Abe Shows Resolve to Specify SDF in Constitution

August 13, 2018

Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Pref.- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has reiterated his determination to amend Article 9 of the Constitution to clearly legalize the Self-Defense Forces.

"I will fulfill my responsibility by specifying the SDF in the Constitution," Abe, also president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, said in a speech in Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture, on Sunday.

The remark indicates his willingness to make constitutional revision a major issue in the ruling party's presidential race in September, pundits said.

"The LDP should speed up work to draw up its constitutional amendment proposal so the party can submit it to the next parliamentary session," Abe said.

"SDF members are a pride of the Japanese people," he stressed, citing their dedication to duties as seen in the recent disaster relief operations in torrential rain-hit western Japan.

Also during the speech in his home electoral district, Abe noted he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Nagato, another city in the western prefecture, in December 2016.

Then he showed his eagerness to resolve the longstanding territorial row between Japan and Russia to conclude a peace treaty to officially end the two nations' wartime hostilities.

"I want to carve out a new era for Japan and Russia," he added. Jiji Press