"I wonder to what extent the Hatoyama administration relies on bureaucrats for its foreign policy," a diplomat from a Middle Eastern country said recently. "It has not expressed its own messages on issues such as Iran's nuclear weapons programs and the Mideast peace process. That makes me wonder who really is calling the shots in drawing up Japan's Mideast policies."
Ever since assuming power last September, Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has been propagating ambiguous concepts like "diplomacy based on fraternity," a "more equal partnership with the United States" and the creation of an "East Asian Community." Although he has made his positions somewhat clear regarding Japan's relations with the U.S. and China, he has failed to clarify his policies toward other parts of the world. Nor has Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada taken any major initiative.
This doesn't mean that bureaucrats have taken the lead role in formulating and implementing the government's diplomatic and security policies. An interesting contrast exists within the Foreign Ministry.