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Japan PM vows change in 'US partnership'
Japan's new Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has vowed to pursue a more independent diplomatic course that could take Tokyo away from top security ally Washington. "Japan up until now has been receptive to the United States, but I want to build a relationship in which Japan can act more proactively and tell them our opinions frankly," Hatoyama said Wednesday in his first press conference in office. He was speaking to reporters following the parliament session, in which he was elected the new prime minister. Hatoyama has promised sweeping changes including improving social welfare and redefining Japan's place in the world. The landmark change in Japan's politics ends almost half a century of conservative rule in the country. The new Japanese prime minister is said to be a strong critic of what he calls Tokyo's 'subservient position to Washington'. Hatoyama has also insisted that his DJP party will question the role of thousands of US troops deployed throughout Japan under a post World War II security pact. Moreover, the premier had earlier vowed to pursue new policies that would take Tokyo away from the 'excesses of US-style capitalism'. "As a result of the failure of the Iraq war and the financial crisis, the era of US-led globalism is coming to an end," Hatoyama wrote in an opinion piece for The New York Times. He had regularly criticized the pro-US ruling party for joining in refueling operations in the Indian Ocean in support of the US-led forces in Afghanistan. Posted by: Fred 2009-09-17 |
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