COVID-19: Japan drug distribution by year-end if elected PM, Kishida says

Japanese former foreign minister Fumio Kishida, a key contender to become prime minister, said on Saturday he would work to distribute COVID-19 medications by year-end if elected.

Read the latest updates in our dedicated coronavirus section.

Speaking in a televised debate with three other candidates to lead the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Kishida also said he would focus on reducing socioeconomic gaps in a post-pandemic era.

The LDP leader becomes prime minister by virtue of the party’s majority in parliament’s lower house.

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