is a Japanese

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

and

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 ...

who currently serves as the Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party. He has previously served as

Minister for Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between coun ...

from 2019 to 2021, and as Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry from 2012 to 2014. He is serving in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

as a member of the Liberal Democratic Party. He leads the

Heisei Kenkyūkai Heisei Kenkyūkai ( ja, 平成研究会, Heisei Research Council) is a faction within the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). It is currently led by Toshimitsu Motegi is a Japanese politician and diplomat who currently serves as the Secretary-G ...

faction within the LDP.

Early life and education

A native of

Ashikaga, Tochigi is a Cities of Japan, city located in Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 143,653, in 62,123 households and a population density of 810 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Ashikaga is loc ...

, Motegi was born on 7 October 1955. He graduated from the

University of Tokyo , abbreviated as or UTokyo, is a public research university located in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1877, the university was the first Imperial University and is currently a Top Type university of the Top Global University Project by ...

in 1978 and worked for the trading company

Marubeni Corporation (, OSE: 8002, NSE: 8002) is a ''sōgō shōsha'' (general trading company) headquartered in Nihonbashi, Chuo, Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the largest ''sogo shosha'' and has leading market shares in cereal and paper pulp trading as well as a st ...

until 1980. He received a post-graduate

Master of Public Policy The Master of Public Policy (MPP), is one of several public policy degrees. An MPP is a master's-level professional degree that provides training in policy analysis and program evaluation at public policy schools. The MPP program places a focus o ...

degree from the

John F. Kennedy School of Government The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...

in 1983, and worked as a management consultant for

McKinsey & Company McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm founded in 1926 by University of Chicago professor James O. McKinsey, that offers professional services to corporations, governments, and other organizations. McKinsey is the oldest and ...

from 1984 to 1992.

Career

He was elected to the House of Representatives for the first time in the 1993 general election as a member of the

Japan New Party The was a Japanese political party that existed briefly from 1992 to 1994. The party, considered liberal, was founded by Morihiro Hosokawa, a former Diet member and Kumamoto Prefecture governor, who left the Liberal Democratic Party to protest ...

, representing the Tochigi 5th district. He changed his political affiliation to the Liberal Democratic Party in 1995.''

Japan Times ''The Japan Times'' is Japan's largest and oldest English-language daily newspaper. It is published by , a subsidiary of News2u Holdings, Inc.. It is headquartered in the in Kioicho, Chiyoda, Tokyo. History ''The Japan Times'' was launched by ...

'', "Fukuda's new lineup", 3 August 2008. He was appointed Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs in October 2002 under Prime Minister

Junichiro Koizumi Junichiro Koizumi (; , ''Koizumi Jun'ichirō'' ; born 8 January 1942) is a former Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2001 to 2006. He retired from politics in 2009. He is ...

. Koizumi then promoted him to Minister of State for Okinawa and Northern Territories Affairs, Science and Technology Policy, and Information Technology in September 2003, and on 1 August 2008, Prime Minister

Yasuo Fukuda is a former Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 2007 to 2008. He was previously the longest-serving Chief Cabinet Secretary in Japanese history, serving in that role from 2000 to 2004 under Prime Ministers Yoshirō M ...

appointed him as State Minister in Charge of Financial Services and Administrative Reform. Within the Liberal Democratic Party, Motegi is the acting chairman of the Takeshita faction, the party’s third-largest with 52 members.

Abe government

Following the LDP's victory in the 2012 general election, resulting in

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 ...

's election as prime minister, Motegi was named Minister for Economy, Trade, and Industry. He left the Cabinet in September 2014 to serve as Chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party Election Committee. He was appointed Chairman of the LDP Policy Council in August 2016. Motegi was appointed Minister for Economic Revitalization and State Minister for Economic and Fiscal Policy in 2017. As minister, he was sent as a special envoy to sign the

Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership Comprehensive may refer to: *Comprehensive layout, the page layout of a proposed design as initially presented by the designer to a client. * Comprehensive school, a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement ...

in Santiago, Chile. In August 2019, Motegi led negotiations with U.S. Trade Representative

