He also urged South Korea, a nation with a population exceeding 50 million, to resist the “left-leaning elite” and shield itself from the “threat” posed by the Chinese Communist Party. Throughout his 40-minute speech, Kirk addressed the country’s birth rate — the lowest globally — and emphasized that it was upon South Koreans to prevent their nation from “vanishing.”
“It’s not just morally wrong to not have children,” he remarked, dismissing the widespread apprehensions concerning the country’s escalating living, education, and housing costs. “From a historical perspective, it’s pathetic.”
Following his time in South Korea, Kirk traveled to Tokyo, where his popularity has been on the rise. He delivered similar messages in Japan, urging the increase of the birth rate, which hit a historic low last year in a country with over 120 million people.
He was invited to speak at a lecture hosted by Japan’s far-right party, Sanseito, whose “Japanese first” ideology draws inspiration from Trump’s MAGA movement. The party saw significant success in the July upper house election by highlighting a “silent invasion” of immigrants.
Previously, rallies held by the party — which has transitioned from a fringe anti-vaccination group to a mainstream political entity — have advocated for stricter control on foreign workers and investment. The party leader, Sohei Kamiya, often likened to a “mini Trump,” has dismissed claims of xenophobia.
Sitting next to a Sanseito lawmaker, Kirk said he hoped to “invigorate the people of your great nation to keep fighting this globalist menace.”
“We’re in a big fight against globalism,” Kirk said in the video, which was posted by the party ahead of the event.
Kirk expressed his excitement at witnessing a “growing political movement” in Japan that aligned with their beliefs, stating in a CNN interview that an influx of foreigners would mean that “Japan’s not Japan anymore.”
“That’s not xenophobia, it’s common sense,” he said.
Foreign-born residents make up just 3% of the population in Japan, far lower than in the U.S. and many other countries. But their number rose more than 10% last year to a record of almost 3.8 million, according to the Immigration Services Agency.
Kamiya said on X that he was “stunned” and “heartbroken” by Kirk’s death.
“We had promised to meet again at his year-end event and had begun to imagine the work we would take on together,” he said.
“We will honor him in the only way worthy of his example: by treasuring what we received from him, by telling it faithfully, and by carrying it forward — here in Japan and beyond.”
