Japanese PM Yukio Hatoyama resigns amid Okinawa row

Yukio Hatoyama Japanese Prime Minister has announced his resignation after only eight months in office.

He had after breaking an election promise to an unpopular American military base to move away from the southern island of Okinawa.

The move comes as his Democratic Party of Japan (DJP) is struggling to revive its chances in an election by July.

The center-left DPJ's election landslide last year's last half-century of conservative rule in Japan.

But wrangling over the basic distracted attention from their broader goals - the pursuit of a more equal alliance with the U.S., a bigger welfare state, and control of policy from the bureaucracy to seize, says the BBC's Roland Buerk in Tokyo.

Mr. Hatoyama, 63, was Japan's fourth prime minister in four years.
Broken promise

Until Tuesday night, Mr Hatoyama said he would stay, while intermittently holding talks with key members of his Democratic Party of Japan.

He announced his resignation but at a special meeting of lawmakers on Wednesday DJP.

He said he was Ichiro Ozawa, said the party Secretary-General - known as the "Shadow Shogun" for his power behind the scenes - to enter.

Mr Hatoyama was under pressure to quit since last week when it was confirmed that an unpopular U.S. base would stay on Okinawa.

For months he had unsuccessfully sought an alternative location for a promise to move off the island from Japan or even full compliance, our correspondent says.

When he failed his coalition government intact.

The members of his party with him had feared they would be trounced in the top-elections for the upper house of parliament next month, says our correspondent.

The following DPJ leader will have to take the complainant's by-elections for the upper house of parliament next month.

Possible successors are Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Naoto Kan, with Katsuya Okada Foreign Minister and Transport Minister Seiji Maehara also seen as potential contenders.