Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said he would dissolve parliament's lower house on Thursday for a snap election, seeking a mandate to stick to his tough stance toward a volatile North Korea and rebalance the social security system.
Abe, in power for five years, had been expected to call the election for next month to take advantage of improved support and disarray in the opposition camp.
I hope it works better than it did for British Prime Minister May who ended up shooting herself in the foot over the Brexit negotiations.
The last thing we need is a weakened Japanese government as the crisis with North Korea heads for a decision point.
