Japan’s defence minister Taro Kono on Thursday said he will be prime minister one day, but for now was backing Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga to succeed their boss Shinzo Abe so the nation could continue tackling the coronavirus crisis.

“It is important to contain COVID-19 and at the same time we need to restart the economy,” Kono said in an interview with Reuters. “One day I will be the prime minister,” he added.

Reporting by Tim Kelly, Kiy

Reuters