Toshimitsu Motegi

Toshimitsu Motegi (茂木 敏充, Motegi Toshimitsu, born 7 October 1955) is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Tsushima Faction, and a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature), representing Tochigi Prefecture's fifth electoral district, and has served as Minister for Foreign Affairs since a Cabinet re-shuffle by Prime Minister Shinzō Abe on 11 September 2019.

Toshimitsu Motegi
茂木 敏充
Motegi in 2019
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Incumbent
Assumed office 11 September 2019
Prime Minister	Shinzo Abe Yoshihide Suga
Preceded by	Tarō Kōno
Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry
In office 26 December 2012 – 3 September 2014
Prime Minister	Shinzo Abe
Preceded by	Yukio Edano
Succeeded by	Yuko Obuchi
Personal details
Born	7 October 1955 Ashikaga, Tochigi, Japan
Political party	Liberal Democratic Party
Alma mater	University of Tokyo Harvard University
Website	Official website

Early life and education

A native of Ashikaga, Tochigi, Motegi was born on 7 October 1955.[1] He graduated from the University of Tokyo in 1978 and worked for trading company Marubeni Corporation from 1978 to 1980. He thereafter received a post-graduate Master of Public Policy degree from Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government in 1983,[1][2] then worked as a political reporter for Yomiuri Shimbun in 1983, and at the consultancy McKinsey & Co from 1984 to 1992.[3]

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, representing the Tochigi 5th district. He joined the LDP in 1995.[4]

He was appointed Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs in October 2002 under Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. Koizumi promoted him to Minister of State for Okinawa and Northern Territories Affairs, Science and Technology Policy, and Information Technology in September 2003.[3]

On 1 August 2008, Yasuo Fukuda appointed him as state minister in charge of financial services and administrative reforms.[4]

He was a visiting professor at Waseda University's graduate school of Global Information and Telecommunication Studies from 2005 to 2010.[1]

Abe government

Following the LDP's success in the 2012 general election, resulting in Shinzo Abe's election as prime minister, Motegi was named as Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry in December 2012.

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.[2]

Motegi was appointed Minister for Economic Revitalization and State Minister for Economic and Fiscal Policy in 2017.[2] As minister, he was sent as a special envoy to sign the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership in Santiago, Chile.[5] In August 2019, Motegi led negotiations with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to finalize a new trade pact between Japan and the United States.[6] Nikkei dubbed Motegi "Japan's 'Trump whisperer'" in recognition of his role in negotiating with US President Donald Trump and his administration.[7] Abe appointed Motegi as foreign minister in September 2019 in recognition of this success.[8]

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.[9] He was active in gathering support for Abe's re-election as president of the Liberal Democratic Party that year.[8]

Motegi condemned the 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria. He said in a statement: "Japan is deeply concerned that the latest military operation would make the settlement of Syrian crisis more difficult and cause further deterioration of the humanitarian situation. Japan once again underscores its position that the Syrian crisis cannot be solved by any military means."[10]

Suga government

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga retained 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 started under the Abe government.[11]

In October 2020, Motegi met with U.K. International Trade Secretary Lizz Truss to sign a bilateral economic partnership agreement that is estimated to raise British exports to Japan by 17.2% (¥355 billion) and Japanese exports to Britain by 79.9% (¥1.775 trillion) in 15 years, as compared to 2019 levels. In the trade package, British import tariffs are expected to reduce by up to 60% for Kobe beef, 31% for the Japanese chocolate snack Pocky, 22% for bluefin tuna, 13% for udon noodles, and 6% for soy sauce.[12]

Personal life

His hobbies include sports, travel, and reading.[4]

References

1. "Abe Cabinet". The Japan Times. Retrieved 8 January 2013.
2. "Toshimitsu MOTEGI". Prime Minister of Japan and His Cabinet. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
3. "Profile of Minister for Foreign Affairs MOTEGI Toshimitsu". Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
4. Japan Times, "Fukuda's new lineup", 3 August 2008.
5. "Signing of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership". Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. Retrieved 31 August 2020.
6. "Japan and U.S. approaching 'final stage' of trade talks, says negotiator Toshimitsu Motegi". The Japan Times. 22 August 2019. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
7. Kato, Masaya (9 December 2019). "Japan's 'Trump whisperer' emerges as potential Abe successor". Nikkei Asian Review. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
8. Shimada, Gaku (7 September 2019). "Abe to pick trade point man Motegi as Japan's top diplomat". Nikkei Asian Review. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
9. Reynolds, Isabel; Nobuhiro, Emi (2 February 2018). "Incense Sticks Come Back to Burn Japan's Economy Minister". Bloomberg. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
10. "Countries unite to oppose Turkey's Syria operation". NBC News. 10 October 2019.
11. Bosack, Michael MacArthur (16 September 2020). "Breaking down Suga's picks for his first Cabinet". The Japan Times. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
12. "Trade pact with Japan to cut British tariff on Pocky snack by 31%". The Japan Times. 24 October 2020. Retrieved 4 November 2020.