Editorials Jan 4, 2015
Revitalizing rural parts of Japan
There seems to be a basic discrepancy between the Abe administration's direction in its employment policy and what its regional revitalization program is aiming for.
Editorials Dec 29, 2014
Pesky political fund problems
The return of Shinzo Abe's ruling bloc to a two-thirds majority in the Lower House has all but sidelined a spate of political fund problems that hit Cabinet members before the snap election. But it has not erased them.
Editorials Dec 19, 2013
Defense buildup won't bring security
With the adoption of Japan's first comprehensive guideline for security policy and diplomacy, the Abe Cabinet appears to operate under the illusion that the use of force ultimately could resolve the difficult situation the nation finds itself in.
Editorials Aug 19, 2013
Inadequate financial plan
The Abe Cabinet-endorsed medium-term financial reconstruction program does not present adequate concrete measures for restoring health to Japan's finances.
Editorials Jul 16, 2013
Repairing ties with Beijing and Seoul
More than a half year after the inauguration of the Abe Cabinet, Japan's bilateral relations with China and South Korea remain chilly. South Korean President Park Geun-hye met with U.S. President Barack Obama in early May in Washington. Although South Korean leaders traditionally follow ...
Editorials Jun 19, 2013
Growth strategy misses
The "Abenomics" growth strategy just adopted looks like a wish list of budgets with project names that will be coveted by individual government ministries.
Editorials Jun 18, 2013
Will new 'NSC' enhance security?
Creating a Japanese version of the U.S. National Security Council would risk adding rigidity to the decision-making process during a national emergency.
Editorials Apr 30, 2013
Overseas land transport by SDF
The Abe Cabinet's endorsement of a bill to let the Self-Defense Forces use land vehicles to make emergency rescues overseas smacks of a desire to expand SDF activities abroad.
Commentary / Japan Apr 23, 2013
Conservative tasks in Japan
by Hisahiko Okazaki
As the first conservative government in Japan for a long time, the Abe Cabinet faces two major tasks, including departing from the postwar regime on security.
Commentary / Japan | SENTAKU MAGAZINE Mar 11, 2013
A recharged power industry
Three months after December's general election, Japan's electric power industry, under the Abe regime, appears set to regain its former political clout.
Editorials Feb 1, 2013
Budget shows old LDP stripes
The nearly ¥93 trillion initial general-account budget for fiscal 2013 approved by the Abe Cabinet shows that the old Liberal Democratic Party is back.
Editorials Jan 24, 2013
Stay on the nonnuclear path
It would be unrealistic for the Abe administration to return to the energy polices that prevailed before the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster of 3/11.