Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) party has chosen former defence minister Shigeru Ishiba as its new party leader, effectively also making him the country’s new prime minister. Due to the LDP’s majority in the influential lower house of parliament, the House of Representatives, Ishiba’s election as prime minister of the world’s fourth-largest economy is practically assured on Tuesday. The 67-year-old succeeds Fumio Kishida, who did not stand for election due to a party donation scandal. Ishiba won a run-off election against the conservative nationalist Minister for Economic Securit…