Acting Head of Japan's JAPIT Gaku Hashimoto to Visit China for Supply Chain Expo

According to a Kyodo News report, multiple sources revealed on the 17th that Gaku Hashimoto, acting president of the Association for the Promotion of International Trade, Japan (JAPIT) and former Senior Vice Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare, will visit Beijing in late June. He will substitute for the late former president Yohei Kono and attend the China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE) held in Beijing from June 22 to 26.

Sino-Japanese relations have been in a deadlock for over half a year following Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks about a "Taiwan contingency" in November 2025. Consequently, Hashimoto's upcoming trip to Beijing to attend the CISCE has garnered significant outside attention.

The report states that JAPIT originally planned for President Yohei Kono to lead a delegation to China to attend the expo. However, following Kono's passing on the 8th, the Japanese side reduced the scope of attendees, tasking Hashimoto with leading the relevant executives on the visit.

The report also notes that Gaku Hashimoto's father is the late former Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto, who also previously served as the president of JAPIT.