Japan’s prime minister Sanae Takaichi is taking a bold gamble with her decision to call a snap election after just three months in office. A bigger mandate would offer the prime minister a stronger basis to pursue her controversial policies at home and abroad. A foreign policy hawk who favours higher defence spending and closer ties with the United States, Takaichi triggered a diplomatic standoff with China only a few weeks after taking office. She said that an invasion of Taiwan could represent an existential threat to Japan, justifying the deployment of Japanese forces. And her plan has already hit a complication with the decision of two opposition parties to merge ahead of the election.

Source: The Irish Times January 19, 2026 08:01 UTC