Model (in)dependent features of the hard pomeron

We discuss the small-x behaviour of the next-to-leading BFKL equation, depending on various smoothing out procedures of the running coupling constant at low momenta. While scaling violations (with resummed and calculable anomalous dimensions) turn out to be always consistent with the renormalization group, we argue that the nature and the location of the so-called hard Pomeron are dependent on the smoothing out procedure, and thus really on soft hadronic interactions.