shintaro ishihara is aiming to shake things up and steer his country right. the former tokyo governor is trying his hand at national politics. he wants to review japan's constitution and strengthen its self-defense forces among other things, all under the name of his newly-launched sunrise party. nhk world's mitsuko nishikawa reports. >> translator: i will fight against the existing major older parties such as the ldp and dpj, and new komeito. we will challenge them, otherwise japan won't change. i am thinking of uniting other smaller parties in order to fight in the election. >> reporter: ishihara's new party calls for the establishment of a strong nation by building up its self-defense capability. it also pledges to give local government more power. ishihara has pursued politics for more than 40 years, of which he served as an outspoken tokyo governor for more than 13 years. he stirred controversy this year by announcing a plan to purchase some of the disputed senkaku islands in the east china sea from a private land owner. his action prompted the japanese

ishihara's remark led to their nationalization. the purchase has caused the current state of strained relations between china and japan. >>> another diplomatic heavy hitter is getting directly involved in the effort to secure a cease-fire in gaza. u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton to visiting the middle east to hold talks with regional leaders. israeli forces have been bombing the hamas-controlled gaza strip for severn days now. the palestinian group has retaliated with rockets. israel's targets have included a hamas-affiliated bank in gaza. palestinian fighters have fired up to 300 rockets a day at israel over the past week. the number released tuesday is lower. the conflict has killed 111 palestinians and three israelis. egypt has been mediating cease-fire talks between hamas and israel. israeli negotiators have set a condition that hamas stop firing rockets in the long term. hamas representatives want israel to end its economic blockade of gaza. the u.n. security council has still not agreed on a statement proposed by the

ishihara, on the other hand, is a veteran politician. he's 80 years old. he resigned as tokyo governor last month saying he, too, wants to launch a party. both men aim to establish a so-called third poll, meaning an alternative to the main parties, but they're not rivals, you see. in fact, they are exploring a partnership for the next lower house election. some voters believe neither the ruling dpj nor the major opposition ldp has brought about change for the japanese people, and hashimoto and ishihara are trying to appeal to those voters. and our poll indicates the ldp is in a good position to defeat other parties in the upcoming election, but the two politicians present voters with another chance. >> so such an alternative could be a threat to the main parties. when do you think the election will be held? >> the decision lies with prime minister noda. he's the one to decide. the current diet term does not expire until next summer. but noda promised opposition members back in august that he would hold the election in the near future. he used the word "soo

japan restoration party leader and former tokyo governor shintaro ishihara said people who talk about reducing nuclear power should think first about the country's energy mix. he called for simulations to determine whether japan can afford to shut down its nuclear plants. >>> official campaigning for the election kicks off on tuesday. voters will head to the polls on december 16th. >>> experts in japan are preparing to dig for more answers in regards to safety at some of the country's nuclear power plants. they're trying to assess the threat of fault lines running below the facilities. the japanese government toughened safety standards following last year's accident at fukushima daiichi. all of japan's operating commercial reactors went offline in the months after the march 2011 disaster. then last july the prime minister approved the restart of two units at the ohi plant in fukui prefecture. regulators assured they would be able to withstand a major earthquake or tsunami. but the possible presence of an active fault directly beneath the plant has raised doubts about the reactors. we'

toru hashimoto and the former governor of tokyo shintaro ishihara have both established new parties in an attempt to alter the dynamics of the nation's politics. >> what do you see on japan's political horizon after the election? >> well, polls suggest the main opposition ldp stands a good chance of taking the most seats, but no party is expected to win a majority in the lower house. if that's the case, those parties that succeed in forming a majority coalition will take power and form a new government. if the ruling dpj and the main opposition together win a majority of seats they could form a ground coalition government. that is exactly what prime minister noda wants. the three parties have already worked together on fiscal and electoral reform bills. they have also agreed to work on social security reform in the future. but the ldp may try to form a coalition with the third pole. all these things will depend on how the seat allocation breaks down among the parties in the election. >> thanks as always. >>> and so japan's political parties will start revving up their campaign machines

the mayor of osaka, toru hashimoto, and the former governor of tokyo, shintaro ishihara, have both established new parties in an attempt to alter the dynamics of the nation's politics. >> so, what maa seau, what do you see on japan's political horizon after the election? >> well, polls suggest the main opposition ldp stands a good chance of taking the most seats, but, you know, no party is expected to win a majority in the lower house. if that's the case, those parties that succeed in forming a majority coalition will take power and form a new government. if the ruling dpj and the main opposition ldp with its new partner new komeito together win a majority of seats, they could form a new coalition government. that's exactly what prime minister noda wants. the three parties have already worked together on fiscal and electoral reform bills. they have also agreed to work on social security reform in the future. but the ldp may try to form a coalition with the third pole. but, you know, all these things will depend on how the seat allocation breaks down among the parties in the election. >>> u.s.