In October 2019, Fumio Kishida, then policy chief of the Liberal Democratic Party, met with former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich in Tokyo. However, an investigation by The Asahi Shimbun revealed that seven of the eight people accompanying Gingrich had connections to the Unification Church.
The newspaper analyzed photos of the meeting provided by Gingrich and discovered a piece of paper on Kishida's desk labeled "List." Gingrich confirmed that the paper contained a list of attendees, which included members of organizations affiliated with the Unification Church, such as the Universal Peace Federation (UPF) and the Federation for World Peace.
Kishida's private office acknowledged the list but maintained that the prime minister believed it was a meeting with Gingrich only and was unaware of the presence of the other individuals. Kishida has also stated that there are no records or documents of the meeting.
The meeting was arranged by UPF Japan, and Gingrich has acknowledged his close ties to the organization. The UPF was founded by Sun Myung Moon, the founder of the Unification Church, and his wife, Hak Ja Han Moon. The church has been accused of financial exploitation and has been linked to several LDP lawmakers, including former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.