According to the TM Report, Shinzo Abe’s video message for a 2021 Unification Church-affiliated event came after years spent trying to approach the prime minister. However, the video also contributed to tipping Abe’s assassin over the edge.

In 2021, former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe provided a video message to an organization affiliated with the Unification Church.

His contribution delighted the church. Although the organization had built strong ties with two generations of the Abe family — Abe’s grandfather, Nobusuke Kishi, and his father, Shintaro Abe — it had struggled to establish such a relationship with Abe himself. Abe, for his part, had described the Unification Church as “persistent.”

However, the church gradually grew closer to Abe after supporting his preferred candidates in the Nago City mayoral and gubernatorial elections in Okinawa in 2018, and the Diet upper house election in 2019. Continuing to employ various tactics to win Abe over, the church finally scored a video message from the former prime minister in 2021.

Abe was assassinated on July 8, 2022, by a man named Tetsuya Yamagami over the former’s ties to the Unification Church. During an appearance in the Nara District Court on November 25, 2025, Yamagami’s defense attorney asked what his feelings were regarding Abe’s video message.

“Despair and a sense of crisis, I think,” Yamagami replied.

“Not realistic to invite Abe”

Since 2006, the Unification Church has repeatedly held an event it calls the World Summit, which aims to demonstrate the church’s power to prominent politicians from around the world who are invited as guests.

In a TM Report dated January 10, 2019, Unification Church President Eiji Tokuno described plans to invite Japanese politicians to a World Summit scheduled the following month. However, he stated that it was not realistic to try to invite Abe.

Myself, UPF head Kajikuri, and the core members in charge of negotiations gathered for a two-hour strategy meeting to discuss exactly who we could mobilize for this World Summit.

 

Clearly, inviting the sitting prime minister, Abe, is not a realistic option at this time.

 

That said, it was a serious meeting in which we set a new target of securing the attendance of at least one former prime minister no matter what, as well as at least five former ministers (or agency heads) and ten current members of the Diet.

 

I expect we’ll be able to start reporting concrete results gradually starting next week. Kajikuri is also running around every day, making appointments to meet with the VIPs we’re targeting for mobilization. I also have plans to meet with several key lawmakers. Please wait a little longer. I’ll give an update in next week’s written report.

Unification Church also approached former Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda

In a TM Report dated January 16, 2019, Tokuno gave a status update on efforts to mobilize Japanese politicians for the World Summit. Former prime ministers from parties other than the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), such as Yukio Hatoyama and Yoshihiko Noda, were mentioned as potential candidates.

At this point, a potential former Japanese prime minister is Yukio Hatoyama. He is not a member of the LDP but rather was the first prime minister for the Democratic Party of Japan during its time as the minority [majority] party from 2009 to 2012. Furthermore, as you know, he is one of the few Japanese prime ministers to have frequently made friendly comments regarding South Korea and China, and I understand he is extremely popular in both countries.

 

However, within Japan opinions on former Prime Minister Hatoyama are mixed. In any case, we have begun making serious overtures to him. There is a possibility that he will attend.

 

The second most likely candidate is also not from the LDP, but is former Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, who served as prime minister for the Democratic Party immediately prior to the current prime minister, Abe.

 

Noda was the third prime minister — following Hatoyama first and Kan second — in the Democratic Party administration. We previously campaigned for Noda in his electoral district, and we are currently in negotiations based on that connection, tenuous though it may be. While nothing has been finalized yet, there is a possibility. Noda is still a sitting member of the Diet.

On January 27, 2026, the Sankei Shimbun newspaper reported that Noda received election support from the International Federation for Victory over Communism (IFVC), a Unification Church-affiliated organization, between 2000 and 2009. On January 25, 2026, Daily WiLL, the YouTube channel of a monthly magazine, also published a photograph showing Noda attending a meeting with Unification Church members in 2001. Tansa sent a request for comment to Noda regarding the passages related to him in the TM Report and his ties to the Unification Church reported in the press.

