Addressing lawmakers in the policy speech for his third term, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Monday vowed to press forward his structural reforms centered on the postal services shakeup, and expressed the intention to revamp rocky ties with neighboring countries.

The premier also made clear the move to extend an anti-terrorism legislation while suggesting Japan would keep its troops staying longer in Iraq.

Koizumi devoted about half words to postal and structural reforms in the shortest policy speech ever delivered by him and the second shortest one made by Japanese prime ministers.

"On the strength of strong public support, I will have (the postal reform bills) passed within this session," Koizumi told the lower house legislators.

Koizumi has been putting the privatization of the Japan Post on the top of his agenda. The project would give birth to four postal service stock companies in 2007.

The bills failed to clear the upper house in August, leading to the dissolution of the lower house.

The government approved the bills again on Monday morning and is about to submit it to the parliament. There is little double for the bills to become into laws as the ruling bloc holds more than two-thirds seats in the lower house, therefore, can override an unfavorable decision by the upper house.

Koizumi noted the privatized postal system would provide better services, help to reinvigorate economy and accelerate the process toward a slimmer government.

At the same time, Koizumi said the current network of post offices would maintain, assuaging public concerns that the privatization would render inconvenient dwindling of the number ofpost offices, especially in remote regions.

The premier also pledged to reduce government size, reshuffle state-related financial institutions and cut the scale of civil servants as well as personnel costs.

Regarding Japan's refueling assistance to the US-led anti-terrorism operations in Afghanistan, Koizumi said that the government would seek the extension of a relative legislation by the end of the session Nov. 1. Japan is intended to keep the operation running for another year until next November.

On Iraq, Koizumi suggested that Japan would not withdraw troops on a rebuilding assistance mission in southern Iraq, which expires in December.

The government "will make a decision based on a thorough review of the Iraqi people's willingness and local situation," the premier repeated the long-standing words.

By strengthening cooperations in broader fields, Japan aims to build mutual-trust-based, future-oriented friendly ties with neighboring countries, notably China and South Korea, Koizumi said.

The relations with China and South Korea has been bumpy recently, mainly due to Japan's wrongheaded attitude toward its aggressive history record.

Koizumi also said he would make efforts toward normalizing diplomatic relationship with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, provided that the two countries can solve a package of issues, such as the DPRK's nuclear and missile development as well as the abduction.

Source: Xinhua