Suggestions by some U.S. officials that Japan should slacken the pace at which it implements budget austerity are understandable but go against the nation's interests, Finance Minister Hiroshi Mitsuzuka said.
Mitsuzuka, who began his second term as finance chief after the Cabinet reshuffle, said in an interview with The Japan Times that while Tokyo's efforts to get its fiscal house in order might be painful, they will support economic growth in the medium term.
He added that this is a point on which he will seek the understanding of the other members of the Group of Seven when finance ministers and central bankers gather in Hong Kong Sept. 20. "It is not that I do not understand (the U.S.) thinking, but such ideas would trigger a complex debate over whether it means we should slow down, abandon or freeze our plans to implement the pivotal reform of fiscal reconsolidation, and that would not be in our national interest," he said.