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CABINET

JAPAN / Politics
Dec 27, 2023
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi vows to tackle distrust
Hayashi, who took office after his predecessor quit over a funding scandal, says revising the relevant law is related to freedom of political activity.
Self-Defense Forces soldiers take part in an evacuation drill on Yonaguni island in Okinawa Prefecture in November.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 22, 2023
Japan approves record ¥8 trillion defense budget
The defense budget announced Friday includes ¥370 billion to build two new warships that will utilize the U.S.-developed Aegis missile defense system.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 22, 2023
In search for top officials, Kishida constrained by funds scandal
The limited number of viable candidates not suspected of misconduct means new appointees look more likely to be stopgap replacements.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attends a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Dec 16, 2023
Kishida losing grip on LDP as funds scandal unfolds
As the Cabinet's approval rate continues to fall, officials and are beginning to discuss a scenario in which the prime minister is forced to step down.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Wednesday
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 15, 2023
Kishida's approval rate falls into dangerous territory amid scandal
The rate is the worst figure for a prime minister from the Liberal Democratic Party in more than a decade.
The support rate for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's Cabinet has fallen to 17.1%.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 15, 2023
Kishida Cabinet's approval rate falls below 20% for first time
The support rate fell 4.2 percentage points from last month, rewriting a low since the LDP's return to power for a third month in a row.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 12, 2023
Funding scandal deepens as parliament session draws to a close
The probe into a Liberal Democratic Party funds scandal looks likely to deepen in the coming days, making the political scene increasingly unpredictable.
Then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi at Graceland, a mansion once owned by Elvis Presley, in Memphis, Tennessee, in June 2006. Koizumi was dubbed the "jujitsu prime minister” for his style of politics.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 11, 2023
Japan needs a 'jujitsu PM' to grapple with this scandal
Kishida fights for survival as the political funding scandal deepens. His predecessor, "jujitsu PM” Junichiro Koizumi, could teach him a thing or two.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 11, 2023
Kishida likely to shake up Cabinet in wake of political funds scandal
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is reportedly considering removing all members of the faction once led by his late predecessor Shinzo Abe.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a session at the United Nations climate summit in Dubai on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Dec 3, 2023
For embattled Kishida, Dubai trip fails to pay dividends
The PM's visit to Dubai for a U.N. climate summit will do little to offset woes at home, including an LDP funding scandal and sagging approval ratings.
Gen Nakatani, then-special adviser to the prime minister for international human rights, speaks at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva in March 2022
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 1, 2023
Kishida’s puzzling decision to ax his human rights adviser
Why did the prime minister eliminate the post of special adviser on human rights from the Cabinet and what does this mean for Tokyo's foreign policy?
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 20, 2023
Kishida’s support rate hits new lows in three major polls
Polls by three major newspapers — the Yomiuri, Asahi and Mainichi — showed Kishida’s support rate at 24%, 25% and 21%, respectively.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida arrives in San Francisco on Wednesday to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit meeting.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 16, 2023
Public approval for Kishida Cabinet sinks to new low of 21.3%
The support rate fell 5.0 percentage points from the previous month, while the disapproval rate rose 7.0 points to 53.3%.
Economic Security Minister Sanae Takaichi and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida take part in a news conference in September 2021 in the lead-up to the Liberal Democratic Party presidential race.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 15, 2023
Takaichi makes another play to become the next PM
With the creation of a new study group, Cabinet minister Sanae Takaichi aims to build support for her bid for the top political job.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 13, 2023
State minister of finance resigns in further blow to Kishida
Kenji Kanda submitted his resignation after admitting that his firm had failed to pay fixed asset taxes.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 26, 2023
Parliamentary Vice Minister Taro Yamada steps down over affair
The first Cabinet resignation since a mid-September reshuffle deals a blow to Kishida at a time when public support rates have plummeted.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 16, 2023
Kishida’s popularity in free fall ahead of key political events
The government’s popularity hit a record low in four public opinion surveys over the weekend, just as the political calendar looks set to heat up.
Defense Minister Minoru Kihara speaks during a meeting with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin at the Pentagon in Washington on Oct. 4.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 16, 2023
Defense chief retracts comments implying LDP vote would be good for SDF
Article 61 of the Self-Defense Forces Law explicitly forbids SDF personnel from engaging in political activity, with the exception of voting.
October's by-elections will be the first national elections since Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reshuffled his Cabinet last week.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 19, 2023
October by-elections to be first test for Kishida's new government
The results of the by-elections are expected to influence Kishida's strategy for dissolving the Lower House for a general election.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attends a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday after a major reshuffle of his Cabinet.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 18, 2023
Japan voters unhappy with Kishida's price policies, poll shows
About 77% of respondents to the survey said they didn’t rate his price policies positively, compared with 17% who said they did.

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