Suga named Japan's prime minister, succeeding Abe
T O K Y O — J a p a n ' s P a r l i a m e n t e l e c t e d Yoshihide Suga as prime minist e r Wednesday, replacing long-serving leader Shinzo Abe with his right-hand man.
Suga b o wed de e pl y several times when the results were announced, as fellow governing party lawmakers applauded in parliament's more powerful l ower house. He was also confirmed i n the upper house.
Suga, who was chief Cabinet secretary and t h e t o p g o v e r n me n t spokesman under Abe, selected a Cabinet with a mi x o f f r e s h f a c e s and current or former ministers, a lineup that s u g g e s t s a c o nt i nuation of Abe's influence while reflecting Suga's pledge of administrative reforms.
Suga has stressed his background as a farmer's son and a self-made politician in promising to serve the interests of ordinary people and rural c ommunities. He has said he will pursue Abe's unfinished policies and that his priorities will be fighting the coronavirus and turning around an economy battered by the pandemic.
“Response to the coronavirus is the immediate priority,” Suga, weari ng a formal suit, said at his first news conference as prime minister Wednesday night. “I will carry on former Prime Minister Abe's policies and push them forward i n or der t o overcome this national crisis and r est ore s af et y f or t he people.”
Suga was a loyal supporter since Abe's first stint as prime minister from 2006 to 2007 and helped him return to the job in 2012.
Abe, 65, announced l a s t m o n t h h e w a s resigning because of a chronic illness. He said Wednesday t h a t a s a lawmaker, he will support Suga's government.
Suga, 71, praised Abe's diplomacy and economic policies when asked what he would like to accomplish himself. He pledged t o s p e e d u p J a p a n ' s lagging digital transformation and appointed a special minister, Takuya Hrai.
Suga also said he will push reforms by breaking down bureaucratic b a r r i e r s a n d v e s t e d interests. But in reshuffling key posts within the party, Suga evenly allocated top posts to key factions, a balancing act seen as returning favors for support in the leadership race.
S u g a s a i d l a t e W e d n e s d a y h e w i l l f u r t h e r d e e p e n t h e Japan- U. S. alliance to p r o t e c t t h e n a t i o n a l i n t e r e s t , a n d w a n t s t o b u i l d “a s t a b l e r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h neighboring countries i n c l u d i n g C h i n a a n d Russia.”
S u g a s a i d h e w a s a p p o i n t i n g “reform-minded, hardw o r k i n g p e o p l e ” t o t h e n e w 2 0 - me mbe r Cabinet. Eleven memb e r s o f t h e l a s t A b e a d mi n i s t r a t i o n we r e r etai ned or s hif t ed t o d i f f e r e n t mi n i s t e r i a l posts.
Abe's younger brother, Nobuo Kishi, who has close ties with Taiwan, was appointed defense minister, replacing Taro Kono, who was shifted to administrative reforms minister.
China claims Taiwan is its territory and opposes contacts between other countries and the selfruled island.
China congratulated Suga on his election, with foreign ministry spokesm a n W a n g W e n b i n saying China is willing t o work with t he new J a panese government to “jointly push forward China-Japan relations to achieve new and greater developments.”