Minister for Foreign Affairs (Japan)

The Template:Nihongo is a member of the cabinet of Japan and is the leader and chief executive of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The minister is responsible for implementing Japan's foreign policy and is also a statutory member of the National Security Council. The minister is nominated by the prime minister and is appointed by the emperor of Japan.

Since the end of the allied occupation of Japan, the position has been one of the most powerful in the cabinet, as Japan's economic interests have long relied on foreign relations. The recent efforts of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and Shinzo Abe to establish a more interventionist foreign policy have also heightened the importance of the position.

The current minister for foreign affairs is Takeshi Iwaya, who took office on October 1, 2024.<ref name="Fumio Kishida appointing new Foreign Minister amid declining relations with China and South Korea">Template:Cite news</ref>

List of ministers for foreign affairs

• Italics indicates subject served as Acting Foreign Minister.
• Bold indicates subject served concurrently as Prime Minister for a period of time.

Empire of Japan (1885–1945)

#	Portrait	Name	Took office	Left office
1	File:Inoue Kaoru.jpg	Count Inoue Kaoru	December 1885	September 1887
–	File:Itô Hirobumi.jpg	Count Itō Hirobumi	September 1887	February 1888
2	File:Ōkuma Shigenobu.jpg	Count Ōkuma Shigenobu Template:Br (1st)	February 1888	December 1889
3	File:Aoki Shuzo.jpg	Viscount Aoki Shūzō Template:Br (1st)	December 1889	May 1891
4	File:Enomoto Takeaki.jpg	Viscount Enomoto Takeaki	May 1891	August 1892
5	File:Mutsu Munemitsu.jpg	Viscount Mutsu Munemitsu	August 1892	May 1896
6	File:Kinmochi Saionji formal.jpg	Marquis Saionji Kinmochi Template:Br (1st)	May 1896	September 1896
2	File:Ōkuma Shigenobu.jpg	Count Ōkuma Shigenobu Template:Br (2nd)	September 1896	November 1897
7	File:Tokujiro Nishi.jpg	Baron Nishi Tokujirō	November 1897	January 1898
2	File:Ōkuma Shigenobu.jpg	Count Ōkuma Shigenobu Template:Br (3rd)	January 1898	June 1898
3	File:Aoki Shuzo.jpg	Viscount Aoki Shūzō Template:Br (2nd)	June 1898	October 1900
8	File:Takaaki Kato.jpg	Katō Takaaki Template:Br (1st)	October 1900	June 1901
9	File:Sone Arasuke.jpg	Sone Arasuke	June 1901	September 1901
10	File:Portrait of Komura Jutaro.jpg	Baron Komura Jutarō Template:Br (1st)	September 1901	January 1906
8	File:Takaaki Kato.jpg	Katō Takaaki Template:Br (2nd)	January 1906	March 1906
6	File:Kinmochi Saionji formal.jpg	Marquis Saionji Kinmochi Template:Br (2nd)	March 1906	May 1906
11	File:Tadasu Hayashi c1902.jpg	Count Hayashi Tadasu	May 1906	July 1908
12	File:Portrait of Masatake Terauchi.jpg	General Viscount Terauchi Masatake Template:Br (1st)	July 1908	August 1908
10	File:Portrait of Komura Jutaro.jpg	Marquis Komura Jutarō Template:Br (2nd)	August 1908	August 1911
13	File:Kosai Uchida.jpg	Viscount Uchida Kosai Template:Br (1st)	August 1911	December 1912
14	File:11 KatsuraT.jpg	Prince Katsura Tarō	December 1912	January 1913
8	File:Takaaki Kato.jpg	Baron Katō Takaaki Template:Br (3rd)	January 1913	February 1913
