The actors bring their own stuff and thoughts, and most of the time, I don't want to know what they are. It allows me to have more distance and observe what they're doing without having the knowledge of what they have in their minds, so I can see clearly how that feels to me.

I think it is not necessary at this time to put forth a grand vision such as an East Asian Community. What we must do before that is create scenarios for Japan's response in case of a serious territorial incident.

I feel very keenly the eyes of the foreign media on our country. And I think a lot of Japanese people feel that things are not working the way they should. When the time comes, I will put myself forward.

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