Hagel's Week in Asia, Complete With Talk of Drones and Fiscal Standoff Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel spent much of the past week on an airplane. Above, he left Seoul, South Korea, on Tuesday, headed for Tokyo. ABOARD A U.S. MILITARY JET - Within the same hour that the White House announced that President Obama was scuttling the remainder of his long-planned trip to Asia because of the government shutdown, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel was ending a weeklong trip to South Korea and Japan, as part of the administration's continuing - and vexed - attempt to refocus defense, economic and diplomatic interests in the region. As in all such ventures, meetings were had - including one with Secretary of State John Kerry and their Japanese counterparts in Tokyo - a wreath was laid at a cemetery for the war dead and troops were visited. Both within and outside the trip's central message - the reaffirmation of America's commitment to Asian allies in light of North Korea's threat and China's growing dominance - there were several notable contours. Shutdown While diplomacy and complex military agreements dominated Mr. Hagel's time, aides scrambled to assess and manage the impact of the United States government shutdown, which started two days into his trip. From the plane ride last Saturday to Seoul, during which he railed against Congress, to the hour before he took off from Tokyo on Friday morning, when he spoke with American troops on the deck of a destroyer docked at the Yokosuka Naval Base, Mr. Hagel spoke continually, often at length with great animation, about the fiscal follies. Often, he was cranky: "This is an astoundingly irresponsible way to govern!" Other times, philosophical: "We have seemed to have lost our way in the objective of governing." Once in a while, he was reassuring. When asked by a sailor if operations at Yokosuka were in jeopardy, Mr. Hagel said simply, "No." Between meetings and other events, Mr. Hagel held daily update calls with the Pentagon, and one with the White House during the flight home, and his staff pressed the Justice Department for an interpretation of the language of the bill signed by Mr. Obama that exempted active-duty military from furloughs. Roughly 400,000 civilians who work for the department were hit, and the Pentagon wants to tweak legal language to permit it to bring back as many as possible. "It's, in fact, the priority in our general counsel's office," Mr. Hagel said. Drones As part of a new agreement hatched this week here between the United States and Japan to broaden their security alliance, the Air Force will begin flying a handful of Global Hawk surveillance drones from an undetermined base in Japan next spring, a senior administration official said, the first time such drones will be based in East Asia. The unmanned drones are deeply coveted in northeast Asia because they allow for high-altitude visibility far and wide: all the better to peek into adversaries" yards. The placement of these drones, which can fly for more than 28 hours at a time, shows both America's continued security interest in Asia at a time of tight purse strings and Japan's growing willingness to accept new military hardware in the country for use against looming neighbors. Iran Since Mr. Hagel's bruising confirmation hearings, when members of his own Republican Party worked him over for his support of diplomatic engagement during his 12-year Senate career, he has been notably careful with his locution. But Mr. Hagel joined Mr. Kerry this week in strongly backing engagement with Iran, and he knocked back criticisms from the Israeli government over the recent conversation between Iran's new president, Hassan Rouhani, and Mr. Obama. "I have never believed that foreign policy is a zero-sum game," said Mr. Hagel, who supported diplomatic engagement when he served in the Senate. Engagement is not appeasement, it's not surrender, it's not negotiation. Aren't we wiser if we can find ways to resolve disputes, recognizing the danger, being very cleareyed and keeping the strongest military in the world? Mr. Hagel reiterated his comments when speaking with the sailors. "Democracies engage," he told them. Fashion Mr. Hagel is known for his decidedly casual style - neon green pants, suede chukka boots and eye-popping shirts in the White House Situation Room during major events. But in Asia he toned down his sartorial style, with only hints of le fashion de Hagel. There were the corduroy pants, of course, and the red socks. There were also the military emblems. While visiting the Army's Second Infantry Division north of Seoul, Mr. Hagel thanked troops "for allowing me to wear the Second ID jacket. I know I'm not worthy, but nonetheless, I am the secretary of defense, so you don't have any damn choice. His trip ended on his 67th birthday on Friday. He was presented a birthday cake on Thursday night by Mr. Kerry, his old pal from the Senate.