Tokayev sent letter to Japan’s new Prime Minister

Tengrinews.kz – Kassym-Jomart Tokayev sent a congratulatory letter to Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, citing Akorda.

The President congratulated Sanae Takaichi on her election as Prime Minister and wished her success in implementing initiatives for the benefit of Japan.

“The President also expressed his readiness to make joint efforts to further strengthen Kazakh-Japanese relations and elevate the strategic partnership between the two countries to a new level,” noted the Akorda press service.

On October 21, Japan’s Parliament elected Sanae Takaichi as the new Prime Minister of the country. Earlier, she had become the head of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). She received the majority of votes and became Japan’s 104th Prime Minister, and the first woman ever to hold this position.

Who is Sanae Takaichi

64-year-old Sanae Takaichi is one of the most prominent figures in Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party. She was born in 1961 in Nara, in a family not involved in politics. She graduated from Kobe University and the Matsushita Institute of Government and Management.

Photo: x.com/takaichi_sanae

In her youth, she was passionate about rock music and motorcycles and interned in the U.S. Congress under Representative Patricia Schroeder. In 1993, she was first elected to Japan’s Parliament and soon joined the LDP.

Takaichi received her first ministerial post in 2006 under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. She later headed the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications and served as Minister for Economic Security in Fumio Kishida’s cabinet.

Takaichi is known for her tough leadership style, calling herself an “Iron Lady” after Margaret Thatcher. She holds conservative views, advocates revising the pacifist Article 9 of Japan’s Constitution, and supports strengthening the role of the Self-Defense Forces.

On October 4, 2025, Takaichi was elected leader of the LDP, becoming the first woman to lead Japan’s largest political party.

Earlier, former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba decided to resign in September 2025 amid growing criticism within the LDP and calls for him to take responsibility for the coalition’s defeat in the Upper House elections in July.