TOKYO - Caroline Kennedy is endorsing Hillary Clinton for president in 2016 - "if she runs."

The new U.S. ambassador to Japan endorsed Barack Obama in 2008, calling him an inspirational figure for a "new generation of Americans" akin to her father in 1960.

"I think he's been a great president. And I think that this rebalanced Asia is a really good example of somebody who's taking the long view, advancing the United States interest," Kennedy told ABC's Jonathan Karl in an interview in Tokyo.

If Clinton decides to make a bid to succeed him, Kennedy says she's on-board.

"If she runs," she told ABC News' Jon Karl.

"I know it sounds like a cliché, but two years is a really long time in politics," she said. "I'm sure she's looking forward to being a grandmother, I know she's got to decide soon. So, so you know I hope so."

Kennedy's early of endorsement of Clinton is a switch from six years ago. A key moment during Clinton's grueling primary duel with then-Sen. Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination was the endorsement Caroline Kennedy and her uncle, Sen. Ted Kennedy, gave to Obama. It was a huge disappointment for the Clinton camp.