15	File:Count Nobuaki Makino.jpg	Baron Makino Nobuaki	February 1913	April 1914
8	File:Takaaki Kato.jpg	Baron Katō Takaaki Template:Br (4th)	April 1914	August 1915
2	File:Shigenobu Okuma 5.jpg	Count Ōkuma Shigenobu Template:Br (4th)	August 1915	October 1915
16	File:Kikujiro Ishii.jpg	Viscount Ishii Kikujirō	October 1915	October 1916
12	File:Portrait of Masatake Terauchi.jpg	Marshal Count Terauchi Masatake Template:Br (2nd)	October 1916	November 1916
17	File:Ichirō Motono.jpg	Viscount Motono Ichirō	November 1916	April 1918
18	File:Shimpei Gotō.jpg	Baron Gotō Shinpei	April 1918	September 1918
13	File:Kosai Uchida.jpg	Count Uchida Kosai Template:Br (2nd)	September 1918	2 September 1923
19	File:Yamamoto Gonnohyoe 2.jpg	Admiral Count Yamamoto Gonnohyōe	2 September 1923	19 September 1923
20	File:Hikokichi Ijuin.jpg	Baron Ijuin Hikokichi	September 1923	January 1924
21	File:KeishiroMatsui.jpg	Baron Matsui Keishirō	January 1924	June 1924
22	File:Kijuro Shidehara 1930.jpg	Baron Kijūrō Shidehara Template:Br (1st)	June 1924	April 1927
23	File:Tanaka Giichi.jpg	Baron Tanaka Giichi	April 1927	July 1929
22	File:Kijuro Shidehara 1930.jpg	Baron Kijūrō Shidehara Template:Br (2nd)	July 1929	December 1931
24	File:Inukai Tsuyoshi.jpg	Inukai Tsuyoshi	December 1931	January 1932
25	File:Kenkichi Yoshizawa 1931.jpg	Kenkichi Yoshizawa	January 1932	May 1932
26	File:Makoto Saito 2.jpg	Admiral Viscount Saitō Makoto	May 1932	July 1932
13	File:Kosai Uchida.jpg	Count Uchida Kosai Template:Br (3rd)	July 1932	September 1933
27	File:Kohki Hirota suit.jpg	Kōki Hirota Template:Br (1st)	September 1933Template:Efn	April 1936
28	File:Hachirō Arita 2.jpg	Hachirō Arita Template:Br (1st)	April 1936	February 1937
29	File:Senjuro Hayashi suit.jpg	Senjuro Hayashi	February 1937	March 1937
30	File:Naotake Sato.jpg	Naotake Satō	March 1937	June 1937
27	File:Kohki Hirota suit.jpg	Kōki Hirota Template:Br (2nd)	June 1937	May 1938
31	File:Kazushige Ugaki 2.jpg	General Kazushige Ugaki	May 1938	September 1938
32	File:Fumimaro Konoe.jpg	Prince Fumimaro Konoe	September 1938	October 1938
28	File:Hachirō Arita 2.jpg	Hachirō Arita Template:Br (2nd)	October 1938	January 1939
33	File:Nobuyuki Abe formal.jpg	General Nobuyuki Abe	January 1939	August 1939
34	File:Kichisaburo Nomura 2.jpg	Admiral Kichisaburō Nomura	August 1939	January 1940
28	File:Hachirō Arita 2.jpg	Hachirō Arita Template:Br (3rd)	January 1940	July 1940
35	File:Yōsuke Matsuoka.jpg	Yōsuke Matsuoka	July 1940	July 1941
36	File:Toyoda Teijirō.JPG	Admiral Teijirō Toyoda	July 1941	October 1941
37	File:Shigenori Togo.jpg	Shigenori Tōgō Template:Br (1st)	October 1941	September 1942
38	File:Hideki Tojo.jpg	General Hideki Tōjō	1 September 1942	17 September 1942
39	File:Masayuki Tani 1942 (cropped).jpg	Masayuki Tani	September 1942	April 1943
40	File:Shigemitsu Mamoru.jpg	Mamoru Shigemitsu Template:Br (1st)	April 1943	April 1945
41	File:Kantaro Suzuki suit cropped.jpg	Admiral Baron Kantarō Suzuki	April 1945	April 1945
37	File:Shigenori Togo.jpg	Shigenori Tōgō Template:Br (2nd)	April 1945	August 1945
40	File:Shigemitsu Mamoru.jpg	Mamoru Shigemitsu Template:Br (2nd)	August 1945	September 1945

Postwar Japan (1945–present)

