The next Extraordinary Diet Session will be convened on Thursday, 28 September.  The government and the ruling party was targeting 25 September initially; however, considering the Emperor's schedule and Prime Minister Abe's visit to the UN, they concluded to open the session later than planned.  In addition to Work-style reform, the bills on constitutional reform and the Integrated Resorts seem to be deliberated.  For more details, please see the article on Mainichi Shimbun (Japanese only) from the link below.

Ahead of the party's Presidential Election on 1 September, the two candidates, Seiji Maehara and Yukio Edano of the Democratic Party (DP), discussed how they would regain support for DP and lead the opposition parties against the ruling party at a press conference by the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan (FCCJ) today.  They also exchanged their views on the issues on North Korea, the economic policies, and the nuclear energy.  Please see the image above for the video clip of the entire press conference (with the simultaneous Japanese interpretation).

According to the Nikkei Shimbun, the Government of Japan (GoJ) plans to launch a new organization on trade negotiations. Upon the inauguration of the new US administration, President Trump officially withdrew from the TPP agreement and accused Japan for not purchasing enough American automobiles. Japan is now rather forced to change the trade strategies, for fear of the trade friction.  For more details, please visit the article on the Nikkei Shimbun from the link below (Japanese only).

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe may face the robust discussions and challenging tasks during the 193rd ordinary Diet session, which will be convened tomorrow, 20 January. Among 86 bills to be submitted, a few of them, such as a bill on the imperial abdication and a so-called "conspiracy bill", are expected to cause turbulence between the ruling and opposition parties.