Yamada's earlier diplomatic career included postings in Washington, London and Beijing. From 2012 to 2015 he served as minister for political affairs at the Embassy of Japan in Washington. After returning to Japan he served as Deputy Director-General for North American Affairs Bureau. In 2016, he was seconded to the National Security Secretariat under Prime Minister Abe, where he was the main point of contact with President Trump's national security council. In 2019, he was appointed Deputy Minister for Foreign Policy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was a confidant of Toshimitsu Motegi who was Foreign Minister from 2019 to 2021.[1][3]
In 2021 Yamada was appointed Senior Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs. He played an instrumental role in making Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's surprise visit to Ukraine in March 2023 possible. He was also Political Director during Japan’s presidency of G7 in charge of preparations on strategic and diplomatic agenda for G7 Nagano-Karuizawa Foreign Ministers’ Meeting as well as G7 Hiroshima Summit.
After being appointed to be Japanese Ambassador to the United States in October 2023, he took the position in December 2023. He was reportedly instructed to make connections with the campaign of former President Donald Trump in anticipation for his possible victory in the 2024 United States presidential election.[4][5]
On 10 April 2024, Yamada was among the guests invited to the state dinner hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden in honor of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the White House.[6]
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