Gen Nakatani

{{Short description|Japanese politician (born 1957)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}

{{Infobox officeholder

| name = Gen Nakatani

| native_name = {{nobold|中谷 元}}

| native_name_lang = ja

| image = Gen Nakatani 20241003.jpg

| office = Minister of Defense

| primeminister = Shigeru Ishiba

| term_start = 1 October 2024

| term_end =

| predecessor = Minoru Kihara

| successor =

| primeminister1 = Shinzo Abe

| term_start1 = 24 December 2014

| term_end1 = 3 August 2016

| predecessor1 = Akinori Eto

| successor1 = Tomomi Inada

| office2 = Director-General of the Japan Defense Agency

| primeminister2 = Yoshirō Mori
Junichiro Koizumi

| term_start2 = 4 April 2001

| term_end2 = 30 September 2002

| predecessor2 = Toshitsugu Saito

| successor2 = Shigeru Ishiba

| office3 = Member of the House of Representatives

| term_start3 = 19 February 1990

| term_end3 =

| constituency3 = Kōchi at-large (1990–1996)
Kōchi 2nd (1996–2014)
Kōchi 1st (2014–present)

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1957|10|14|df=y}}

| birth_place = Kōchi, Japan

| death_date =

| death_place =

| party = Liberal Democratic

| alma_mater = National Defense Academy

| allegiance = {{flag|Japan}}

| branch = {{army|Japan}}

| serviceyears = 1980–1984

| rank = First Lieutenant

| battles =

| caption = Official portrait, 2024

}}

{{nihongo|Gen Nakatani|中谷 元|Nakatani Gen|born 14 October 1957}} is a Japanese politician who was Director General of the Japan Defense Agency (now Japan Ministry of Defense) in the first cabinet of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in 2001-2002 and was appointed the Minister of Defense by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2014.{{cite news|title=Security experts warn on China threat|url=http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/10/06/2003484677/2|accessdate=4 January 2011|newspaper=Taipei Times|date=6 October 2010 |author=Ko Shu-ling|author2=J. Michael Cole}}{{cite news|title=Japan Should Consider Pre-emptive Strikes, LDP Lawmaker Says|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aVoR7GOucg_k|accessdate=4 January 2011|newspaper=Bloomberg|date=26 May 2009 |author=Sachiko Sakamaki|author2=Takashi Hirokawa}} Nakatani was again named to the position of Minister of Defense for the cabinet of Shigeru Ishiba in 2024.{{cite news |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/Japan-s-new-PM/New-Japan-cabinet-Kato-to-be-named-finance-minister-Iwaya-as-foreign-minister|title=New Japan cabinet: Kato to be named finance minister, Iwaya as foreign minister |date=30 September 2024 |work = Nikkei Asia }}