The party itself never officially endorsed or recommended him.

We'd like to play the role of bridging between China and the United States and playing the role of pragmatic balancer -- to tell China there are ways to get out of this worsened relationship with the United States.

We will look into the issue of expense-free childbirth broadly.

Prime Minister (Junichiro) Koizumi said that he wanted the cabinet to approve the plan quickly and that he was determined to create a gender-equality society in which men and women can have dreams and expectations by fully exercising their individuality and abilities.

I have been told to tackle issues closely related to (everyday) life.

The government needs to support child-rearing families by distributing public funds fairly and equally.