Minoru Kihara (politician)

Kihara Minoru
木原 稔
Minoru Kihara in 2023
25th Minister of Defense
Incumbent
Assumed office 13 September 2023
Prime Minister	Fumio Kishida
Preceded by	Yasukazu Hamada
Member of the House of Representatives
Incumbent
Assumed office 11 September 2005 - 21 July 2009 18 December 2012
Preceded by	Yorihisa Matsuno
Constituency	Kyushu PR block (2005-2009) Kumamoto 1st district (2012-present)
Personal details
Born	(1969-08-12) 12 August 1969 (age 54) Kumamoto, Japan
Political party	Liberal Democratic Party
Alma mater	Waseda University

Minoru Kihara (木原 稔, Kihara Minoru, born August 12, 1969) is a Japanese politician who has served as the Minister of Defense since September 2023. A member of the Liberal Democratic Party, he also serves in the House of Representatives, and was previously the Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Defense.