Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday said he is not considering a third term as president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) at the end of his tenure in September 2018.
"I'm not considering it at all," Xinhua news agency quoted Abe as saying at a press briefing following the announcement of his newly-rearranged cabinet and party executives.
LDP Secretary General Toshihiro Nikai who took up the portfolio in the reshuffle had been pushing for the ruling party to amend its rules to allow for its presidents to serve a third term.
However, the current LDP party rules limit its presidents to just two terms.
Nikai had previously said if it served the party's and the leader's interests he would support an extension for a third term.
Abe also said that his new cabinet will commit to the challenges that Japan is currently facing and that the economy would be the top priority as well as reforming working conditions here.
--IANS
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