TOKYO: The Japanese government Tuesday appointed Keiichi Ono, director-general of the Foreign Ministry’s Economic Affairs Bureau, as senior deputy minister in charge of economic affairs.

Ono, 56, will replace Hiroshi Suzuki, who previously served as executive secretary to the late former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Ono, who joined the ministry in 1988, worked as director-general for global issues before assuming the top post at the bureau in January this year.

The government also appointed Hiroyuki Namazu, 56, director-general of the ministry’s International Legal Affairs Bureau, as head of the Economic Affairs Bureau. He will be succeeded by bureau Deputy Director-General Tomohiro Mikanagi, 55.

Masashi Nakagome, 55, executive secretary to the prime minister, will be appointed as director-general of the ministry’s European Affairs Bureau. His position will be filled by Tetsuya Otsuru, 55, deputy director-general of the ministry’s Economic Affairs Bureau.

It is the first change in executive secretaries to the prime minister since the launch of the administration of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in October last year.

The appointments will take effect on Monday or Aug. 4.

JIJI Press