New agriculture minister Yoshiyuki Kamei said Tuesday he will seek a "realistic and balanced" agreement on farm trade liberalization during World Trade Organization negotiations, adopting the same stance as his disgraced predecessor.
Kamei, a veteran Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker, took office Tuesday afternoon as minister of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, following an attestation ceremony before Emperor Akihito at the Imperial Palace.
The former transport minister replaced Tadamori Oshima, who resigned Monday over financial scandals involving his secretaries.