By AFP and Focus | 2026-02-19

TOKYO -- Sanae Takaichi was formally reappointed as Japan's prime minister on February 18, 10 days after winning a historic landslide.

Takaichi, 64, became the nation's first woman premier in October and secured a two-thirds majority for her party in the snap lower house election on February 8.

The victory gives her a strong mandate to pursue a tougher national security agenda. She has pledged to bolster defenses to protect Japanese territory and waters. This stance is likely to further strain ties with Beijing. Simultaneously, Takaichi is seeking to revive Japan's flagging economy.

Strengthening US ties

At a news conference on February, Takaichi said she hopes to "closely cooperate" with the US administration in the first investment initiatives. She is scheduled to visit Washington in March.

She highlighted rare earth development and other economic security priorities as areas for US-Japanese coordination. Japan is trying to break China's stranglehold on worldwide supply of rare earths, which are vital for modern industry.

Takaichi is balancing rising domestic expectations for deterrence with the need to manage ties with Washington, say analysts. "For China, it's simple. Japanese people want her to be tough," Masato Kamikubo, a professor of politics at Ritsumeikan University, told the Associated Press.

Many Japanese are frustrated by China's growing assertiveness. The latest Sino-Japanese war of words escalated after China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, spoke in Munich, Germany, on February 14. He accused Japanese "far-right forces" of seeking to "revive militarism."

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi called the remarks "not based on facts." Defense efforts are a response to a "severe security environment," the Japanese Foreign Ministry said.

Last November, Takaichi suggested Japan could intervene militarily if Beijing sought to take Taiwan by force. China reacted angrily to the suggestion.

Beijing regards the democratic island as its territory. It has not ruled out using force to seize it.

Policy shifts

The election result showed voters wanted "important policy shifts," said Takaichi. Her plans include proactive fiscal policy and a fundamental strengthening of security.

She intends to establish a National Intelligence Agency. That coming bill is meant to significantly enhance the government's intelligence capabilities.

In an upcoming policy speech, Takaichi is set to pledge an update to Japan's "Free and Open Indo-Pacific" strategy, local media reported. This plan likely involves strengthening supply chains through the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. Japan is a member of that bloc alongside major economies including Britain, Canada and Mexico.

Her administration will begin concrete discussions on anti-espionage legislation, media reports said.

Takaichi has proposed tougher policies on immigration and foreigners to address voter frustration in Japan. In January, her government approved both stricter rules on permanent residency and measures to prevent nonpayment of taxes and of social insurance contributions.

Facing pressure over inflation, demographics and fiscal strain, Takaichi likely will have to show progress on the economy before she can revise the US-drafted postwar pacifist constitution, a longtime ambition of hers.