JAPAN: President Bush arrived in Japan for the start of a six-day Asian tour yesterday to protests over his controversial "axis of evil" reference to Iran, Iraq and North Korea in his recent State of the Union speech.
Security was tight as a group of 100 left-wing demonstrators, wearing helmets and face masks, marched through the centre of Tokyo shouting: "Stop Bush's war against Afghanistan and Iraq." Some were holding placards which read: "Bush the fascist".
Environmental groups also staged a small demonstration against the US rejection of the Kyoto agreement on global warming, delivering a letter of protest to the US embassy.
During his tour of Japan, South Korea and China this week, Mr Bush will attempt to win more support for his declared war against terrorism. In Japan he will be appealing to the Prime Minister, Mr Junichiro Koizumi, to bite the bullet on economic reforms.
The President and Mrs Laura Bush had a low key reception at Haneda airport where they were greeted by the US Ambassador to Japan, Mr Howard Baker, who was White House chief-of-staff when Mr Bush's father was vice-president.
Mr Bush will have a three-hour meeting today with the Japanese Prime Minister, when the focus will be on global implications of Japan's worsening economic slump.
Japan has suffered years of recession, has billions of dollars in bad government and private loans, a falling stock market, and record levels of corporate bankruptcy and unemployment.
Mr Bush is anxious to keep these troubles from spilling over into the already anaemic global economy and potentially deepening America's own recession.
But winning support from Japan, South Korea and China for his war against terrorism will also be top of Mr Bush's agenda. At a refuelling stop in Alaska, Mr Bush told US military personnel that he was eager not only to thank Japan and other partners in his anti-terror campaign, but also to emphasise his resolve not to rest "until we have destroyed terrorism".
He hit out at the governments of the three countries he cited last month as being a threat to the world. "One of the most dangerous things that can happen to . . . our nation is that these terrorist organisations hook up with nations that develop weapons of mass destruction," Mr Bush said.
While Mr Koizumi's popularity at home is waning with increasing scepticism over his ability to push through necessary painful economic reforms, Mr Bush has repeatedly said in recent days that he believes he is capable of revitalising the economy.
"The message from me to my friend will be a consistent message and that is that \ Japanese economy must restructure and must deal with her loans, her bad loans. And I am more than confident that the Prime Minister understands this and is willing to make difficult decisions," Mr Bush said before leaving the US for Asia.
Yesterday, the Japanese Defence Minister, Gen Nakatani, expressed reservations about aligning Japan with US policy.
He said the issue of Tokyo's support for any US military operation against Iraq or beyond Afghanistan would depend on whether there were proven links to the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington.