Prime Minister Shinzo Abe surged back to power seven years ago, pledging to bolster the nation¡¯s defenses in response to a growing threat from China and aiming to amend the pacifist Constitution.
Now on track to become Â鶹´«Ã½ longest serving prime minister, Abe has kept his first promise. But the second remains elusive.
That means Japan, which U.S. President Donald Trump has criticized over what he called an ¡°unfair¡± security alliance, still faces limits on acting as a full-fledged American ally.
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