Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has vowed to steer a more independent diplomatic course from top security ally Washington, sparking concern in financial markets about possible friction in the relationship. Though he has promised to keep the United States at the core of foreign policy, a number of security issues could cloud ties with US Defense Secretary Robert Gates set to visit next week, and ahead of President Barack Obama's visit in November. Following are questions and answers on some of the issues: What will happen to US forces in Japan? Japan, whose own forces are restricted by its pacifist constitution, hosts about 47,000 US military personnel, a source of irritation for communities near military bases, with many complaints of crime, noise, pollution and accidents. A former leader of the ruling Democratic Party, Ichiro Ozawa, drew criticism when he said this year that most of the troops were not needed. But the party's election manifesto made no mention of such an idea, instead promising to propose amendments to the Status of Forces Agreement under which US troops operate in Japan and to rethink a planned redeployment of US troops. Washington and Tokyo have agreed to ease the burden of US bases on the southern island of Okinawa by moving a 4,000-strong US Marine Corps base from the centre of a town to a less populated area in the north of the island. The deal means 8,000 Marines will also be moved from Okinawa, partly at Japan's expense, to the US territory of Guam. Washington is keen to press ahead with the project, which is supposed to be completed by 2014, partly because the issue has dragged on since an initial agreement on the bases in 1996. But many residents of Okinawa, which suffered one of the bloodiest battles of World War Two, are dissatisfied with the plan for environmental and other reasons. Hatoyama has said the Marine base at Futenma should be moved from Okinawa but has not proposed an alternative location. The party's proposed changes to the agreement would include a requirement that US forces make good any damage to the environment caused by their activities, a Japanese newspaper said. Several cases of contamination have been discovered at sites returned to Japan by the US military. How far will Japan back US military activities? Hatoyama said he will not renew the mandate for Japanese ships on a refuelling mission in the Indian Ocean in support of US-led operations in Afghanistan, which expires in January. Hatoyama's predecessor, Ozawa, had floated the possibility of sending troops to Afghanistan under a United Nations mandate, but the idea of putting soldiers' lives at risk is unlikely to gain popular support. No Japanese troops have been killed in action since World War Two. What line will the new govt take on nuclear weapons? Japan has long been ambivalent about nuclear arms. Many Japanese use the fact that Japan is the only country to have suffered nuclear attacks as a platform to campaign for the abolition of nuclear weapons. Hatoyama backs President Barack Obama's calls for a world free of nuclear arms and has promised to uphold Japan's three “non-nuclear principles” banning the making, possession or introduction into the country of nuclear arms. He has also said he will seek a US pledge not to bring nuclear-armed vessels into Japanese ports. But Japan benefits from a nuclear “umbrella” provided by Washington, something many see as increasingly important, given China's growing military might and North Korea's nuclear arms program. How will Japan's Asia strategy change? Hatoyama advocates a new East Asian Community modelled after the European Union, though he concedes that it would take more than 10 years to set up a unified regional currency. He wants to deepen ties with China and has said he will stay away from Yasukuni, a war shrine in Tokyo seen by many in Asia as a symbol of Japan's military aggression across the region in the early 20th century.
