Japan's parliament

Shigeru Ishiba became Japanese prime minister on Tuesday, seeking to restore the ruling party's popularity and tackle a demographic crisis, a lacklustre economy and fears over China's military build-up.

Japan's central bank left its ultra-easy monetary policy unchanged in its last meeting before Governor Haruhiko Kuroda steps down and is replaced by economics professor Kazuo Ueda.

While most analysts expected the Bank of Japan to stay the course in Kuroda's final policy decision, some had speculated about a surprise tweak.

Japan has ordered beefed-up security at its embassies worldwide, a top official said Sept. 11, after the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group highlighted its missions in Indonesia, Malaysia and Bosnia-Hercegovina as part of a broader threat.

Japan's parliament on Dec. 24 re-elected Shinzo Abe as prime minister with an overwhelming majority following the conservative leader's mid-December election triumph.

The powerful lower house voted for the 60-year-old Abe with 328 votes against 73 for acting opposition leader Katsuya Okada.