Home | Office Holder | Junichiro Koizumi
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Widely seen as a maverick leader of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), he became known as an economic reformer, focusing on Japan's government debt and the privatization of its postal service. In 2005, Koizumi led the LDP to win one of the largest parliamentary majorities in modern Japanese history. Koizumi also attracted international attention through his deployment of the Japan Self-Defense Forces to Iraq, the first foreign deployment of the Japanese military since World War II. His visits to Yasukuni Shrine led to diplomatic tensions with neighboring China and South Korea. Since 1972, Koizumi is the only Prime Minister to have served more than five years in office. Until Naoto Kan, none of his successors were able to keep the office for more than one year. |