'Post-Abe' Leading Japan's Suga: "Diplomacy Consulted with Abe"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] Yoshihide Suga, Chief Cabinet Secretary who is emerging as the next Prime Minister of Japan, expressed his intention to continue seeking advice from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on diplomatic matters even after Abe's resignation.

According to the Yomiuri Shimbun and Nihon Keizai Shimbun on the 13th, Minister Suga praised Prime Minister Abe's diplomatic skills during the Liberal Democratic Party presidential candidate debate hosted by the Japan National Press Club the previous day, saying, "I will consult with Prime Minister Abe on diplomatic matters."

He said, "Continuity is important in diplomacy. Prime Minister Abe's summit diplomacy is truly excellent," adding, "I cannot do the same, but I believe I have my own diplomatic stance, so I want to carry out a 'self-style' diplomatic approach."

Minister Suga emphasized the importance of firmly building relationships with Asian countries based on the Japan-US alliance, and expressed his willingness to always communicate with South Korea and China.

Regarding the issue of Japanese abductees by North Korea, he said, "I feel sorry for not being able to resolve it," and added, "There are many things I cannot speak about in public, but I have tried to respond to everything. Prime Minister Abe also feels the most regret."

On Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to Japan, Minister Suga said, "We are not at the stage of coordinating specific schedules." President Xi's visit to Japan, originally scheduled for April this year, was postponed due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) and has yet to be rescheduled.

Minister Suga, who declared to 'inherit the Abe administration,' expressed the view that a reinvestigation of the Moritomo Gakuen scandal, which emerged during Prime Minister Abe's administration, is unnecessary since the Ministry of Finance investigated it and the prosecutors also conducted an investigation.

As Prime Minister Abe expressed his intention to resign due to health reasons, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party president who will succeed him is scheduled to be elected on the 14th. The newly elected LDP president will be nominated as the next Prime Minister by the House of Representatives on the 16th.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.