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Foreign Minister				Term of office			Prime Minister
#	Portrait		Name	Took office	Left office	Days
43	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=3|	File:Shigeru Yoshida smiling2.jpg	Shigeru Yoshida	September 15, 1945	May 24, 1947	Template:Age in days		Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |						Kijūrō Shidehara
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |						Shigeru Yoshida
-	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:片山哲 (cropped).jpg	Tetsu Katayama	May 24, 1947	June 1, 1947	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	Tetsu Katayama
44	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	File:Hitoshi Ashida (cropped).jpg	Hitoshi Ashida	June 1, 1947	October 15, 1948	Template:Age in days
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |						Hitoshi Ashida
(43)	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Shigeru Yoshida smiling2.jpg	Shigeru Yoshida	October 15, 1948	April 30, 1952	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Shigeru Yoshida
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |						style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|
45	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Katsuo Okazaki.jpg	Katsuo Okazaki	April 30, 1952	December 10, 1954	Template:Age in days
(40)	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Shigemitsu Mamoru.jpg	Mamoru Shigemitsu	December 10, 1954	November 22, 1955	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Ichirō Hatoyama
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |			November 22, 1955	December 23, 1956		style="background-color: Template:Party color" |
-	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Tanzan Ishibashi portrait (cropped).jpg	Tanzan Ishibashi	December 23, 1956	December 23, 1956	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	Tanzan Ishibashi
46	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	File:Nobusuke Kishi portrait.jpg	Nobusuke Kishi	December 23, 1956	July 10, 1957	Template:Age in days
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|						Nobusuke Kishi
47	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:FUJIYAMA Aiichiro (cropped).jpg	Aiichirō Fujiyama	July 10, 1957	July 19, 1960	Template:Age in days
48	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Zentaro Kosaka.jpg	Zentaro Kosaka	July 19, 1960	July 18, 1962	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=3|	Hayato Ikeda
49	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Masayoshi Ohira 01.jpg	Masayoshi Ōhira	July 18, 1962	July 18, 1964	Template:Age in days
50	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	File:Etsuzaburo Shiina (cropped).jpg	Shiina Etsusaburo	July 18, 1964	December 3, 1966	Template:Age in days
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=5|						Eisaku Satō
51	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Takeo Miki Small.jpg	Takeo Miki	December 3, 1966	October 29, 1968	Template:Age in days
-	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Eisaku Sato 19641109.jpg	Eisaku Satō	October 29, 1968	November 30, 1968	Template:Age in days
52	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Kiichi Aichi.jpg	Kiichi Aichi	November 30, 1968	July 9, 1971	Template:Age in days
53	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Takeo Fukuda 19761224.jpg	Takeo Fukuda	July 9, 1971	July 7, 1972	Template:Age in days
(49)	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Masayoshi Ohira 01.jpg	Masayoshi Ōhira	July 7, 1972	July 16, 1974	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	Kakuei Tanaka
54	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Toshio Kimura.jpg	Toshio Kimura	July 16, 1974	December 9, 1974	Template:Age in days
55	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Kiichi Miyazawa 19911105.jpg	Kiichi Miyazawa	December 9, 1974	September 5, 1976	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	Takeo Miki
(48)	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Zentaro Kosaka.jpg	Zentaro Kosaka	September 5, 1976	December 24, 1976	Template:Age in days
56	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Iichirō Hatoyama (1953).jpg	Iichirō Hatoyama	December 24, 1976	November 28, 1977	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	Takeo Fukuda
57	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	File:Sunao Sonoda, Jul. 1979 (3).jpg	Sunao Sonoda	November 28, 1977	November 8, 1979	Template:Age in days
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|						Masayoshi Ōhira
58	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Saburō Ōkita on October 27, 1980.jpg	Saburō Ōkita	November 8, 1979	July 17, 1980	Template:Age in days
59	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Masayoshi Ito.jpg	Masayoshi Ito	July 17, 1980	May 18, 1981	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=3|	Zenkō Suzuki
(57)	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Sunao Sonoda, Jul. 1979 (3).jpg	Sunao Sonoda	May 18, 1981	November 30, 1981	Template:Age in days
60	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Yoshio Sakurauchi Scan10003.JPG	Yoshio Sakurauchi	November 30, 1981	November 27, 1982	Template:Age in days
61	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Shintarō Abe 1982.jpg	Shintaro Abe	November 27, 1982	July 22, 1986	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	Yasuhiro Nakasone
62	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Tadashi Kuranari 19861211 (cropped).jpg	Tadashi Kuranari	July 22, 1986	November 6, 1987	Template:Age in days
63	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Sosuke Uno 198906.jpg	Sosuke Uno	November 6, 1987	June 3, 1989	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Noboru Takeshita
64	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Hiroshi Mitsuzuka.jpg	Hiroshi Mitsuzuka	June 3, 1989	August 10, 1989	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Sosuke Uno
