Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has suggested that the dissolution of the House of Representatives and a general election may be held before his term as leader of the ruling party ends in September 2024.

Speaking on a TV program that aired Sunday, Kishida expressed support for the view that he should begin his second term only after gaining public confidence in the Lower House election for his policies, including implementing tax hikes to fund higher defense spending.

"The question is what exactly we are going to do in order to achieve that," said Kishida, who won the Liberal Democratic Party presidential election in 2021 for a three-year term.