Robert Lighthizer Robert Emmet Lighthizer (; born October 11, 1947) is an American attorney and government official who served as the United States Trade Representative from 2017 to 2021. After he graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 1973, Lighthiz ...

to finalize a new trade pact between Japan and the United States. ''Nikkei'' dubbed Motegi "Japan's 'Trump whisperer'" in recognition of his role in negotiating with US President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

and his administration. Abe appointed Motegi as foreign minister in September 2019 in recognition of this success. In 2018, Motegi was revealed to have possibly breached Japan's electoral laws. He was accused of making illegal donations of incense sticks to his constituents through his personal secretary. Opposition parties called for his resignation. He was active in gathering support for Abe's re-election as president of the Liberal Democratic Party that year.

Suga and Kishida governments

After Abe's resignation as Prime Minister, his successor

Yoshihide Suga is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2020 to 2021. He had served as Chief Cabinet Secretary during the second administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe fro ...

opted to retain Motegi as foreign minister after taking office in September 2020. As Suga was known to be weak in foreign affairs, this gave Motegi an opportunity to build his reputation and brand, while maintaining the foreign policy initiatives from the Abe government. In October 2020, Motegi met with U.K. International Trade Secretary

Liz Truss Mary Elizabeth Truss (born 26 July 1975) is a British politician who briefly served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from September to October 2022. On her fiftieth day in office, she stepped down ...

to sign a bilateral economic partnership agreement estimated to raise British exports to Japan by 17.2% (¥355 billion) and Japanese exports to Britain by 79.9% (¥1.775 trillion). In the trade package, British import tariffs are expected to reduce by up to 60% for

Kobe beef is Wagyu beef from the Tajima strain of Japanese Black cattle, raised in Japan's Hyōgo Prefecture according to rules set out by the Kobe Beef Marketing and Distribution Promotion Association. The meat is a delicacy, valued for its flavor, te ...

, 31% for the Japanese chocolate snack

Pocky is a Japanese sweet snack food produced by the Ezaki Glico food company. Pocky was first sold in 1966, and was invented by Yoshiaki Koma. It consists of coated biscuit sticks. It was named after the Japanese onomatopoeic word , which is suppos ...

, 22% for

bluefin tuna Bluefin tuna is a common name used to refer to several species of tuna of the genus ''Thunnus ''Thunnus'' is a genus of ocean-dwelling, ray-finned bony fish from the mackerel family, Scombridae. More specifically, ''Thunnus'' is one of five ...

, 13% for

udon noodles Udon ( or ) is a thick noodle made from wheat flour, used in Japanese cuisine. It is a comfort food for many Japanese people. There are a variety of ways it is prepared and served. Its simplest form is in a hot soup as with a mild broth called ...

, and 6% for

soy sauce Soy sauce (also called simply soy in American English and soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and '' Aspergillus oryzae'' or ''Asp ...

. After Suga's resignation as Prime Minister, his successor

Fumio Kishida is a Japanese politician serving as Prime Minister of Japan and president of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) since 2021. A member of the House of Representatives, he previously served as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2012 to 2017 and ...

opted to retain Motegi as foreign minister after taking office in October 2021. ''Nikkei'' noted that this sent a message of continuity in Japan's policies toward China and Taiwan. He was appointed Secretary-General of the LDP after the resignation of the previous incumbent

Akira Amari is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and a member of the lower house representing the Minami Kanto Bloc. Personal life Amari is a native of Atsugi, Kanagawa, where he attended Kanagawa Prefectural Atsugi High Schoo ...

following the 2021 general elections. He leads one of the main factions of the LDP party and is rumored to be a potential contender to become Prime Minister. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2022/10/19/national/politics-diplomacy/motegi-ldp-presence/

References

1955 births Living people Government ministers of Japan Japan New Party politicians Japanese management consultants Japanese reporters and correspondents Harvard Kennedy School alumni Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) politicians McKinsey & Company people Members of the House of Representatives (Japan) Politicians from Tochigi Prefecture University of Tokyo alumni Waseda University faculty Marubeni 21st-century Japanese politicians Foreign ministers of Japan {{Japan-politician-1950s-stub