Directorate at last behind Oriental (7)
I believe the answer is:
eastern
'oriental' is the definition.
(synonyms)
'directorate at last behind' is the wordplay.
'at last' suggests the final letters.
'behind' becomes 'astern' (at the back or behind of a ship).
The last letter of 'directorate' is 'e'.
'e'+'astern'='EASTERN'
(Other definitions for eastern that I've seen before include "Indian perhaps" , "in Beijing, possibly" , "See 11" , "Nearest (anag) - oriental" , "from afar" .)