1. Sunao Sonoda was a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party who served as minister for foreign affairs and minister of health and welfare.
18 Facts About Sunao Sonoda
1. 2.
Sunao Sonoda was called "flying foreign minister" due to his active diplomacy in increasing the role of Japan when he was in office.
3.
Sunao Sonoda was one of the significant figures in normalizing the relations between Japan and China.
4.
Sunao Sonoda joined the Japanese army in 1938, and served both in China and in the Pacific area during World War II.
5.
Sunao Sonoda was commander of a kamikaze squad during the war.
6.
In 1947, Sunao Sonoda was elected to the House of Representatives, the lower house of the Diet, representing the Kumamoto Prefecture.
7.
Sunao Sonoda was previously a member of the Democratic Party.
8.
Sunao Sonoda served as parliamentary vice-foreign minister in 1955, and actively involved in normalizing the relations between Japan and the USSR.
9.
Sunao Sonoda served as minister of health and welfare from 1967 to 1968, which he held again from 1980 to 1981.
10.
Sunao Sonoda served as minister of foreign affairs three times: in the cabinet of Prime Minister Takeo Fukuda from November 1977 to December 1978, in the cabinet of Prime Minister Masayoshi Ohira from December 1978 to November 1979, and in the cabinet of Prime Minister Zenko Suzuki from 17 May to 30 November 1981.
11.
Sunao Sonoda represented his country at the signature of this treaty in Beijing in 1978.
12.
Sunao Sonoda was secondly appointed foreign minister to the cabinet of Masayoshi Ohira who kept this and other three ministries for his own faction.
13.
When in office for the second time, Sunao Sonoda visited five African countries in July 1979, including Tanzania, Nigeria, Kenya, Ivory Coast and Senegal.
14.
On 17 May 1981, Sunao Sonoda was appointed by Prime Minister and his close friend Zenko Suzuki as foreign minister for the last time due to unexpected resignation of the former Foreign Minister Masayoshi Ito.
15.
Sunao Sonoda called for adopting the omnidirectional diplomacy and unlike his two predecessors, issued entry visas to Soviet economic delegations.
16.
Sunao Sonoda was replaced by Yoshio Sakurauchi in the post 30 November 1981.
17.
Sunao Sonoda was a member of the Diet during her marriage to Sunao.
18.
Sunao Sonoda died of kidney failure at the hospital of Keio University in Tokyo on 2 April 1984.