Prime Minister Naoto Kan vowed Friday to fix the suffering economy with a stream of measures aimed at putting the brakes on deflation and coping with the strong yen.
But facing a divided Diet and distracted by a diplomatic tussle with China, Kan also made sure to call on the opposition to cooperate in enacting policies and stressed the need to take a firm stance with China on territorial issues.
Kan's policy speech was delivered on the first day of an extraordinary Diet session that is expected to run 64 days through Dec. 3. While his top priority will be to pass a supplementary budget to finance an economic stimulus package, his ruling Democratic Party of Japan faces a rocky road ahead without an Upper House majority.