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Wartime forced labor lawsuit

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference in Tokyo on Sept. 16, 2026, after 50 family members of Chinese wartime forced laborers filed a lawsuit against six Japanese companies with a court in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province, southwest of Beijing.

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Wartime forced labor lawsuit

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference in Tokyo on Sept. 16, 2026, after 50 family members of Chinese wartime forced laborers filed a lawsuit against six Japanese companies with a court in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province, southwest of Beijing.

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Japan PM reshuffles Cabinet

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara reads out the lineup of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's reshuffled Cabinet at the premier's office in Tokyo on Sept. 17, 2026.

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Japan PM reshuffles Cabinet

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara reads out the lineup of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's reshuffled Cabinet at the premier's office in Tokyo on Sept. 17, 2026.

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Japan PM reshuffles Cabinet

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara reads out the lineup of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's reshuffled Cabinet at the premier's office in Tokyo on Sept. 17, 2026.

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Japan Diet group urges gov't action on U.S. sanctions on ICC chief

Former Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani (2nd from L), co-head of a cross-party parliamentary group promoting human rights diplomacy, and its members are pictured after submitting a statement to Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (2nd from R) in Tokyo on Sept. 15, 2026, urging the Japanese government to demand the U.S. administration of President Donald Trump immediately withdraw its sanctions on International Criminal Court head Tomoko Akane. The move came after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi described the U.S. action as "very unfortunate," prompting criticism that Tokyo's response was weak.

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Japan Diet group urges gov't action on U.S. sanctions on ICC chief

Former Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani (2nd from R), co-head of a cross-party parliamentary group promoting human rights diplomacy, submits a statement to Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (R) in Tokyo on Sept. 15, 2026, urging the Japanese government to demand the U.S. administration of President Donald Trump immediately withdraw its sanctions on International Criminal Court head Tomoko Akane. The move comes after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi described the U.S. action as "very unfortunate," prompting criticism that Tokyo's response was weak.

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Japan Diet group urges gov't action on U.S. sanctions on ICC chief

Former Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani (7th from L), co-head of a cross-party parliamentary group promoting human rights diplomacy, and its members are pictured after submitting a statement to Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (8th from L) in Tokyo on Sept. 15, 2026, urging the Japanese government to demand the U.S. administration of President Donald Trump immediately withdraw its sanctions on International Criminal Court head Tomoko Akane. The move came after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi described the U.S. action as "very unfortunate," prompting criticism that Tokyo's response was weak.

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Japan top spokesman visits quake-hit Kumamoto

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (C) is briefed by Kumamoto Mayor Kazufumi Onishi (L) about damage to Kumamoto Castle during a visit to Kumamoto, southwestern Japan, on Aug. 22, 2026, following a powerful earthquake that struck the region on July 28.

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Japan top spokesman visits quake-hit Kumamoto

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara meets the press during a visit to quake-hit Kumamoto Castle in Kumamoto, southwestern Japan, on Aug. 22, 2026, following a powerful earthquake that struck the region on July 28.

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Japan top spokesman visits quake-hit Kumamoto

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara meets the press during a visit to quake-hit Kumamoto Castle in Kumamoto, southwestern Japan, on Aug. 22, 2026, following a powerful earthquake that struck the region on July 28.

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Japan top spokesman visits quake-hit Kumamoto

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara meets the press during a visit to quake-hit Kumamoto Castle in Kumamoto, southwestern Japan, on Aug. 22, 2026, following a powerful earthquake that struck the region on July 28.

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Japan top spokesman visits quake-hit Kumamoto

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara meets the press during a visit to quake-hit Kumamoto Castle in Kumamoto, southwestern Japan, on Aug. 22, 2026, following a powerful earthquake that struck the region on July 28.

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Japan top spokesman visits quake-hit Kumamoto

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (R) is briefed by Kumamoto Mayor Kazufumi Onishi about damage to Kumamoto Castle during a visit to Kumamoto, southwestern Japan, on Aug. 22, 2026, following a powerful earthquake that struck the region on July 28.

