FILE/JAPAN: PROFILE - Current Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda seeks to save his party from defeat in upcoming election

Record ID: 466863

  • Title: FILE/JAPAN: PROFILE - Current Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda seeks to save his party from defeat in upcoming election
  • Date: 11th December 2012
  • Summary: EAST CHINA SEA (FILE - AUGUST) (REUTERS) ACTIVISTS LANDING ON ISLAND VARIOUS OF JAPANESE ACTIVISTS ON ISLAND SHANGHAI, CHINA (SEPTEMBER 18, 2012) (REUTERS) PROTESTERS SCUFFLING WITH POLICE AS THEY LOOK TO CORDON PROTESTERS BEIJING, CHINA (SEPTEMBER 12, 2012) (REUTERS) PEOPLE HOLDING UP BANNERS PEOPLE STAMPING ON JAPANESE FLAG
  • Embargoed: 26th December 2012 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: At Sea, Japan, China
  • City:
  • Country: Japan China At Sea
  • Topics: International Relations,Politics,People
  • Reuters ID: LVA4UBT3QWN186N64E13D9855FVZ
  • Story Text: Japan's current Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda took office last year as the Democrats' third in the role since sweeping to power in 2009.
    The former finance minister and fiscal hawk made raising the sales tax to curb public debt his top priority.
    On taking office Noda likened himself to a bottom-feeding fish, a reference to his lack of charisma but also his dogged persistence.
    Noda, 55, became the longest serving Japanese prime minister since Junichiro Koizumi stepped down in 2006 after five years in office - a testimony to his staying power, grit and underrated political acumen.
    During Noda's term of office he oversaw not only the raising of the country's sales tax to tackle Japan's massive debt but also the restart of two of the country's nuclear reactors, a difficult move in the aftermath of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant disaster.
    Japan restarted two of the reactors at the Ohi nuclear power plant as the west part of the country faced a lack of electricity over the summer, even as weekly protesters continued their vigils in front of the prime minister's office.
    On international issues, Noda also dealt with a slew of territorial disputes ranging from South Korea to China.
    In April, then-Tokyo mayor Shintaro Ishihara said that the government of Tokyo would buy the islands in dispute between China and Japan, a move that sparked widespread protests.
    To prevent the nationalistic Ishihara from buying the islands, called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, the Japanese government bought them first and increased protests further.
    "There was talk about Senkaku. In order to peacefully and safely control them over the long term, we nationalized them. However unfortunately China is reacting emotionally to this. We plan on maintaining a strong stance towards this," Noda said of his decision.
    Like several in his generation of politicians, Noda graduated from the Matsushita Institute for Government and Business, created by Panasonic founder Konosuke Matsushita to groom future members of the political and business elite..
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