Japan appoints new foreign, defence ministers in Cabinet reshuffle

Shigeru Ishiba was elected as Japan's 102nd prime minister during an extraordinary Diet session on October 1, receiving 291 votes out of 461 in the Lower House.

His election follows his appointment as president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on September 27, succeeding Fumio Kishida, who chose not to seek re-election, Caliber.Az reports per foreign media.

The new Cabinet includes key allies and defense experts aimed at advancing Ishiba’s national security agenda. While Ishiba has expressed support for a gender quota system, the number of female ministers has decreased from five in the Kishida Cabinet to two in his own.

As a former defense minister, Ishiba campaigned on promises to revise the Japan-US Status of Forces Agreement and to establish an Asian counterpart to NATO. New Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya and Defence Minister Gen Nakatani are both seasoned politicians with prior experience in defense roles.

Ishiba appointed Akihisa Nagashima as a special adviser and Akihiro Tsuchimichi as executive secretary, both of whom have extensive defense backgrounds. Notably, 60 per cent of the new Cabinet ministers do not belong to any LDP faction, and the average age of the ministers is 63.6, up from 61.8 in the previous Cabinet.

The Cabinet avoids including any lawmakers implicated in recent fundraising scandals, particularly members from the LDP's Abe faction. Six lawmakers who endorsed Ishiba during the LDP leadership race secured ministerial positions, including Ryosei Akazawa, the minister for economic revitalization, and Masaaki Taira, the minister for digital transformation.

Among the remaining LDP presidential candidates, Yoshimasa Hayashi continues as chief Cabinet secretary, and Katsunobu Kato is appointed finance minister. Junko Mihara and Toshiko Abe are the only female ministers in Ishiba's Cabinet, contrasting with Kishida's prior appointment of five female ministers but no women in state minister or parliamentary vice minister roles.

Ishiba has emphasized the need for a quota system to encourage more women to enter politics, stating that the current situation is not conducive for women seeking political careers.

By Vafa Guliyeva