was a Japanese diplomat, civil servant and politician.

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Entered Seiko Gakuin Junior and Senior High School. After passing the foreign affairs public service class I examination (=diplomat recruitment examination), he dropped out of

Hitotsubashi University , formerly known as , is a national university, national research university in Tokyo, Japan. Often regarded as Japan’s foremost institution for the study of the social sciences, particularly commerce, economics, law, political science, sociolog ...

's Faculty of Law after three years and entered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1972.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 mat ...

, a highly influential post, by Prime Minister

Shinzo Abe Shinzo Abe (21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), LDP) from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 2020. ...

in August 2013. The Cabinet Legislation Bureau advises Cabinet members on laws and legal matters, studies legislation, and determines how the government should interpret the

Constitution of Japan The Constitution of Japan is the supreme law of Japan. Written primarily by American civilian officials during the occupation of Japan after World War II, it was adopted on 3 November 1946 and came into effect on 3 May 1947, succeeding the Meij ...

. 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, Switzerland and

Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (, ; ; ), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein ( ), is a Landlocked country#Doubly landlocked, doubly landlocked Swiss Standard German, German-speaking microstate in the Central European Alps, between Austria in the east ...

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 (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

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 Constitution of Japan outlawing war as a means to settle international disputes involving the state. The Constitution was drafted following the surrender of Japan in World War II. It came into effect on 3 May 1947 during the oc ...

to increase Japan's security role on the international stage. Ichiro Komatsu died from cancer on 23 June 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 Ambassadors of Japan to Liechtenstein Hitotsubashi University alumni