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TOKYO - Japan's embattled Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is preparing for a clash with a resurgent opposition after putting his job on the line in a row over Japan's support for US-led troops in Afghanistan.
Japanese parliament reopens Monday with Abe under mounting pressure after a raft of scandals and a heavy election defeat that handed the opposition control of the upper house of parliament.
Abe is set to deliver a speech at the more powerful lower house at 2.00 pm (0500 GMT) and later also address the upper house.
On the eve of the two-month extraordinary session of the Diet, Abe said he could resign if his government fails to win an extension of the mandate for Japan's mission to refuel jets operating in Afghanistan.
The opposition is against the mission, but the United States has warned that pulling out would damage relations between the long-standing allies.
A new opinion poll showed that a majority of Japanese oppose an extension of the mission in the Indian Ocean, while Abe's popularity has fallen sharply again after a brief rebound following his recent cabinet reshuffle.
Support for Abe's cabinet has dropped to 32 percent, down nine percent from soon after the August 27 cabinet shake-up, according to the poll by major private network NTV.
And 55 percent of people polled said they did not want Japan to continue the mission to support US-led troops in Afghanistan, against 33 percent who supported an extension.
Analysts said that Abe appeared to be using the threat to resign as a way of brokering a compromise with the opposition, but his days as prime minister may be numbered anyway.
"Abe's remarks on resigning sound like a bluff to me because both the ruling parties and the opposition have not prepared for a snap election for the lower house," said political analyst Eiken Itagaki.
"He seems to be seeking a sort of compromise from the opposition. But I would say it is possible that he will be soon replaced by Taro Aso (secretary general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party)", he added.
Japan, which is officially pacifist, provides logistical support under legislation enacted after the September 11, 2001 attacks, which allows Tokyo's participation in the US-led "war on terror."
No date has yet been set for a vote on an extension of the current legislation, which is set to expire November 1.
Abe's coalition still controls the more powerful lower house of parliament but in July it lost control of the upper house to the centre-left opposition, which wants Japan to bring home its ships.
The newly empowered Democratic Party of Japan is also expected to seek symbolic censure motions against the scandal-hit cabinet ministers and possibly Abe himself.
Abe, an outspoken conservative and Japan's first premier born after World War II, took office nearly a year ago with a popular, youthful image, but his public support has plunged over the scandals and gaffes by his ministers. - AFP/ir
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