In reshuffling his Cabinet on Wednesday, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe aimed to achieve two contradictory goals: creating both a stable team with experienced managers and a fresh image with new ones.
Abe suffered from a string of scandals that erupted around individuals he picked as ministers the last time he reshuffled his Cabinet, a year ago. This time he retained nine individuals and appointed ten. Nine of them are serving for the first time.
Of the nine Cabinet old hands, four have served since Abe launched his first Cabinet, in December 2012. These include Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga and Finance Minister Taro Aso.
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