(LinkAsia: December 21, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
A huge supporter of stronger US-Japan ties was US Senator of Hawaii, Daniel Inouye. He was a decorated war veteran and had served in the US Congress since 1959, when Hawaii was granted statehood. He was the highest ranking Asian-American politician in US history. Here's NHK with a tribute.

--

NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: December 18, 2012

Reporter:
Inouye was elected to the senate in 1962 and served for half a century. He was chairman of the senate appropriations committee. He worked to promote exchanges between US and Japanese politicians. He helped support reconstruction efforts in Northeastern Japan and visited areas affected by the earthquake and tsunami. Inouye sat down in October for an interview with NHK. He called on Japanese and US officials to strengthen their alliance.

Daniel Inouye:
If there's turmoil and disasters in Asia-Pacific area, we would be affected. So it's in our best interest also

Reporter:
Inouye served during the Second World War in an Army unit made up of soldiers of Japanese ancestry. He lost his right arm in a battle in Italy. President Obama said the country has lost a true American hero. Daniel Inouye was 88 years old.

The weekend was anything but quiet around Copenhagen's Bella Center and in the world at large, with protestors and activists taking to the streets from Sydney to San Francisco demanding a real deal on climate change. The mass action, which prompted hundreds of arrests, included marches, vigils and church bell ringing by groups like Oxfam and 350.org.

 

At the negotiations, aggressive action took place as well. Tuvalu's negotiator reached out in an emotional plea to the UN, the U.S. Senate and President Obama, asserting that the survival of his country and other small island nations depends on decisions made this week. Meanwhile, Bolivia's UN Ambassador issued a bold response to the U.S. refusal to pay any "climate debt" by saying, "We are not assigning guilt, merely responsibility. As they say in the U.S., if you break it, you buy it."  And today, African countries of the G77 have walked out of negotiations, temporarily suspending talks, in a move to protect gains made through the Kyoto Protocol.

 

All of this and more, as always, is continuously covered on our LIVE page, Copenhagen 24/7, so stay tuned for more up-to-the-minute news straight from the source. I'll leave you with our latest spot from Link TV's Climate Change Hits Home series, which discusses the impending impacts of a warming world on recreation in the U.S. Some of America's favorite (and most prosperous!) pastimes are in danger of disappearing: