In a move aimed at shoring up his falling support rate, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was to appoint Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida to a key post in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, while reinstating veteran Itsunori Onodera as defense minister in a Thursday Cabinet reshuffle, LDP and government sources said Wednesday.
In the shake-up, Kishida — who is temporarily serving as defense chief after the abrupt resignation of Tomomi Inada — is expected to be appointed chairman of the party's central policy-making body, a move in line with his wishes, the sources said.
Abe is hoping that reorganizing his Cabinet will help stem his falling approval ratings, which have plunged following accusations of cronyism in the construction of a new veterinary school to be run by a friend, as well as an alleged cover-up at the Defense Ministry.