rain is falling across the okinawa region. Some areas have seen recordbreaking heavy rainfall for this time of year. Temperatures will be quite low. Minus 4 degrees for the high in acceptporo on tuesday. 7 in tokyo. We may see some snow flurries on tuesday and cooler conditions through the next couple of days. High pressure system is in control over the continent, bringing calm conditions. Thanks to some windy conditions across the north, hazy conditions are not too bad in the beijing area. Thats good news and winds are causing some rainfall across the eastern areas of the philippines. Temperatures will be up to 31 in manila. In the teens in taipei and hong kong and right at the Freezing Point in beijing on your tuesday. We have been watching a Tropical Storm near the international dateline. This is Tropical Storm pali. This is actually the earliest Tropical Storm that formed over the pacific basin, packing winds of 00 kilometers per hour. This is all caused by extremely warm sea surface temperatures caused by el nino. This system will likely stay as a Tropical Storm into friday. Its going to move down toward the south and east the next several days. We dont think its going to affect any land masses. Calm conditions are continuing across the honolulu region as well as the hawaiian islands. Thanks to a High Pressure system bringing winds, surface is up to 8 meters monday morning. Thats why high surf warning is in place. Sunny weather will continue into thursday, at least, in honolulu. You can enjoy one of the best weather on the planet for the next several days. Across europe, there is a low pressure system in front over this area, bringing Rainy Weather across the south and snowy weather across the north and along this cold front, Severe Weather is happen iing. This low is causing Severe Weather across the northern porpgs portion of the british isles, south of france and winter conditions are causing heavy snowfall as well as stronger gusts over the alpine region the next 24 hours or so. Onemeter snow is expected as well as 100 kilometer per hour gusts. In the teens across the south and quite chilly, minus 14 degrees for the high in moscow for your monday. Here is the extended forecast. That wraps up this edition of newsline. Well be back withnnoooo this is france 24. Im genie godula. These of the headlines. David bowie has died after an 18 month battle with cancer. The music icon turned 60 93 days ago on friday, the same day he released his final album, blackstar. The music icon turned 69 three days ago on friday, the same day he released his final album, blackstar. Starving pe