65	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Taro Nakayama 199103.jpg	Taro Nakayama	August 10, 1989	November 5, 1991	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Toshiki Kaifu
66	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Michio Watanabe 4,3.jpg	Michio Watanabe	November 5, 1991	April 7, 1993	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	Kiichi Miyazawa
67	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Kabun Muto.jpg	Kabun Mutō	April 7, 1993	August 9, 1993	Template:Age in days
68	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Tsutomu Hata 199404.jpg	Tsutomu Hata	August 9, 1993	April 28, 1994	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Morihiro Hosokawa
69	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Koji Kakizawa.jpg	Koji Kakizawa	April 28, 1994	June 30, 1994	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Tsutomu Hata
70	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Yohei Kono 1999.jpg	Yōhei Kōno	June 30, 1994	January 11, 1996	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Tomiichi Murayama
71	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Yukihiko Ikeda.png	Yukihiko Ikeda	January 11, 1996	September 11, 1997	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	Ryutaro Hashimoto
72	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Keizo Obuchi 1998.jpg	Keizo Obuchi	September 11, 1997	July 30, 1998	Template:Age in days
73	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Masahiko Komura 1998.jpg	Masahiko Kōmura	July 30, 1998	October 5, 1999	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	Keizo Obuchi
(70)	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	File:Yohei Kono 1999.jpg	Yōhei Kōno	October 5, 1999	April 26, 2001	Template:Age in days
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |						Yoshiro Mori
74	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Makiko Tanaka 2001.jpg	Makiko Tanaka	April 26, 2001	January 29, 2002	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=5|	Junichiro Koizumi
75	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Junichiro Koizumi 200104 2.jpg	Junichiro Koizumi (Acting)	January 29, 2002	February 1, 2002	Template:Age in days
76	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Yoriko Kawaguchi 2001.jpg	Yoriko Kawaguchi	February 1, 2002	September 27, 2004	Template:Age in days
77	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Nobutaka Machimura 2004.jpg	Nobutaka Machimura	September 27, 2004	October 31, 2005	Template:Age in days
78	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	File:Aso Taro profile.jpg	Tarō Asō	October 31, 2005	August 27, 2007	Template:Age in days
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|						Shinzō Abe
(77)	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Nobutaka Machimura 2007 (MOFA).jpg	Nobutaka Machimura	August 27, 2007	September 26, 2007	Template:Age in days
(73)	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Masahiko Komura 1998.jpg	Masahiko Kōmura	September 26, 2007	September 24, 2008	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Yasuo Fukuda
79	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Hirofumi Nakasone 2008.jpg	Hirofumi Nakasone	September 24, 2008	September 16, 2009	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Tarō Asō
80	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=2|	File:Okada Katsuya Daijin 1.jpg	Katsuya Okada	September 16, 2009	September 17, 2010	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Yukio Hatoyama
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" rowspan=4|						Naoto Kan
81	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Seiji Maehara (Naoto Kan Cabinet).jpg	Seiji Maehara	September 17, 2010	March 7, 2011	Template:Age in days
–	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Yukio Edano 201210 (cropped 2).jpg	Yukio Edano (Acting)	March 7, 2011	March 9, 2011	Template:Age in days
82	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Takeaki Matsumoto 20110309.jpg	Takeaki Matsumoto	March 9, 2011	September 2, 2011	Template:Age in days
83	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Koichiro Genba 20120720 (cropped).jpg	Kōichirō Genba	September 2, 2011	December 26, 2012	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Yoshihiko Noda
84	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Fumio Kishida 20160202 (cropped 2).jpg	Fumio Kishida	December 26, 2012	August 3, 2017	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Shinzō Abe
85	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Tarō Kōno 20110307.jpg	Taro Kono	August 3, 2017	September 11, 2019	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |
86	rowspan=2 style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Toshimitsu Motegi 20200916.jpg	Toshimitsu Motegi	September 11, 2019	November 4, 2021	Template:Age in days
	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |						Yoshihide Suga
(84)	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Fumio Kishida 20211005 (cropped).jpg	Fumio Kishida (Acting)	November 4, 2021	November 10, 2021	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Fumio Kishida
87	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Yoshimasa Hayashi 20211118 (cropped).jpg	Yoshimasa Hayashi	November 10, 2021	September 13, 2023	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |
88	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Yoko Kamikawa 20230913 (cropped).jpg	Yōko Kamikawa	September 13, 2023	October 1, 2024	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |
89	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	File:Takeshi Iwaya 20241003 (cropped).jpg	Takeshi Iwaya	October 1, 2024	Incumbent	Template:Age in days	style="background-color: Template:Party color" |	Shigeru Ishiba

See also

• Foreign minister
• Foreign policy of Japan

External links

• Minister's Profile at Ministry of Foreign Affairs website