Minister of Defense (Japan)

The , or , is a  member of the Japanese cabinet and is the leader of the Japanese Ministry of Defense.

The minister of defense is appointed by the Prime Minister and is a member of the National Security Council.

List of ministers of defense (2007–present)

Minister of DefenseTerm of officePrime Minister#PortraitNameTook officeLeft officeTime in office1100pxFumio KyumaJanuary 9, 2007July 4, 2007 Shinzō Abe2100pxYuriko KoikeJuly 4, 2007August 27, 2007 3100pxMasahiko KōmuraAugust 27, 2007September 26, 2007 4100pxShigeru IshibaSeptember 26, 2007August 2, 2008 Yasuo Fukuda5100pxYoshimasa HayashiAugust 2, 2008September 24, 2008 6100pxYasukazu HamadaSeptember 24, 2008September 16, 2009 Taro Aso7100pxToshimi KitazawaSeptember 16, 2009September 2, 2011 Yukio HatoyamaNaoto Kan8100pxYasuo IchikawaSeptember 2, 2011January 13, 2012 Yoshihiko Noda9100pxNaoki TanakaJanuary 13, 2012June 4, 2012 10100pxSatoshi MorimotoJune 4, 2012December 26, 2012 11100pxItsunori OnoderaDecember 26, 2012September 3, 2014 Shinzō Abe12100pxAkinori EtoSeptember 3, 2014December 24, 2014 13100pxGen NakataniDecember 24, 2014August 3, 2016 14100pxTomomi InadaAugust 3, 2016July 28, 2017  –133x133pxFumio Kishida (Acting)July 28, 2017August 3, 201715(11)100pxItsunori OnoderaAugust 3, 2017October 2, 2018 16100pxTakeshi IwayaOctober 2, 2018September 11, 2019 17120x120pxTarō KōnoSeptember 11, 2019September 16, 2020 18100pxNobuo KishiSeptember 16, 2020August 10, 2022Yoshihide SugaFumio Kishida19(6)100pxYasukazu HamadaAugust 10, 2022September 13, 2023 20129x129pxMinoru KiharaSeptember 13, 2023October 1, 202421(13)129x129pxGen NakataniOctober 1, 2024October 21, 2025Shigeru Ishiba22129x129pxShinjirō KoizumiOctober 21, 2025IncumbentSanae Takaichi

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