Media outlets in Japan say Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso has assumed a hard-line stance toward North Korea.

The Asahi Shimbun quoted Aso as saying during a speech in Tokyo on Sunday that Japan is prepared to fight when deemed necessary, adding that a nation cannot be safe without such determination.

Aso, a member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, also criticized the opposition camps’ cautious stance toward the use of weapons in combating pirates in Somali waters. He accused the opposition of not thinking about the safety of Japan’s Coast Guard or Self-Defense Forces.