TOKYO—Japan’s new Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba pledged to stick to the vital Japan-US alliance while calling for it to be more equitable after he took office Tuesday vowing to tackle a slow economy and regain public trust before an upcoming election.
Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, third from right, and his cabinet ministers pose for a photo session at Ishiba’s residence in Tokyo, Japan on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024.
His new Cabinet emphasizes defense and a majority of its members, including Ishiba himself, are unaffiliated with factions led and controlled by Liberal Democratic Party heavyweights, and none is from the late Shinzo Abe’s faction that has been linked to damaging misconduct. Ishiba renewed his proposal of a more equal Japan-US security alliance, including joint management of US bases in Japan and having Japanese bases in the United States, which would require changes to a bilateral forces agreement. He called the current alliance “asymmetrical.”
Ishiba said he told Biden that he will strengthen Kishida’s defense and diplomatic policies while bolstering networks that include South Korea and other like-minded countries. Japan’s national security strategy adopted by Kishida’s government in 2022 calls for accelerating a Japanese military buildup.
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