The foundations of Japan's present-day foreign policy were laid in the early postwar period. After an initial expansionary phase, the official foreign policy doctrine has been fairly stable. Japan's postwar foreign policy has been guided by distinct perceptions of national goals and national role-conceptions held by decision-makers. This study is based on an analysis of foreign speeches given by Japan's prime ministers to the parliament and shows how individual politicians have influenced politics only marginally, if at all, in most cases. The foundation work at the beginning of the postwar period has proved so solid that not even outspoken and prolific premiers with an ambition to effect change have been able to make an impact on the doctrine actually pursued.