TOKYO: Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary HAYASHI Yoshimasa said Friday that he had not agreed to the policies of Unification Church during a meeting with people related to an organization linked to the controversial religious group in 2021.

The meeting took place ahead of the October 2021 election for the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of parliament.

The Asahi Shimbun Japanese daily reported Friday that Hayashi had not signed a policy accord for the election though the document was put forward during the meeting.

Hayashi told a press conference that it was one of many meetings he had and that he does not remember the content of the meeting. No one in his staff had a memory of such a document being presented, he said.

JIJI Press