Yukio Okamoto, the hand that cradled the Japan-US alliance

Maverick diplomat ditched bureaucracy but remained an influencer of statecraft

Okamoto speaks at a 2014 event on U.S.-Japan security affairs organized by the Center for Strategic & International Studies. (Photo courtesy of CSIS)

AKIHIKO MIYAMOTO, Contributing writer (former Nikkei political editor)

May 10, 2020 17:04 JST

TOKYO -- Back when Yukio Okamoto was a diplomat, his suit jacket was always draped over the back of his chair at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tokyo. As director of the First North America Division, he kept a direct line with the U.S. State Department.