Kantei, the Prime Minister's Official Residence, is always a center of attention, particularly in times of national crisis, including when a big earthquake struck Niigata Prefecture in October 2004 and when North Korea tested a nuclear weapon last October.
The five-story high-tech structure, situated next to the older official residence in the Nagata-cho section of Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, cost taxpayers some 64.7 billion yen by the time it was completed in 2002. The following questions and answers provide a glimpse at what goes on behind its walls:
What does the prime minister do there?