Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida prepares to deliver his first policy speech during an extraordinary Diet session at the lower house of parliament Friday, Oct. 8, 2021, in Tokyo.
He was elected by parliament and sworn in Monday as Japan’s 100th prime minister, succeeding Yoshihide Suga who left after only a year in office. Suga’s perceived high-handed approach to virus measures and holding the Olympics despite rising cases angered the public and hurt the ruling Liberal Democrats.
He said the security environment has become more severe, and that he would revise Japan’s national security and defense strategy to bolster missile defense capability and naval defense. Kishida said “establishing a stable relationship with China is important not only for the two countries but also for the region and the international community.” Still, Japan, when necessary, will “speak up” against China’s unilateral and coercive activity in the region, while cooperating with other like-minded democracies.
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