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Financial Times (June 18)

2014/ 06/ 19 by jd in Global News

Two of Shinzo Abe’s “arrows have hit their targets, jolting the Japanese economy back into life…. By contrast, Mr Abe’s third arrow promising structural reforms has been stuck in the prime minister’s quiver.”

 

Washington Post (January 11, 2014)

2014/ 01/ 12 by jd in Global News

China’s ambassador to the U.S., who served as ambassador to Japan from 2007 to 2009, writes “Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s recent homage at the Yasukuni war shrine deeply disturbed people in China and much of Asia. The dispute surrounding his actions is about more than symbolism; it goes to the heart of his intentions for Japan’s future and his willingness to build an atmosphere of trust, respect and equality in East Asia.”

 

BBC (December 26, 2013)

2013/ 12/ 27 by jd in Global News

“Whatever Shinzo Abe says, any visit to the Yasakuni shrine by a Japanese prime minister is deeply political and sure to cause offence.”

 

Wall Street Journal (November 21, 2013)

2013/ 11/ 21 by jd in Global News

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe helped his plans to achieve economic revival “by abandoning Tokyo’s 2009 pledge to reduce the country’s carbon emissions by 25% from 1990 levels by 2020.” With the reduction in nuclear power, the old targets had been looking increasingly unattainable. “Japan is not going to become the Worst Polluter in the World as a result of this announcement. Instead, it will be a country that is striking a smarter balance between the uncertainty of global-warming predictions and current economic reality.”

 

Wall Street Journal (July 21)

2013/ 07/ 23 by jd in Global News

“Since taking office in December, Mr. Abe has shown a nearly unprecedented level of resolve on all three fronts [fiscal, monetary, regulatory] compared to recent prime ministers.” In his quest to reignite Japan’s economy, “Mr. Abe still faces a long and difficult road to get from where Japan is now to where he wants it to be. He may yet fail, or only partially succeed, in some of his priorities. But outside observers should not discount the extent to which Mr. Abe is giving voters something tangible to support. Voters certainly didn’t discount that on Sunday when they gave their support to Mr. Abe’s party.”

 

Financial Times (June 9)

2013/ 06/ 11 by jd in Global News

“Shinzo Abe’s gamble to revive Japan’s economic fortunes faces its biggest test so far.” Moving on to his “third arrow” of fiscal/regulatory reform to stimulate the market is essential, but “politically, this is a tall order. Structural changes are bound to affect powerful insiders.”

 

South China Morning Post (June 3)

2013/ 06/ 04 by jd in Global News

“Loose-lipped politicians are a problem for any government. Japan seems particularly bedevilled by them. Rising political star Toru Hashimoto has been especially insensitive, his recent comments on comfort women heightening regional outrage and prompting criticism in Europe and North America. Coming on the heels of a string of incidents involving dozens of right-wing lawmakers, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe most prominent among them, it is not surprising that the nation is again being called on to apologise for its wartime atrocities.”

 

The Economist (May 18, 2013)

2013/ 05/ 19 by jd in Global News

Shinzo Abe is defying expectations. “He has put Japan on a regime of ‘Abenomics’, a mix of reflation, government spending and a growth strategy designed to jolt the economy out of the suspended animation that has gripped it for more than two decades. He has supercharged Japan’s once-fearsome bureaucracy to make government vigorous again.”

 

Wall Street Journal (April 27, 2013)

2013/ 04/ 28 by jd in Global News

“Who started World War II? We thought that one belonged to the Department of Settled Questions, along with any lingering doubts about whether the Earth orbits the sun. But Japan’s Shinzo Abe has a fresh, er, interpretation.” The Prime Minister’s latest revisionism threatens to further enflame tensions, already running high, in Asia. “Much of the world long ago forgave Japan its wartime atrocities. But it hasn’t forgotten them…. Mr. Abe’s disgraceful remark will make his country no more friends abroad.”

 

Financial Times (March 3)

2013/ 03/ 05 by jd in Global News

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has acted boldly by appointing Haruhiko Kuroda as the next governor of the Bank of Japan. “Mr Kuroda has been appointed to end Japan’s one and a half decades of deflation. The attempt to do so will shake Japan’s economy and, maybe, the world’s. This shift is necessary but risky. It is likely to be destabilising, at least in the short run. Mishandled, the upheaval could end in disaster. But disaster was coming. Gamble now or fail later – that was the choice.”

 

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