Ryutaro Hashimoto, minister in charge of administrative reform, departed Monday on a six-day trip to Switzerland, Turkey and France.
Hashimoto will give a speech at an international meeting on the aging of society Tuesday in Zurich. The conference will be attended by key government officials and private-sector experts from Japan, the United States and Europe.
Hashimoto will travel to Ankara on Wednesday to meet with Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit.
He will leave Istanbul on Friday for Paris, where he is expected to meet with French President Jacques Chirac.
Hashimoto is scheduled to depart for Japan the same day and arrive in Tokyo on Saturday.