Noda’s office provided the following response: “Regarding your inquiry, we are currently in the middle of an election period, and it is difficult for us to investigate and verify the matter, so we are unable to comment. We appreciate your understanding.”

Abe: “I express my respect to Han Hak-ja”

After that, the Unification Church continued its efforts to invite prominent Japanese politicians to events.

They made a breakthrough in 2021, when former US President Donald Trump agreed to make a video appearance at a Unification Church-affiliated organization’s event in September of that year. In a TM Report dated August 20, 2021, Tokuno explained his intention to use Trump’s commitment as a bargaining chip in negotiations with Abe.

Through constant striving, we finally achieved the decisive milestone of having former President Trump joining as a speaker. I felt that we had overcome the highest hurdle providence had set for us.

 

I am confident that having former President Trump join as a speaker will make it easier to negotiate with other major world leaders. Of course, in Japan as well, the fact that former President Trump has agreed to participate as a speaker will serve as a valuable asset in high-level negotiations with former Prime Minister Abe and other former prime ministers.

The church believes that if Trump joined an event, Abe would follow.

Indeed, the Unification Church’s prediction came true. Abe made a video appearance at an event held by the church-affiliated Universal Peace Federation (UPF).

“I would like to express my respect to leader Han Hak-ja and everyone here. I highly appreciate your emphasis on the value of the family,” Abe said in his message.

“Let’s beware of so-called social revolutionary movements with narrow-minded values,” he added.

Soon after filming the video message, Masayoshi Kajikuri, head of IFVC and UPF Japan, expressed his elation in a TM Report dated September 8, 2021.

Dear Mother,

 

Yesterday, under Heaven’s boundless protection and guidance, we successfully filmed the video of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s speech for the upcoming seventh Rally of Hope. Even though filming has finished, it still hasn’t quite sunk in — I feel as if I’m dreaming.

 

As you know, Prime Minister Abe is a leading Japanese politician who, until last year, served as prime minister for seven years and eight months, the longest tenure in Japan’s constitutional history. I have built a deep relationship with Mr. Abe, this leading Japanese politician, through numerous meetings over the years, driven by a firm resolve to one day have him make a significant contribution before God. However, while he was in office, he was careful to ensure that his relationship with our organization did not become public.

Kajikuri revealed that it was Yun Young-ho, the Unification Church’s second-in-command and head of its World Headquarters, who advised him to use Trump as a bargaining chip.

In early August, following a video conference organized by World Headquarters, Yun Young-ho called me and suggested that, since Trump had agreed to join the event, I should try reaching out to Prime Minister Abe.

 

At that moment, I felt as though I had heard the voice of Heaven, as if Heaven had chosen that very moment to express its desire for Prime Minister Abe to do its work. I will send a detailed report later, but for now, I would like to note that Prime Minister Abe came to our office and sincerely recorded the video for his speech.

Minister Hagiuda acted as intermediary for Abe’s video appearance

In a TM Report dated September 13, 2021, Kajikuri provided further details about how Abe came to agree to deliver the video message: It involved Koichi Hagiuda, who the Unification Church regarded as an important intermediary with Abe. At the time, Hagiuda was serving as Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

When I had dinner with Abe on June 11, I explained the achievements of World Summit 2020 and our six Rallies of Hope to date. Prime Minister Abe appeared very surprised that US Secretary of State Pompeo and Vice President Pence had delivered keynote speeches. Looking him in the eyes, I said, ‘If President Trump gives a speech too, then you, Prime Minister, must also give one.’ The prime minister did not appear unwilling and replied, ‘If that happens, I suppose I will have to.’

 

I then met with Minister Hagiuda, a close aide to Prime Minister Abe, and asked him to convey to the prime minister both the fact that Trump would be speaking and our request for Abe to give remarks as well.

 

A few days later, on the evening of August 24 — the final day of the Olympic torch relay — Minister Hagiuda contacted me to convey that Prime Minister Abe had said, ‘If Trump is participating, then I too must join as a speaker and support leader Han to make the event a success.’

