Noda to hold Press conference on Takeshima, Senkaku

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda will hold a news conference on Friday to express his views on the territorial dispute over the Takeshima islets. Noda wrote a letter to South Korean President Lee Myung-bak following Lee's recent visit to the Takeshima islets in the Sea of Japan. They are called Dokdo in South Korea. The letter calls for a peaceful settlement of the territorial dispute in accordance with international law.The South Korean government refused to accept the letter and returned it to Japan.

An official from the South Korean Embassy in Tokyo visited the Japanese Foreign Ministry on Thursday, but was denied entry. The South Korean government sent back the letter by mail later in the day.
The Japanese government says it cannot accept South Korea's response to the territorial dispute.

In addition, Lee recently said that if Japan's Emperor wishes to visit South Korea, he should offer a heartfelt apology to Koreans who died fighting for independence from Japan.Noda told a Diet committee on Thursday that the comment lacks common sense.Japanese authorities say they have not proposed to Korean officials that the Emperor visit the country. They plan to clarify South Korea's stance through diplomatic channels.

Japan's lower house  adopted resolutions protesting the South Korean president's recent visit to Takeshima and Hong Kong activists' landing on one of the Senkaku Islands. Takeshima islets in the Sea of Japan are claimed by Japan and South Korea. The Senkakus in the East China Sea are claimed by Japan, China and Taiwan.The two resolutions submitted by the governing Democratic Party and the main opposition Liberal Democratic Party and others were adopted on Friday with majority support mainly from the two parties.

One of the resolutions condemns the August 10th visit by Lee Myung-bak to Takeshima. The islets are called Dokdo in South Korea.The resolution demands that South Korea's illegal occupation of the islets stop as soon as possible. It also calls on Japan's government to take a firm attitude against South Korea by formulating and implementing effective policies.

The resolution also refers to Lee's recent remark that if Japan's emperor wishes to visit South Korea he should offer a heartfelt apology to Koreans who died for independence from Japan. The resolution says such comments will not be tolerated and demands a retraction.The other resolution condemns the Hong Kong activists' landing on the Senkakus. It calls on Japan's government to strengthen security measures and take all necessary measures to secure the islands under effectual control.The resolutions are the first regarding Takeshima since 1953, and the first ever on the Senkaku Islands.Media agencies

Turkey, US officials in first operational meeting on Syria

Turkish and US officials on Thursday began their first "operational planning" meeting aimed at bringing about the end of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's embattled regime. The meeting is expected to coordinate military, intelligence and political responses to the crisis in Syria where a deadly crackdown on peaceful protests that began in March 2011 has according to activists claimed more than 23,000 lives. The officials are also due to discuss contingency plans in the case of potential threats including a chemical attack by the regime in Damascus which Washington has called a "red line". Turkish foreign ministry deputy under-secretary Halit Cevik and US ambassador Elisabeth Jones are leading the delegations made up of intelligence agents, military officials and diplomats at the meeting in Ankara, a foreign ministry source told the news agency.  US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu had announced their plans for such a mechanism to hasten the end of President Bashar al-Assad's regime on August 11. Today's meeting come just days after US President Barack Obama warned Syria that any movement or usage of its chemical weapons would be a "red line" that would change his perspective on how to respond to the conflict. A chemical attack would also trigger a refugee influx to neighbouring countries including Turkey which is already hosting more than 70,000 Syrians. On Monday, Davutoglu said Turkey can handle no more than 100,000 Syrian refugees and has proposed setting up a UN buffer zone inside Syria to shelter them. The exodus of refugees to Turkey has intensified recently as a result of a Syrian army offensive and fighting in the northern city of Aleppo between regime forces and rebels. The growing flow of refugees has raised fears of a repeat of the 1991 Gulf War, when half a million Iraqi Kurds massed along the common border. The threat of armed groups including the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and Al-Qaeda which could exploit a power vacuum in Syria is also expected to figure high on the agenda of the Ankara meeting. In Istanbul, Clinton had said she shared "Turkey's determination that Syria must not become a haven for PKK terorrists whether now or after the departure of the Assad regime."

