Japan ex-premier Aso named finance minister

Japan’s newly-named Prime Minsiter Shinzo Abe waves for the media upon his arrival at the prime minister’s official residence following his election at Parliament in Tokyo Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2012. Abe, whose nationalist positions have in the past angered Japan’s neighbors, is the country’s seventh prime minister in just over six years. AP

TOKYO – Japan’s new Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday unveiled his cabinet, appointing former premier Taro Aso as his finance minister and deputy.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga announced the list shortly after parliament elected Abe as the nation’s new leader. He had swept to power on a hawkish platform of getting tough on diplomatic issues while fixing the economy.