Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for International Trade and Industry Ryutaro Hashimoto
Ryutaro Hashimoto was appointed Minister for International Trade and Industry in the cabinet of Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama, which was inaugurated on 30 June 1994.
Hashimoto's previous cabinet experience includes positions as Minister for Health and Welfare, Minister for Transportation and Finance Minister. He first won a seat in the House of Representatives in 1963 and is currently serving his eleventh term.
In 1978, Hashimoto attracted national attention when he assumed the post of Minister for Health and Welfare, following in his late father's footsteps. As Minister for Transportation, in 1986, he was involved in the division and privatization of the state-owned Japanese National Railways. In 1989, he was appointed Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party, and in August of the same year, he became Minister for Finance. Over the next two years, he was involved in solving the many difficult domestic and international economic issues facing Japan.
He became the president of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Deputy Prime Minister in this fall.
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