Masayoshi Kajikuri’s father, Gentaro Kajikuri, had also served as head of the IFVC. In his report, Masayoshi wrote about his father and reflected with feeling on the Unification Church’s ties with three generations of LDP politicians — Nobusuke Kishi, Shintaro Abe, and Shinzo Abe.

As I saw the prime minister off at the entrance, I felt as though Chairman Kuboki and my father were making parting bows together with me. I also felt that Prime Minister Kishi and Chief Cabinet Secretary Shintaro Abe were bowing to me in gratitude. I could also picture my father smiling.

 

Mother, this undertaking truly made me realize that the spirit world was with us. First, Director Yun encouraged me, saying that Heaven had shown it to him in a dream and that it would surely be fulfilled. Even though I had been carrying out this work without telling anyone, Chairman Pang also contacted me to say that Prime Minister Abe had appeared in his dream. It seemed to be Heaven’s providence, showing tangibly that both the spirit world and the earthly world are trying to help True Mother.

But while Kajikuri was filled with joy, Tetsuya Yamagami — who would go on to assassinate Abe — was on the brink of despair.

(Korean–Japanese translation: Kang Min-ju)

Reporting on the “TM Report”

Regarding the TM Report, the Unification Church has refuted it, while the LDP has turned a blind eye.

On January 16, 2026, the Unification Church’s Public Relations Department of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification published “Our Organization’s View on the ‘TM Special Report’.”

Within their announcement, there is a report by a staff member who is said to have worked under Yun Young-ho, a former World Headquarters director who compiled the TM Report. It points out that the report is highly likely to contain deliberate omissions, alterations, and additions, concluding that it is “extremely lacking in credibility.” The report’s author remains anonymous, and no details regarding their position or role are disclosed.

It also states that, regarding the relationships with Japanese politicians described in the TM Report, “it cannot be ruled out that the expressions within the report go beyond the established facts, that the context has been embellished, or that the report includes content that cannot be verified as factual.”

From the Unification Church side, on January 8, 2026, former Chairman Eiji Tokuno also posted a statement on X. He acknowledged that “it is true that it includes a report I sent to the former World Headquarters Director to report to leader Han” while adding that “it also contains many personal opinions and wishful predictions.”

In September 2022, two months after the assassination of former LDP President Shinzo Abe, the LDP conducted an investigation into its ties with the Unification Church and concluded that “the party has no organisational relationship with the Church.” The investigation was severely inadequate, relying solely on self-reporting by lawmakers. Despite this, current party president Sanae Takaichi has shown absolutely no intention of evaluating the TM Report. On January 26, 2026, she appeared on TBS’s news23. When Akiko Oishi, co-chair of the Reiwa Shinsengumi, pointed out that Takaichi’s name appears in the TM Report, Takaichi called it a “document of unknown origin” and went so far as to say “that would amount to defamation”.

Tansa reviewed the entire 3,212-page Korean version of the TM Report.Making use of AI-based analysis, examining the document together with translators and our reporting partner, the Korean investigative journalism organization Newstapa.

Extensive research has been conducted on the Unification Church and a vast body of investigative findings has been accumulated by journalists and researchers, as well as by lawyers and religious scholars who have worked on victim support and countermeasures. Tansa respects the work of its predecessors and has utilised their findings to examine the TM Report.

As a result, we have determined that the TM Report is a crucial document in unraveling the longstanding codependency between the Unification Church and the LDP.

While continuing to report on the TM Report, we will pursue further investigation. If you have internal information regarding undisclosed ties between the Unification Church and the Liberal Democratic Party, we encourage you to contact Tansa. We will responsibly protect and keep confidential the identity of our sources.

For those wishing to provide information, please refer to the page. It contains details on contact methods, points to note, and key aspects of the Whistleblower Protection Act.

The Unification Church changed its name to the “Family Federation for World Peace and Unification” in 2015, and the media refers to it as the “Former Unification Church.” However, because there is continuity in the fundamental problems inherent to the Church, Tansa will refer to it as the “Unification Church.”

 

January 27, 2026

Tokyo Investigative Newsroom Tansa

 

(Originally published in Japanese on February 7, 2026. )

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