When planning and implementing Japan's foreign and security policy today, it is absolutely essential to have a clear vision of what is desirable for Japan and the world after ten years and to deliberate on what Japan should do to accomplish that vision.

Our vision of the desirable world consists of a peaceful and prosperous Asia in which an East Asian Community is realized and China is engaging in international affairs as a responsible actor. Our vision also contains an orderly international community in which the United States has regained its respect for international cooperation and in which a collective security framework wherein the use of military force takes place based on U.N. Security Council resolutions is the norm.

To accomplish this desirable world, Japan must become a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council and play a constructive role in defending itself, achieving stability in the Asia-Pacific region, and constructing a peaceful and prosperous world. Japan under the new Democratic Party government would develop a relationship of mutual trust with its neighboring countries and function as a connector between Asia and the United States. This Japan will be much more charismatic than it is today and receive far more attention and respect from Asia as well as the entire world.

In the days before World War II, Japan pursued what could be called "isolated national interest," or the path of a zero-sum game in which Japan had to be the only winner. As history shows, this path eventually misguided Japan. In contrast, postwar Japan has been haunted by feelings of guilt that caused it to look down on the pursuit of national interest itself as something sinful. It seems undeniable that Japan has depended on the United States for decisions concerning its own national security. Since the backbone of foreign policy is the autonomous pursuit of a country's national interest, Japan's foreign policy must graduate from the conventional passive phase into a more active and constructive posture.

In today's highly globalized world, however, the national interest that Japan's foreign policy should pursue must be an "enlightened national interest" that aims at a positive-sum result where everyone wins. Such notions as chauvinistic nationalism and one-country pacifism are incompatible with this enlightened national interest. Japan's foreign policy under the new government will pursue this enlightened national interest.

The three pillars of "enlightened national interest" are (1) a peaceful and prosperous Asia, (2) evolution of the Japan-U.S. relationship, and (3) contributing to the peace and prosperity of the world.

Japan is a member of Asia, and developing a peaceful and prosperous Asia is the most important enlightened national interest for Japan. Building an East Asian Community will be a concrete way to achieve this goal. The new government of Japan will promote the early signing of free trade agreements (FTAs) and economic partnership agreements (EPAs) with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), South Korea, China, and so on. Through the East Asian summit meetings and the permanent secretariat of the East Asian Community, the new Japanese government will also advance policy coordination with these and other Asian countries on a wide range of issues including trade and investment, finance, currency, the environment, energy, and public health. In the long run, the new government intends to gradually develop regional cooperation in such security matters as peacekeeping operations (PKO) and the multilateral joint patrol of sea lanes.

After reflecting humbly and honesty the errors of the past, we will work determinedly to create a future-oriented relationship with China and South Korea.

The Japan-U.S. alliance is not only essential for Japan's peace and prosperity but also pivotal for the stability of the Asian-Pacific region. In the United States, however, there has emerged a school of thought that does not hesitate to sanction unilateral action and preemptive attacks when necessary. It, therefore, would not only harm Japan's national interest but even weaken the Japan-U.S. relationship in the long run if Japan continues its conventional passive and temporizing foreign policy.

In the Asian-Pacific region, the new government of Japan will deepen its cooperation with the United States in such areas as the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), nation building in developing countries, and peace building. When dealing with global issues that extend beyond the Asian-Pacific region, such as in the Middle-East and Africa, Japan will send its Self-Defense Forces overseas, in principle, only under U.N. auspices. As a precondition for these actions, the new government of Japan will strengthen legislator-initiated strategic dialogue with the United States.

We need to further enhance the Japan-U.S. relationship in all areas, including politics, economy, culture, and education. The new government will immediately start negotiations with the United States toward the signing of a bilateral free trade agreement.

In this highly globalized world, it would be in Japan's enlightened national interest to achieve peace and prosperity in the international community as a whole. Millions of people are still suffering from poverty and war in Africa and other areas of the world, and we want to feel pride as Japanese in living together with the people of the world, by preserving and enhancing human security and the like.

The new government of Japan will upgrade its official development assistance (ODA), both qualitatively and quantitatively, to facilitate sustainable development of developing countries and, at the same time, to obtain an effective tool of foreign policy. It will thoroughly review the current ODA process and eliminate inefficiency and unfairness.

The new government of Japan will actively extend contributions to U.N. peace-building activities, particularly in Asia. It will review and revise the current five principles of PKO participation in alignment with the international standard. It intends to mobilize not only the Self-Defense Forces but also the civilian police force for the sake of international cooperation.

It will promote the conclusion of new arms reduction and arms control treaties as well as the expansion of the number of signatories to existing treaties including the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) in order to prevent proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD). The Japanese government will prevent the occurrence of failed states by means of ODA and human resource provisions and eliminate breeding grounds for terrorism.

Japan should become a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council and tackle the issue of enhancement of global governance through the United Nations as well as reform of international organizations.

To carry out the above new foreign and security policy, Japan will need power, leadership, and a foreign policy infrastructure.

The new Japan under the new leadership will have a larger say in the international community through its foreign policy based on its soft power such as its economic affluence, distinct culture, high technology, and safe society.

As the first priority, the new government of Japan will mobilize an all Japan effort, encompassing both governmental and nongovernmental resources, to consolidate a foreign policy infrastructure. It will immediately strengthen the office of the Prime Minister, reform the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and upgrade intelligence capabilities. The government will create the permanent post of a special adviser on foreign and security policy reporting directly to the Prime Minister as well as greatly strengthening the capability of the Security Council. These two entities will engage in the drafting of the national strategy and other important policy legislation, while the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be essentially an executive organ of foreign policy. The new government will also simultaneously tackle the task of integrating and strengthening of the intelligence institutions.

The new government of Japan will energetically work to help build the East Asian Community, construct a new Japan-U.S. relationship in which each partner acts and interacts autonomously, and contribute to the peace and prosperity of the world. When pursuing these goals, we find the zero-sum national interest, chauvinistic nationalism, and indifference to other countries' affairs to be both pointless and detrimental.

We must be proud and confident of the role that Japan has played in the post-war era. Based on this confidence, we wish to be accommodative to diverse values, tolerant of others, and honest about our own errors. The new government of Japan will exercise "humility based on self-confidence" when fulfilling its responsibility in Asia as well as the world as a whole. It will build a Japan that will live harmoniously with the world.