ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shhebaz Sharif on Tuesday expressed hopes to strengthen Islamabad’s relations with Japan as the Japanese parliament election Sanae Takaichi as the first woman premier of the country.

Takaichi replaces Shigeru Ishiba, ending a three-month political vacuum and wrangling since the Liberal Democratic Party’s disastrous election loss in July. Ishiba, who lasted only one year as prime minister, resigned with his Cabinet earlier in the day, paving the way for his successor.

Takaichi won 237 votes — four more than a majority — compared to 149 won by Yoshikoko Noda, the head of the largest opposition party, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan. The vote took place in the lower house, the more powerful of Japan’s two chambers of parliament and the one that chooses the prime minister.

“Heartiest congratulations to H.E. Ms. Sanae Takaichi on her election as the Prime Minister of Japan,” Pakistan PM Sharif wrote on X. “We look forward to working closely with Prime Minister Takaichi to further strengthen the enduring friendship and cooperation between our two countries.”

Pakistan and Japan have enjoyed cordial and friendly relations since the former’s creation in 1947. Both countries have several bilateral institutional mechanisms, including Annual Bilateral Political Consultations and Security Dialogue.

The Japanese Official Development Assistance (ODA) program has been supporting Pakistan’s efforts to revive its economy and reduce poverty through a series of reforms and initiatives in health, sanitation, education, agriculture, irrigation, economic infrastructure and economic development.

This month, Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb met with Nobumitsu Hayashi, Governor of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), on the sidelines of International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank meetings in New York, according to the Pakistani finance ministry.

Aurangzeb welcomed JBIC’s formal commitment to join the Reko Diq lender group, noting that this move would strengthen investor confidence and encourage Japanese businesses to expand their presence in Pakistan.

Located in Pakistan’s insurgency-hit Balochistan province, the Reko Diq mines have one of the world’s largest underdeveloped gold and copper deposits, and the potential to generate $90 billion over the next 37 years.

“He (Aurangzeb) emphasized the government’s priority on ensuring security for foreign investors and identified new avenues for bilateral cooperation,” the Pakistani finance ministry said.