TOKYO (voa) – President Bush is in Japan where he is expected to encourage Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to move faster on economic reforms while seeking more support for the global war against terrorism.
Mr. Bush had dinner with the U.S. ambassador after his arrival Sunday evening at the start of a six-day Asia trip that will also take him to China and South Korea.
In official talks Monday, Mr. Bush is expected to press the Japanese leader to implement economic reforms to counter rising unemployment and declining incomes and consumer confidence in the world’s second largest economy.
The two leaders are also likely to talk about the war on terrorism and the Bush administration’s hard line on North Korea. President Bush is planning to ask all Asian allies to help prevent North Korea from supplying terrorists with weapons of mass destruction.
In a speech, President Bush is expected to thank Japanese legislators for supporting the U.S.-led coalition against terrorism and for offering to help pay for reconstruction in Afghanistan. The president is also expected to face questions about his new plan to slow the growth of greenhouse gases. The Japanese Environment Minister expressed disappointment with the Bush plan because it falls short of targets set by the Kyoto protocol.
After three days in Japan, Mr. Bush travels to South Korea, where he is expected to reassure President Kim Dae-jung that the United States is committed to peace on the Korean Peninsula, despite his administration’s hard line against North Korea.
The president’s characterization of North Korea as part of an “axis of evil” along with Iran and Iraq has raised concerns in Asia that the next phase of the war against terrorism could increase tensions on the Korean peninsula.
Shortly before the President’s arrival, left-wing students in Tokyo demonstrated against the war against terrorism and Japanese cooperation in the U.S.-led international coalition. Later, during his visit to China, President Bush is expected to focus on weapons proliferation, national missile defense, trade, religious freedom and human rights issues, including Beijing’s crackdown on the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement.
