was a Japanese

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

and politician.

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Entered

Seiko Gakuin Junior and Senior High School , commonly known as Seiko ( , ), is a Japanese maker of watches, clocks, electronic devices, semiconductors, jewelry, and optics, optical products. Founded in 1881 by Kintarō Hattori in Tokyo, Seiko introduced one of the first Quartz watch, qua ...

. After passing the foreign affairs public service class I examination (=

recruitment examination), he dropped out of

Hitotsubashi University is a national university located in Tokyo, Japan. It has campuses in Kunitachi, Kodaira, and Chiyoda. One of the top 9 Designated National University in Japan, Hitotsubashi is a relatively small institution specialized solely in social sciences ...

's Faculty of Law after three years and entered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...

.He was appointed the Director-General of the

Cabinet Legislation Bureau The is a Japanese government agency which advises Cabinet members on drafting legislation to be proposed to the Diet. It acts as legal counsel for the Cabinet by examining bills, orders, and treaties. It also presents opinions on legal matters ...

, a highly influential post, by

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Shinzo Abe Shinzo Abe ( ; ja, 安倍晋三, Hepburn romanization, Hepburn: , ; 21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), President of the Lib ...

in August 2013. The Cabinet Legislation Bureau advises

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

members on laws and legal matters, studies legislation, and determines how the government should interpret the

Constitution of Japan The Constitution of Japan (Shinjitai: , Kyūjitai: , Hepburn: ) is the constitution of Japan and the supreme law in the state. Written primarily by American civilian officials working under the Allied occupation of Japan, the constitution r ...

. He stepped down from the position in May 2014 due to declining health from cancer. Komatsu had previously served as Japan's ambassador to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

and

Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constitutional monarchy ...

earlier in his career.Several new ambassadors named , The Japan Times
/ref> Born in 1951, Komatsu graduated from

. He joined the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

and served as the ministry's director-general for international legal affairs. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe unilaterally appointed Komatsu as Director-General of the

in August 2013. Komatsu was the first Foreign Ministry official to be appointed to the post. Abe and Komatsu shared similar beliefs that Japan's pacifist Constitution should be revised to allow for more military involvement overseas. Komatsu supported Abe's efforts to skirt

Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution is a clause in the national Constitution of Japan outlawing war as a means to settle international disputes involving the state. The Constitution came into effect on 3 May 1947, following World War II. In its text, the state formally renounces th ...

to increase Japan's security role on the international stage. Ichiro Komatsu died from cancer on June 23, 2014, at the age of 63.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Komatsu, Ichiro 1951 births 2014 deaths Government ministers of Japan Ambassadors of Japan to France Ambassadors of Japan to Switzerland Hitotsubashi University alumni