VZCZCXRO1495
PP RUEHCHI RUEHFK RUEHHM RUEHKSO RUEHPB
DE RUEHKO #1724 1760053
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 240053Z JUN 08
FM AMEMBASSY TOKYO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5333
INFO RUEHZU/ASIAN PACIFIC ECONOMIC COOPERATION

C O N F I D E N T I A L TOKYO 001724 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EAP AMBASSADOR HASLACH 
DEPT ALSO FOR E, EAP/EP AND EAP/J 
PASS USTR FOR CUTLER/MEYERS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/24/2013 
TAGS: ETRD APECO PREL JA
SUBJECT: NEW MOFA APEC SENIOR OFFICIAL 
 
REF: TOKYO 1708 
 
Classified By: Ambassador J. Thomas Schieffer, Reason 1.4 (b)(d) 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Japanese Foreign Ministry Senior Official Masashi 
Mizukami relinquished his APEC duties as of June 1, and took 
the opportunity of a June 18 meeting with EMIN (reftel) to 
introduce his successor, Kenji Hiramatsu, Deputy Director 
General of MOFA's Economic Affairs Bureau.  Hiramatsu told 
Emboffs he is still familiarizing himself with the myriad of 
APEC issues, but is also committed to working closely with 
his U.S. counterparts over the next three years. 
 
¶2.  (C) Hiramatsu's recent career has included some 
controversy.  As director of MOFA's Northeast Asia division 
from 2001-2002, he was deeply involved in the preparations 
for the 2002 Japan-DPRK summit meeting between former Prime 
Minister Koizumi and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il. 
Subsequently, however, he was sharply criticized by the 
families of Japanese abductees for taking an insufficiently 
hardline toward the DPRK on the abduction issues.  He took a 
leave of absence from MOFA in early 2003 to assume a 
short-term fellowship at Harvard University. 
 
¶3.  (U) Hiramatsu's official MOFA bio: 
 
Kenji Hiramatsu 
Deputy Director General, Economic Affairs Bureau 
Ministry of Foreign Affairs 
 
DOB:            December 22, 1956 
 
March 1979      Graduated University of Kyoto 
                Faculty of Law 
 
April 1979      Joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs 
 
July 1986       Deputy Director, Research and Programming 
                Division, Economic Cooperation Bureau 
 
September 1988  Deputy Director, Personnel Division 
 
December 1990   First Secretary, Delegation of Japan to the 
                OECD 
 
August 1994     Principal Deputy Director 
                Policy Coordination Division 
 
April 1995      Coordinator, Policy Coordination Division 
 
July 1996       Director, Second Southeast Asia Division 
 
April 1998      Director, National Security Policy Division 
                Counsellor, Cabinet Secretariat, National 
                Security Affairs and Crisis Management 
 
October 1999    Private Secretary to the Foreign Minister 
 
April 2001      Director, Northeast Asia Division 
 
July 2003       Minister, Embassy of Japan, Washington 
 
June 2004       Minister and Consul General 
                Embassy of Japan, London 
 
May 2008        Deputy Director General 
                Economic Affairs Bureau 
                APEC Senior Official 
SCHIEFFER