Japanese PM Yukio Hatoyama Announces Resignation, DPJ to Elect New Leader

Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has announced his resignation, stepping down from his leadership position after the controversy surrounding a U.S. military base failed to subside.

Hatoyama, who had been in office for just eight months, had made an election promise to move a U.S. military base positioned on Okinawa. Despite the pledge the Democratic Party of Japan leader was forced to back down from his campaign promise when he found it impossible to locate a viable alternative.

While Hatoyama was elected in a landslide his inability to live up to his promise quickly cost him, and the DPJ, support. His decision to resign was, he said, an attempt to “revitalize” the DPJ. Hatoyama had been feeling pressure by the rest of his party as they feared the controversy would lead to a large-scale loss in the mid-term elections in the upper house scheduled for July.

Hatoyama is expected to remain in office until Friday when the DPJ appoints a new leader. That will likely be Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Naoto Kan who has already expressed his desire to take the party’s leadership position.

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