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'''Keizō Obuchi,''' (小渕恵三 ''Obuchi Keizō'') (25 June, 1937 – 14 May, 2000) was the 48<sup>th</sup> [[Japan]]ese prime minister who apologized to [[South Korea]] for [[war crimes]] from World War II, on 9 October, 1998.
'''Keizō Obuchi,''' (小渕恵三 ''Obuchi Keizō'') (25 June, 1937 – 14 May, 2000) was the 48<sup>th</sup> [[Japan]]ese prime minister who apologized to [[South Korea]] for [[war crimes]] from World War II, on 9 October, 1998.
He was first elected to the [[National Diet]] in November 1932 when he was elected to the House of Representatives in November 1963. He passed through the gateway to cabinet-level positions in 1970 with an appointment as parliamentary vice-minister of posts and telecommunications, and ever since he has remained involved in affairs related to information and communications.<ref>http://www.kantei.go.jp/foreign/profile/career/career.html</ref>
He was first elected to the [[National Diet]] in November 1963 when he was elected to the House of Representatives. He was appointed as parliamentary vice-minister of posts and telecommunications in 1970 and remained involved information and communications affairs until he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1997 and Prime Minister on 30 July, 1998..<ref>http://www.kantei.go.jp/foreign/profile/career/career.html</ref>
He dies of a stroke, whilst still in office on 14 May 2000 and was succeeded by the spectacularly unpopular Yoshirō Mori.
The press release of his apology read:
{{cquote|Looking back on the relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea during this century, Prime Minister Obuchi regarded in a spirit of humility the fact of history that Japan caused, during a certain period in the past, tremendous damage and suffering to the people of the Republic of Korea through its colonial rule, and expressed his deep remorse and heartfelt apology for this fact. President Kim accepted with sincerity this statement of Prime Minister Obuchi's recognition of history and expressed his appreciation for it. He also expressed his view that the present calls upon both countries to overcome their unfortunate history and to build a future-oriented relationship based on reconciliation as well as good-neighbourly and friendly cooperation<ref>[http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/asia-paci/korea/joint9810.html Japan-Republic of Korea Joint Declaration]</ref>}}
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