The ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner Komeito on Tuesday jointly submitted to the Diet a resolution rebuking an opposition lawmaker who recently came under fire for suggesting Japan wage war with Russia to regain control over a group of disputed islands.
In the resolution, the ruling coalition said the comment made by former Nippon Ishin no Kai lawmaker Hodaka Maruyama "runs counter to pacifism" and "significantly undermines Japan's national interest," describing it as "absolutely intolerable." The pair closed their resolution by urging him to "reflect seriously on" what he said.
Tuesday's move by the ruling bloc followed a sterner measure taken last week by six opposition parties, including Nippon Ishin and the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, which went as far as to demand he resign as a lawmaker.