For the first time in nearly a decade, a Japanese prime minister decided to live in the official residence for the leader — a century old structure that is a monument to art deco aesthetics and clouded by an ominous history.
On Saturday afternoon Prime Minister Fumio Kishida moved into the two-story, 5,183-square-meter (55,789 square foot) stone and brick mansion that was opened in 1929 and was meant to be a symbol of Japan’s entry into early 20th-century modernism.
"It’s been a while since I last moved and I feel fresh,” Kishida told reporters, adding that he made the decision to move to concentrate on official duties.