By RIA Novosti
Tokyo : Japan's first-ever female defence minister was sworn into office Wednesday, vowing to restore trust in the government following the resignation of her predecessor over his controversial comments regarding the WWII atomic bombing of Japan.
Yuriko Koike, 55, a former national security advisor in the Japanese Cabinet, stressed that a priority of her post would be reinforcing Japan's defence capability in light of the existing situation in East Asia, as well as the problem of redeploying US military bases in Japan.
She also said she would like to "help restore public trust in the Abe government."
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki said he had high expectations for Koike, who has developed extensive contacts and studied security issues. Koike replaces Fumio Kyuma who resigned Tuesday over comments made over the weekend in Nagasaki. Kyuma said that he did not resent the US nuclear attack on Nagasaki as it prevented the Soviet Union from occupying the island of Hokkaido.
The statement came under fierce criticism from public organizations representing survivors of the atomic bombings, opposition lawmakers, and even several Cabinet members.
The majority of Japanese people strongly believe that the U.S. atomic bombings caused grave harm to Japan and can never be justified.
The US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki near the end of World War II, in the world's only nuclear attacks. The bombs killed at least 215,000 people and survivors have developed various illnesses from exposure to radiation, including cancer and liver disease.