Majority of Japanese voters think PM Ishiba should stay in office: poll
RYUTO IMAO
TOKYO -- A majority of Japanese voters, including supporters of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party, think Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba should remain in office despite his ruling coalition losing its majority in an upper house election on July 20, a Nikkei poll found.
The survey, conducted with broadcaster TV Tokyo from Friday to Sunday, asked respondents how long they think Ishiba should continue in his position, with the most common answer being he should step down immediately, at 36%.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Asahi Shimbun
an hour ago
- Asahi Shimbun
No message from Ishiba on 80th anniversary of end of war
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks with reporters on Aug. 1 after the start of the extraordinary Diet session. (Takeshi Iwashita) Rather than have his name associated with a historic milestone, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has apparently chosen to face political reality. He has abandoned plans to issue a personal message to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, according to several sources. Having been dealt a devastating blow in the Upper House election July 20 and facing calls from within his Liberal Democratic Party to resign, Ishiba has chosen not to rankle conservative elements in the party that would take umbrage at a fresh interpretation of Japan's role in the war. Tomiichi Murayama blazed the trail in 1995 with a statement backed by his Cabinet and issued in his name on Aug. 15 that expressed 'deep remorse' and offered a 'heartfelt apology' for Japan's 'colonial rule and aggression.' Ten years later, on the 60th anniversary, Junichiro Koizumi issued a statement as prime minister that echoed a similar sentiment. In 2015, Shinzo Abe put a special twist to the statement issued under his name. He noted that Japan has 'repeatedly expressed the feelings of deep remorse and heartfelt apology for its actions during the war' and that the 'position articulated by the previous Cabinets will remain unshakable into the future.' However, he added that, 'We must not let our children, grandchildren, and even further generations to come, who have nothing to do with that war, be predestined to apologize.' Conservative elements in the LDP felt the Abe statement covered all the bases and that no new message was needed. Ishiba had initially envisaged setting up a panel of experts to assess the process that led Japan to invade China and then go to war with other countries. Based on that evaluation, Ishiba had planned to issue a personal message in line with the 80th anniversary observances on Aug. 15. But with growing calls within the LDP for Ishiba to resign, sources reported little progress in choosing the members to serve on the panel. Others felt that if Ishiba, 68, went ahead and issued a message, it would only add fire to calls for him to resign and place the administration itself in jeopardy. Those close to Ishiba said now is not the right time to broach such a delicate issue as historical understanding. Ishiba has previously stated he wanted to weigh the significance of serving as prime minister on the 80th anniversary of the end of the war, leaving open the possibility of a statement in the autumn or later, depending on the state of internal party dynamics.
Asahi Shimbun
2 hours ago
- Asahi Shimbun
Iran calls on Japan to join it in campaign to abolish WMDs
Iran's foreign minister is calling on Japan to join Tehran in leading a global movement to abolish weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). Seyed Abbas Araghchi submitted an opinion piece to The Asahi Shimbun and other Japanese media prior to the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. 'Japan and Iran must lead a global movement for the total abolition of all WMDs: nuclear, chemical and biological,' he wrote. He pointed out that Iran shared the pain and suffering of WMDs with Japan as it was targeted with chemical weapons in its war against Iraq in the 1980s. He called the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities on Aug. 6 and Aug. 9, 1945, 'a testament to the devastating power of nuclear weapons.' 'Many survivors carry physical and psychological wounds that time has not healed,' Araghchi wrote. 'They have lived their lives in the shadow of those nuclear flashes, turning their trauma into tireless advocacy for peace and disarmament.' In June, during a NATO summit meeting, U.S. President Donald Trump equated the U.S. attack against three nuclear facilities in Iran that month with the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He told reporters, 'That hit ended the war. I don't want to use an example of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. But that was essentially the same thing. That ended that war.' Araghchi took issue with Trump's comment, saying: 'The remark was more than a historical misstep; it was a deep insult to the memories of the dead and the dignity of those still living with the consequences of those bombings.' He added that in Iran, 'the comparison was received with particular pain and fury.' In 1987 during the Iran-Iraq war, the city of Sardasht in northwestern Iran came under a mustard gas attack from Iraq that killed about 130 Iranians and left several thousand with permanent disabilities. Based on that experience, Araghchi wrote that Iran 'has suffered from the effects of WMDs in its own modern history.' He added: 'Few nations understand, as deeply as ours, the irreversible impact of WMDs. We must raise our collective voice to say: never again.' Araghchi did not touch upon Iran's claim that its uranium enrichment program was for peaceful purposes. Israel bombed Iranian nuclear facilities and air defense system on grounds it had to remove the threat of Iranian nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. Iran retaliated with ballistic missile attacks on Israel. The United States joined its ally Israel and bombed Iranian nuclear facilities. After 12 days of fighting a cease-fire agreement was reached by Iran and Israel. * * * Seyed Abbas Araghchi was born in 1962 and served as Iranian ambassador to Japan between 2008 and 2011. After serving as deputy foreign minister, he was appointed foreign minister in August 2024.
Japan Today
3 hours ago
- Japan Today
Ishiba not to make statement on 80th anniversary of WWII end
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has decided not to express his views on World War II on the 80th anniversary of its end on Aug 15 but may do so later, government sources said Friday. Although Ishiba, believed to be relatively dovish, has already decided not to have a prime minister's statement approved at a cabinet meeting, he remains eager to offer his perspective and may do so on another occasion, the sources said. Speculation is growing that he will make the announcement on Sept 2, the date Japan signed the instrument of surrender, rather than Aug 15, when hostilities ceased, according to the sources. The government had begun selecting experts for an advisory panel to help draft Ishiba's views, but political events, such as U.S.-Japan tariff negotiations and the July 20 House of Councillors election, led to the postponement of its formation, the sources said. Recently, Ishiba has faced strong internal pressure within his Liberal Democratic Party to step down following its heavy loss in the upper house election, while also working to implement the U.S.-Japan tariff agreement. On the anniversary of the end of World War II, Ishiba is expected to deliver a speech at a national memorial service in Tokyo, organized by the government to mourn the war dead, the sources said. In March, Ishiba visited Iwoto Island, formerly known as Iwojima, the site of a fierce World War II battle between Japan and the United States in the Pacific, for the first time since taking office late last year. During his campaign speeches for the upper house election, in which his ruling coalition lost its majority in the chamber, he highlighted the impact of air raids across Japan, stressing the importance of learning lessons from the war. Japan's prime ministers marked the 50th, 60th, and 70th anniversaries with statements that have been scrutinized by Asian neighbors, including China and South Korea, which experienced Japanese wartime aggression. On the 50th anniversary in 1995, then Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama, leader of a major left-leaning party, expressed "deep remorse" and offered his "heartfelt apology" for Japan causing damage and suffering to the people of many nations. In 2015, then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a conservative, retained key phrases such as "aggression" and "colonial rule" from the statement a decade earlier and acknowledged Japan's past apologies without offering a new one of his own. Conservative members of the LDP argue Abe's statement on the 70th anniversary marked the end of "apology diplomacy," contending that comments by Ishiba on the 80th anniversary may be unnecessary. © KYODO