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Japan top spokesman visits Aeon Mall explosion site

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara lays flowers on Aug. 21, 2026, at the Aeon Mall Kumamoto shopping complex in Kashima, Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, to pay respects to the seven people killed there in a July 28 gas explosion triggered by a powerful earthquake in the region.

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Japan top spokesman visits Aeon Mall explosion site

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (2nd from L) visits the Aeon Mall Kumamoto shopping complex in Kashima in Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on Aug. 21, 2026, to pay respects to the seven people killed there in a July 28 gas explosion triggered by a powerful earthquake in the region.

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Japan top spokesman visits Aeon Mall explosion site

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara visits the Aeon Mall Kumamoto shopping complex in Kashima in Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on Aug. 21, 2026, to pay respects to the seven people killed there in a July 28 gas explosion triggered by a powerful earthquake in the region.

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Japan top spokesman visits Aeon Mall explosion site

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara bows on Aug. 21, 2026, at a flower stand at the Aeon Mall Kumamoto shopping complex in Kashima, Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, to pay respects to the seven people killed there in a July 28 gas explosion triggered by a powerful earthquake in the region.

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Japan top spokesman visits Aeon Mall explosion site

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara bows on Aug. 21, 2026, at a flower stand at the Aeon Mall Kumamoto shopping complex in Kashima, Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, to pay respects to the seven people killed there in a July 28 gas explosion triggered by a powerful earthquake in the region.

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Yasukuni shrine on 81st anniv. of Japan's WWII surrender

Economic and fiscal policy minister Minoru Kiuchi (front) visits Tokyo's war-linked Yasukuni shrine on Aug. 15, 2026, the 81st anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II.

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Junior high school student meeting on abductions by N. Korea

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara speaks to junior high school students from across Japan during a government-sponsored meeting in Tokyo on Aug. 7, 2026, aimed at enhancing public awareness, especially among young people, of North Korea's abduction of Japanese citizens in the 1970s and 1980s.

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Junior high school student meeting on abductions by N. Korea

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara speaks to junior high school students from across Japan during a government-sponsored meeting in Tokyo on Aug. 7, 2026, aimed at enhancing public awareness, especially among young people, of North Korea's abduction of Japanese citizens in the 1970s and 1980s.

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U.S. Treasury Secretary comments on Japan monetary policy

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference in Tokyo on Aug. 5, 2026, following U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's comments taken as seeking credit tightening by Japanese monetary authorities. Kihara declined to comment after Bessent said in a CNBC interview the previous day he believes Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda "will do what is needed" when asked whether the BOJ's next move should be a rate hike.

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U.S. Treasury Secretary comments on Japan monetary policy

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference in Tokyo on Aug. 5, 2026, following U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's comments taken as seeking credit tightening by Japanese monetary authorities. Kihara declined to comment after Bessent said in a CNBC interview the previous day he believes Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda "will do what is needed" when asked whether the BOJ's next move should be a rate hike.

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U.S. Treasury Secretary comments on Japan monetary policy

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference in Tokyo on Aug. 5, 2026, following U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's comments taken as seeking credit tightening by Japanese monetary authorities. Kihara declined to comment after Bessent said in a CNBC interview the previous day he believes Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda "will do what is needed" when asked whether the BOJ's next move should be a rate hike.

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Strong quake jolts southwestern Japan

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference in Tokyo on July 28, 2026, after an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.1 shook Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan.

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Strong quake jolts southwestern Japan

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference in Tokyo on July 28, 2026, after an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.1 shook Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan.

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Strong quake jolts southwestern Japan

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference in Tokyo on July 28, 2026, after an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.1 shook Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan.

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Japan top spokesman Kihara

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on July 21, 2026.

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Japan top spokesman Kihara

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on July 21, 2026.

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Japan top spokesman Kihara

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on July 21, 2026.

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Japan revises Imperial House Law

Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (front, L) bows after the House of Councillors passed a bill to revise the Imperial House Law during a plenary session in Tokyo on July 17, 2026. The amendment to the 1947 law permits the imperial family to adopt males aged 15 or older who are descended from emperors through the male line in 11 former branch families and also allows female members to retain their imperial status even after marrying commoners.

