DEFENCE TIES
On Friday, Ishiba vowed to restore confidence in the LDP after the scandal and to shore up defence ties among neighbours rattled by recent Chinese actions.
Ishiba is considering appointing Katsunobu Kato, a former chief cabinet secretary who ran in the LDP leadership race, as finance minister, media reports said.
Gen Nakatani, a veteran former defence minister, will return to his old job while Takeshi Iwaya, another former defence minister, will come in as foreign minister, the reports said.
Kishida pledged to double defence spending and deepen military cooperation with the United States and other allies in the region rattled by China’s rise and an unpredictable North Korea.
Ishiba backs the creation of an “Asian NATO” and has said Japan should respond more strongly in response to Chinese or Russia breaches of its airspace or waters, as has happened repeatedly in recent weeks.
But questions remain over how the government plans to pay for the upgrade, and also find enough recruits for the military among Japan’s shrinking population.
Taro Saito, senior economist at NLI Research Institute, told AFP that Ishiba has so far focused on how to improve public finances in Japan, which has one of the world’s highest debt mountains.
“He seems not so interested in policies to boost economic growth, although what is most important for Japan is low growth rather than fiscal health,” Saito said.
Chief cabinet secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi – who is reportedly set to remain under Ishiba – on Monday declined to comment on the fall in stocks but said the government would “make judgements with calm heads”.
“We will continue closely watching trends in financial markets at home and abroad with a sense of vigilance, and while cooperating closely with the Bank of Japan, we will do our best in management of the economy and finance,” he said.
