Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi said Monday he will ask Liberal Party leader Ichiro Ozawa to join his Cabinet when it is reshuffled in January.
"In my personal opinion, as long as we are forming a coalition government, it would be desirable to share the responsibility between the top leaders of the two parties," Obuchi said during a Tokyo Broadcasting System program. "I would like to ask him to join the new Cabinet."
Asked whether he will offer Ozawa the post of deputy prime minister, Obuchi said he first needs to talk with the Liberal Party chief about the kind of post he is ready to take.