Kishida:1st half year in office filled with tough decisions

Jiji Press

17:19 JST, April 4, 2022

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Monday that his first half year in the top government post was filled with a series of tough decisions.

“We still have to deal with a mountain of challenges including the fight against the novel coronavirus, the Ukraine crisis and the domestic economy’s recovery,” Kishida told reporters.

“I want to work every day with a sense of tension and crisis,” he said.

Referring to major events in the last six months, including the House of Representatives dissolution and the subsequent general election soon after he took office on Oct. 4, the compilation of a large-scale economic stimulus package and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Kishida said that he “had no time to let my guard down.”

On the fight against the coronavirus, Kishida said he “had to respond flexibly every day as the characteristics of the omicron variant (of the coronavirus) were unclear” when the variant started spreading in the country.

“What I kept in mind was the balance between measures against the infectious disease and economic and social activities,” the prime minister stressed.

Regarding recent surges in crude oil and raw materials prices, Kishida said his government aims to draw up countermeasures by the end of April.