Japan PM to replace foreign and defence ministers in cabinet reshuffle

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida plans to appoint former Justice Minister Yoko Kamikawa as foreign minister while retaining Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki in the upcoming reshuffle of his Cabinet and the ruling party's leadership lineup, government, and ruling party sources said on September 12.

Others expected to be reappointed Wednesday include Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno, Trade and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, Digital Minister Taro Kono, and Economic Security Minister Sanae Takaichi, Kyodo reports.

Kishida also plans to tap Minoru Kihara, who served as a special adviser to former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, as defense minister, the sources said.

Among the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's four key executives, Kishida plans to keep Toshimitsu Motegi as secretary general, the party's No. 2 post. Yuko Obuchi, the 49-year-old daughter of the late Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, will be tapped as election campaign chief, apparently in the hope of freshening up the image of a party lineup otherwise dominated by male politicians.

Kishida, who took office in October 2021, hopes the reshuffle will boost his Cabinet's approval ratings, which have remained sluggish as public concerns linger over high inflation and problems with the "My Number" identification card system such as personal information leaks and registration errors.