Asia Centre

As Prime Minister of Japan from 2001 to 2006, J. Koizumi was extremely popular throughout virtually the whole of his term, a fact attributable both to his charisma and to his reforms. On the political level, J. Koizumi broke with tradition and strengthened party discipline. The instigator of the restructuring of the banking system and reform of the relationship between the central administration and local institutions, J. Koizumi did not refrain from tackling projects that directly affected the LDP’s electoral support base (the postal network, public works, etc). Numerous works in progress await his successor, S. Abe, appointed in September 2006, ranging from the funding of pensions and the broadscale management of the ageing of the population, to increasing income disparity. The new Prime Minister will also have responsibility for successfully meeting J. Koizumi’s objective of ensuring full recognition of Japan on the international political scene. In the particular case of China-Japan relations, he could turn out to be a better diplomat than J. Koizumi.