[Provisional Translation]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended the Liaison Meeting of the Government and Ruling Parties at the Prime Minister's Office.

The Prime Minister said in his opening remarks,

“A few days ago, a tragic disaster occurred in Nasu Town, Tochigi Prefecture in which an avalanche took the lives of eight high school students and a teacher, and injured many others. I offer my condolences to those who passed away. I would also like to express my heartfelt sympathies to their families and to those affected by this disaster.
We must not allow this kind of tragedy to occur ever again. We will work thoroughly to determine the causes of this incident, as well as strive to further bolster disaster preparedness efforts, including strengthening our warning and evacuation system and conducting extensive patrols and inspections of dangerous areas, in making utmost efforts for preventing disasters related to avalanches.
In Fukushima Prefecture, almost all evacuation orders issued due to the nuclear power accident were lifted on April 1, with the exception of difficult-to-return-zones. I will visit the area this Saturday to hear the views of those engaged in the reconstruction work.
It will soon be one year since the Kumamoto Earthquake. Even now, approximately 40,000 people still find themselves forced to live in emergency temporary housing and other temporary accommodations. Recovery and reconstruction are still only half complete. The Government will continue to work collectively on various support measures. I ask for the continued cooperation of the ruling parties.
I have stated that the early passage of the budget is itself the most important measure for stimulating the economy, and last week, the budget for this fiscal year that opens a path toward the future was passed. Bills related to the budget, such as a tax bill, were also passed. I want to express my profound gratitude to the ruling parties for their efforts.
In the second half of this session of the Diet, the Government remains committed to providing careful explanations with a sense of urgency to ensure the passage of crucial legislation, such as the bill concerning Tero-to-Junbi-Zai (the offence to criminalize an act in furtherance of planning to commit terrorism and other serious crimes) and agricultural policy reform bills. I ask for everyone’s continued cooperation.
The day after the budget was passed, the Action Plan for the Realization of Work Style Reform was approved, based also on the recommendations received from the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Komeito. It is a breakthrough that the labor and business communities were able to reach an agreement on the regulation of the maximum hours of overtime work to secure work-life balance, and is a historic first step toward changing work styles in Japan.
We will submit the content of this action plan to the Diet in the form of a bill at an early date, and exert every effort toward its passage. I would like to have your continued cooperation in order to realize reforms.
Vice President Pence of the United States of America will visit Japan this month and hold the Japan-U.S. economic dialogue with Deputy Prime Minister Aso that President Trump and I agreed to establish at the Japan-U.S. Summit Meeting in February. I am also scheduled to meet with Vice President Pence. We will take this opportunity of the Vice President’s visit to Japan to further strengthen the Japan-U.S. relationship.
Circumstances permitting, I will visit Russia late this month and hold a Japan-Russia Summit Meeting with President Putin. Solving the territorial issue, which has seen no progress for over 70 years will not be easy, but with the earnest wishes of the now-elderly former island residents etched into my heart, I am determined to make steady progress toward concluding a peace treaty.
In this new fiscal year, the Government and ruling parties will continue to cooperate in a unified manner to steadily move policies forward, and I ask for your continued cooperation.”