Japan bids farewell to Yasuo Fukuda – and debates his legacy on China

What happened

Yasuo Fukuda died of heart failure in a Tokyo hospital on Thursday, October 22. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) only made his death public on Monday, October 26. The funeral was held privately with family, and a public memorial is to follow later.

Fukuda led Japan for only about a year, from September 2007 to September 2008. He struggled with a divided parliament and resigned as his approval ratings fell. He is remembered as host of the 2008 G8 summit in Toyako, Hokkaido, as a promoter of climate action, and as a politician who sought better relations with China: in 2008 Hu Jintao became the first Chinese head of state in ten years to visit Japan. Fukuda was also the son of former Prime Minister Takeo Fukuda, the first father and son to both lead Japan's government.

After retiring from politics in 2012, he remained a go-between. In 2014 he met President Xi Jinping in Beijing, helping to pave the way for a summit with then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. He also chaired the Boao Forum for Asia for many years.

The mood on the ground

In Tokyo, respectful words dominate. According to Bernama, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi expressed deep sorrow and praised how Fukuda conveyed Japan's position on international issues. The Okinawa newspaper Ryukyu Shimpo reports that she especially highlighted the Toyako summit, which raised Japan's profile in the world, and that tributes from politicians poured in.

As the Taiwanese outlet Storm Media compiles from Japanese reports, tributes came from across party lines: former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said his own time in office would hardly have been possible without Fukuda's support as chief cabinet secretary. Former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba recalled Fukuda's understanding of China and Asia, and opposition politician Yoshihiko Noda noted that Fukuda helped stabilise relations after the 2012 island dispute. Fukuda's son, himself an LDP lawmaker, wrote on X that his father had worked until the day before his death.

Yet Japan is not united in its verdict. According to Storm Media, the major newspapers take very different angles: Asahi stresses his commitment to peace and dialogue, Mainichi portrays him as someone who persevered under difficult conditions, while the conservative Sankei acknowledges his behind-the-scenes influence but criticises his leadership as hesitant.

The farewell carries extra weight because of strained ties with China. Beijing's foreign ministry spokesman called Fukuda an old friend of the Chinese people and coupled the condolences with a call for Japan's current government to reflect on itself. Japanese papers such as Mainichi and Sankei read this, according to Storm Media, as veiled criticism of Takaichi, whose remarks on Taiwan have angered Beijing since 2025. The sources reviewed contain no voices from the general public; the reactions come from politicians and the media.

Voices from the media