Abe to reshuffle cabinet on August 27: reports

TOKYO (AFP) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe plans to reshuffle his cabinet on August 27 in a bid to extend the navy's support mission in Afghanistan following last month's election defeat, reports said Sunday.

Abe will reshuffle the cabinet as soon as he returns from a trip to India, Indonesia and Malaysia, aiming to extend a law allowing the navy to provide logistical support in the Indian Ocean to US-led troops in Afghanistan, the mass circulation Yomiuri Shimbun reported, citing unnamed government sources.

The liberal Asahi Shimbun reported a similar story.

It is believed that by reshuffling his cabinet, Abe would clear the way for parliament to concentrate on legislative priorities.

Abe hopes to secure enough time in the next session of parliament to pass the bill as the opposition Democratic Party of Japan, which now controls the upper house, is opposed to extending the Afghanistan-linked mission, the reports said.