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 WASHINGTON (AP) - Elvis is out. Baseball is in. President Bush, who had a notably cozy relationship with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, is trying to get closer to his successor, Shinzo Abe. Bush will host Abe on Thursday at the White House and on Friday at Camp David.
Their personal ties are important politically. Japan is a large financial contributor to the U.S.-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, a vital trading partner, and an ally in pressuring North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons ambitions.
"We see Japan as our greatest strategic partner in East Asia, and an increasingly indispensable global partner," Dennis Wilder, the National Security Council's director for Asian Affairs, said Wednesday in previewing Abe's visit.
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