Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday named new defence and foreign ministers as part of a cabinet revamp he hopes will stem a decline in public support after a series of scandals and missteps.

Itsunori Onodera, a former defence chief, is to return to the defence ministry -- rocked by the resignation last week of close Abe political ally Tomomi Inada.

Taro Kono, the son of a former foreign minister, will become the country's new top diplomat.