Japan Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba decides to step down

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has decided to resign to avoid a split within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), the broadcaster NHK is reporting.

The announcement on Sunday comes weeks after Ishiba denied reports he planned to step down over a historic defeat his LDP-led coalition suffered in a July election, saying he wanted to make sure the tariff deal struck with the United States was appropriately implemented.

Since assuming his role last October, Ishiba has seen electoral losses wipe out his party’s majority in both houses of parliament, with a bruising electoral defeat in October leaving it with a minority in the more powerful lower house.

The defeats have made it more difficult for Ishiba’s coalition to implement its policy objectives.

Amid the country’s growing political instability, the prime minister has faced calls to resign from mostly right-wing opponents within his party, who urged him to take responsibility for the results of July’s vote.

Reports suggested that Japan’s agricultural minister and a former prime minister met with Ishiba on Saturday evening to persuade him to resign.

Although the Prime Minister’s Office has yet to comment on reports of his resignation, the Japanese government confirmed that Ishiba would be giving a press conference later on Sunday, the day before the LDP was scheduled to vote on whether to hold an early leadership election.

The developments come just days after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday to slash tariffs on Japanese car imports from 27.5% to 15%, formalising an earlier agreement announced in July.

Under its terms, a 15% levy will be brought against most Japanese exports to the US.

However, speaking on Saturday, Tokyo’s top tariff negotiator said the broad trade agreement is ‘not settled’ yet, as US presidential orders on pharmaceutical and semiconductor tariffs have not been issued.

- Agencies