Hawk's return in Japan heartens US
The return of conservative Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Japan has raised
hopes in Washington for closer security ties, although US officials hope he
keeps a lid on his more strident views.
Abe is a champion of revising the post-World War II pacifist constitution and
may take shorter-term steps such as boosting defense spending and allowing
greater military cooperation with the United States, Japan's treaty-bound ally.
His Liberal Democratic Party, which ruled almost continuously from 1955 until
2009, roared back Sunday with a crushing victory over the Democratic Party of
Japan, which Abe accused of harming relations with the United States.
