[1/3] Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during the leaders talk of the ASEAN-Indo Pacific Forum (AIPF) in Jakarta, Indonesia September 6, 2023.
Top government spokesperson Hirokazu Matsuno said the role of defence minister went to Minoru Kihara, a pro-Taiwan politician who has visited the island in the past and belongs to a Japan-Taiwan interparliamentary group.
Kihara will also oversee the bolstering of Japan's military as part of a plan to double defence spending over five years by 2027.
China claims Taiwan as its own territory and will be sensitive to any shift in Japan's stance on the democratically governed island.
"Even if the foreign and defence minister posts change, there won't be any change or impact on Japan's diplomatic policy."
Persons:
Fumio Kishida, Adek Berry, Yoko Kamikawa, Hirokazu Matsuno, Minoru Kihara, Kihara, Takashi Kawakami, Shigenobu Tamura, Tim Kelly, Yoshifumi, Sakura Murakami, Chang, Ran Kim, Kantaro, Clarence Fernandez, Stephen Coates
Organizations:
ASEAN, Pacific, Rights, Liberal Democratic Party, Takushoku University, LDP, NHK, Thomson
Locations:
Jakarta, Indonesia, Taiwan, Japan, Tokyo, China, East Asia, United States