Japanese Foreign Minister Resigns After 6 Months in Office

After just 6 months in office, Japanese Foreign Minister Siji Maehara resigned late Sunday after admitting he accepted an illegal donation from a foreigner. Maehara announced his resignation in a news conference and apologized for causing “political uneasiness.”

Maehara, 48, confessed to accepting about 250,000 yen, or $3,038, from a South Korean woman over the course of about 6 years. The unidentified woman lives in Japan and is a childhood friend of Maehara. Japanese law forbids politicians from receiving money from foreigners.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan announced Monday that Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano will temporarily take over as foreign minister. Kan will appoint a new foreign minister “very soon,” Edano said in a news conference.

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