In the China school, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Abdullah is the equivalent of China's reformist prime minister, Zhu Rongji.

As a new, stirringly reformist prime minister, Mr. Koizumi has yet another important consideration: the need for support from Washington for his sweeping but risky economic restructuring.

The reformist minister of Islamic guidance and culture, whose ministry approved Mr. Gardner's project, has been forced to resign.

Croatia will be told it can become the 28th EU member on 1 July 2013 at Monday night's dinner of foreign ministers in a gesture of faith to the country's reformist prime minister.

Referring to Japan's reformist prime minister, he added: "He is going to have a very tough struggle to regain the high ground.

Croatia's reformist prime minister, Ivica Racan, resigned to rid himself of a troublesome coalition partner and is expected to form a new cabinet with the backing of minor parties.

This spring, he turned on his reformist prime minister, Viktor Yushchenko, and stood by as Mr. Yushchenko was ousted by a vote of no confidence in Parliament.

Then, referring to Japan's reformist prime minister, Junichiro Koizumi, he added: "To do reform, we need outsiders.

Serbia's Parliament approved the nomination of a loyal ally of Zoran Djindjic, the reformist prime minister who was assassinated last week, as the republic's new leader.

Jadranka Kosor, the country's reformist prime minister, had pleaded for a membership date to be given by June as a gesture to mark the 20th anniversary of independence from the former Yugoslavia.