Ishiba, a former defence chief, was elected leader of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on Friday. The LDP’s parliamentary majority means he is expected to replace Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who announced plans to step down last month.
Analysts said Ishiba was likely to maintain Japan’s strategic alliances, but warned that his aims to set up an Asian equivalent of Nato to counter China and seek a more balanced partnership with the United States could ruffle feathers in both Beijing and Washington.
The 67-year-old won the party leadership on his fifth attempt – which he said was driven by changes in the security environment.
Ishiba has stressed the need to build a collective security framework in Asia, drawing parallels to the sense of urgency in Europe caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
