(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-09-13 15:09

"The voters should be asked in the proper fashion who their choice for leader is in a general election," said the national Asahi newspaper in an editorial. "That is the only way to bring back politics based on the people's trust."

Some party lawmakers urged the return of Abe's predecessor, Junichiro Koizumi, but lawmaker Gaku Ishizaki told TV Asahi that the former premier had so far rejected the idea of returning to power.

The leadership change comes just as the government has opened its battle in parliament over the Indian Ocean naval mission, which the opposition has vowed to defeat.

Japan's navy has been providing fuel for coalition warships in the Indian Ocean since November 2001 under an anti-terrorism law that has already been extended three times. The legislation is a key issue before the special parliament session that opened Monday.

Although polls show public opinion is split on the issue, the government should eventually be able to push through the legislation because the Liberal Democrats control the lower house, which can override a "no" vote by the upper house.

The United States has turned up the pressure on Japan to extend the mission. US Ambassador Thomas Schieffer met with officials earlier Wednesday to make Washington's case.

White House spokesman Tony Snow declined to comment on the leadership change, but noted Japan is a key US ally. "We continue to work closely with the Japanese on a whole range of issues, obviously, and we will continue to do so," he said.

The resignation climaxes a rapid fall for Abe, who was the hand-picked successor to Koizumi. Abe swept into office with ambitious plans to revise the 1947 pacifist constitution and bolster Japan's role in international affairs.

Abe, whose grandfather was a prime minister and father was a foreign minister, initially met with success in fence-mending trips to China and South Korea. He also passed laws bolstering patriotic education and upgrading the Defense Agency to a full Cabinet-level ministry.

But the string of scandals quickly sapped public support.

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