Panasonic India betting big on B2B business this fiscal

Introduces High-Definition 3D Video Conferencing solutions for the first time in India

 

23 August 2012, New Delhi: Panasonic, the global leader in innovation and technology today unveiled its next generation High-Definition Video Conferencing (HDVC) for enterprises as a step towards strengthening its focus on the B2B business in India. With this launch and aggressive focus on this segment, Panasonic reiterates its commitment towards its customers by understanding and catering to their specific needs through innovation in technology.

 

Over the years Panasonic has shown excellence in terms of offering best products in the market and the company is banking big on their B2B segment- Panasonic System Sales Division (SSD) which plays a vital role in contributing to the overall growth of the brand in India. With a huge product portfolio including commercial Displays , Projectors, Telephones, Fax machines, EPABX,  Surveillance and Security Cameras, Printers, Panaboards & interactive boards, Scanners, Toughbooks, Point of sale solutions and Broadcast products, SSD will be contributing to 10% of the company’s total revenue. With an increase in demand of this business in India not only is the company expanding its range of products but also launching new products in market this fiscal and this HDVC launch is a step in the same direction.

 

Gracing the occasion Mr. Toru Hasegawa, MD- System Sales Division, Panasonic India said “At Panasonic we are committed to provide best product portfolio to our customers with innovative and finest technology. With a wide product portfolio the year-on-year average growth rate for Panasonic’s System Sales Division has been 40%. We are expecting this growth to cross 100% by this fiscal end and close with a turnover of Rs. 655 crores.”

 

Further speaking at the occasion Mr. Rizhkant Zha, Director- System Sales Division, Panasonic India said “For the first time in India 3D technology has been infused with HDVC to provide best Video Conferencing solution for our customers. The end to end technology solution by Panasonic from Cameras lens to the display makes it possible to display facial expressions and gestures in clear, full-HD images as part of the visual communication experience. We are largely targeting IT/ITES, Hi-tech Enterprise, Manufacturing and Healthcare industries and will focus on bundling specific solutions to fulfil the requirements of various industries to make it most suitable product for them.”

Panasonic Corporate Vision

Panasonic has a vision to become the No. 1 Green Innovation Company in the electronics industry by 2018 (fiscal 2019), when Panasonic will celebrate its 100th anniversary. Panasonic aspires for global excellence as a Green Innovation Company and encompasses two goals: Green Life Innovation to realize green lifestyles to enrich people’s lives and Green Business Innovation to bring forth innovation in our business styles.

The Panasonic ‘eco ideas’ annual report at (http://panasonic.net/eco/) shares data on the group’s initiatives in this direction.

                                  

About Panasonic Corporation

Panasonic Corporation is a worldwide leader in the development and manufacture of electronic products for three business fields, consumer, components & devices, and solutions. Based in Osaka, Japan, the company recorded consolidated net sales of 7.85 trillion yen for the year ended March 31, 2012. It aims to become the No. 1 Green Innovation Company in the Electronics Industry by the 100th year of its founding in 2018.The company's shares are listed on the Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and New York (NYSE:PC) stock exchanges. For more information on the company and the Panasonic brand, visit the company's website at http://panasonic.net/

 

About Panasonic India

Panasonic makes available in India its wide range of consumer electronics and home appliances like LCD & Plasma TVs, DVD players, home theatre systems, cameras, camcorders, car audio systems, air conditioners, washing machines, refrigerators, microwave ovens, automatic cookers, vacuum cleaners and the like. The Company has a workforce of about 12,650 in India and estimated to do a turnover of Rs 10,000 crore in FY 2012. For more information on the company and the Panasonic brand in India, please visit http://panasonic.co.in.

 

 

Issued by Panasonic India. For media queries, please contact:

Panasonic India | Richa Sethi | +91 9560498765 | richa.sethi@in.panasonic.com

Genesis Burson Marsteller | Malvika Sinha | +91 987338255 | malvika.sinha@bm.com