Takeo Akiba F85 to Deliver Convocation Keynote

The Fletcher School is honored to announce that Takeo Akiba F85 will deliver the keynote address at this year’s Convocation ceremony. Akiba currently serves as senior advisor to the Cabinet of Japan, following a distinguished tenure as the nation’s national security advisor from 2021 to 2025. For the past eight and a half years, he has provided near-daily security briefings to four consecutive prime ministers, guiding Japan’s national security and foreign policy at the highest level.

Akiba’s career in diplomacy began in 1982, when he joined Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He has held senior leadership positions including vice minister for foreign affairs (2018-21), senior deputy minister for foreign affairs (2016-18) and director general of both the Foreign Policy Bureau (2015-16) and the International Legal Affairs Bureau (2014-15). His overseas assignments include two postings to the Embassy of Japan in the United States, most recently as political minister from 2009 to 2012.

Over the course of his career, Akiba has specialized in international law, Asian affairs, Japan-U.S. relations and United Nations affairs. His breadth of experience also extends to financial policy, having served in Japan’s Ministry of Finance earlier in his career. In 2008, he was a fellow at Harvard University’s Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, where he examined the impact of weapons of mass destruction proliferation on East Asian security.

In addition to his Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy (MALD) from Fletcher, Akiba holds a bachelor’s degree in law from the University of Tokyo.

We look forward to welcoming Akiba back to Fletcher. His decades of service and leadership in international diplomacy provide a sterling example to students as they begin the academic year and prepare to embark on their own paths in global affairs.

To attend Convocation, please RSVP at this link.