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Japan revises Imperial House Law

Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara stands up after the House of Councillors passed a bill to revise the Imperial House Law during a plenary session in Tokyo on July 17, 2026. The amendment to the 1947 law permits the imperial family to adopt males aged 15 or older who are descended from emperors through the male line in 11 former branch families and also allows female members to retain their imperial status even after marrying commoners.

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Japan revises Imperial House Law

Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara stands up after the House of Councillors passed a bill to revise the Imperial House Law during a plenary session in Tokyo on July 17, 2026. The amendment to the 1947 law permits the imperial family to adopt males aged 15 or older who are descended from emperors through the male line in 11 former branch families and also allows female members to retain their imperial status even after marrying commoners.

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Japan revises Imperial House Law

Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara stands up after the House of Councillors passed a bill to revise the Imperial House Law during a plenary session in Tokyo on July 17, 2026. The amendment to the 1947 law permits the imperial family to adopt males aged 15 or older who are descended from emperors through the male line in 11 former branch families and also allows female members to retain their imperial status even after marrying commoners.

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Vietnamese deputy prime minister in Tokyo

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (R) and Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense Phan Van Giang shake hands at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on July 13, 2026.

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Lower house passes bill for imperial law revision

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara bows after the House of Representatives passed a bill for a law revision to address the dwindling number of imperial family members during a plenary session in Tokyo on July 10, 2026.

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Lower house passes bill for imperial law revision

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara bows after the House of Representatives passed a bill for a law revision to address the dwindling number of imperial family members during a plenary session in Tokyo on July 10, 2026.

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Powerful earthquake hits northeastern Japan

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference in Tokyo on June 25, 2026, after an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.2 struck northeastern Japan earlier in the day.

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Powerful earthquake hits northeastern Japan

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference in Tokyo on June 25, 2026, after an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.2 struck northeastern Japan earlier in the day.

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Powerful earthquake hits northeastern Japan

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference in Tokyo on June 25, 2026, after an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.2 struck northeastern Japan earlier in the day.

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U.N. symposium on N. Korea's abductions of Japanese

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara makes a keynote speech remotely from Tokyo on June 24, 2026, at a U.N. symposium on North Korea's abductions of Japanese nationals in the 1970s and 1980s.

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Japanese lawmakers studying UFO cases

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (far L) meets in Tokyo on May 28, 2026, with members of a parliamentarians' group created to study reported cases of unidentified flying objects.

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Law to establish National Intelligence council enacted

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara bows after the House of Councillors approved a bill to establish a new National Intelligence Council during a plenary session in Tokyo on May 27, 2026, marking enactment of the law to create an entity to centralize information gathering in response to overseas threats.

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Lao foreign minister in Tokyo

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (R) shakes hands with Lao Foreign Minister Thongsavan Phomvihane at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on May 22, 2026.

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Abductee's mother meets with top gov't spokesman

Sakie Yokota (C), whose daughter Megumi was abducted by North Korea in 1977 at age 13, meets the press after holding a meeting with Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on May 8, 2026. Standing beside Yokota is Satomi Mori, who heads a group to support her.

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Abductee's mother meets with top gov't spokesman

Sakie Yokota (C), whose daughter Megumi was abducted by North Korea in 1977 at age 13, meets the press after holding a meeting with Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on May 8, 2026. Standing beside Yokota is Satomi Mori, who heads a group to support her.

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Abductee's mother meets with top gov't spokesman

Sakie Yokota (L), whose daughter Megumi was abducted by North Korea in 1977 at age 13, poses with Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (R) at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on May 8, 2026. Standing beside Yokota is Satomi Mori, who heads a group to support her.

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Abductee's mother meets with top gov't spokesman

Sakie Yokota (C), whose daughter Megumi was abducted by North Korea in 1977 at age 13, meets with Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (R) at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on May 8, 2026. Sitting beside Yokota is Satomi Mori, who heads a group to support her.

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Abductee's mother meets with top gov't spokesman

Sakie Yokota (C), whose daughter Megumi was abducted by North Korea in 1977 at age 13, meets with Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (R) at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on May 8, 2026. Sitting beside Yokota is Satomi Mori, who heads a group to support her.