Shinzo Abe returns as Japan's prime minister

Hello!

Shinzo was recently appointed prime minister of Japan and it is just the 7th one in 6 years!

He has promised to restore growth to an economy that has been struggling for 20 years. His new administration also faces souring relations with China and a complex debate over whether resource-poor Japan should wean itself off nuclear energy after last year's earthquake and tsunami caused a meltdown at an atomic power plant.

He has pledged to shore up the economy, deal with a swelling national debt and come up with a fresh recovery plan following the tsunami disaster, which set off the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl.

"I feel as fresh as the clear sky today," Abe told reporters before Wednesday's parliamentary vote, adding that he wanted to get right down to business.

His new Cabinet will feature another former prime minister, Taro Aso, as finance minister. Heading the foreign ministry is Fumio Kishida, an expert on the southern island of Okinawa, where many residents angry over crime and overcrowding want a big reduction in the number of U.S. troops they host — now at about 20,000. The new defense minister is Itsunori Onodera, who was in Abe's previous administration.
Abe has already named a roster of top party executives that includes two women — more than in previous LDP administrations — and is younger than earlier ones, with three of the four in their 50s.

Besides generous promises to boost public works spending — by as much as 10 trillion yen ($119 billion), according to party officials — Abe is forcing the central bank to work closer with the government to reach the inflation target(2%).

What do you think of the new prime minister? Would he prove to be crucial in Japan's success?

LT