President, Koizumi Cheer Each Other On

By EDWIN CHEN

Feb. 19, 2002 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

TOKYO — It was only their fourth meeting. But President Bush and Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi apparently see eye to eye on so many issues that Koizumi said after their latest session Monday, “I feel as if we’ve met each other umpteen times already.”

After more than 4 1/2 hours together in a variety of settings, Bush and Koizumi heaped praise on each other.

Their rapport is just one of several personal relationships that Bush has nurtured with other world leaders, including Mexican President Vicente Fox, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Russian President Vladimir V. Putin.

What was striking here was the staunch public support that Bush and Koizumi provided each other at a time when both are catching flak--Koizumi for his handling of Japan’s economy and Bush for bellicose rhetoric suggesting that he might expand the U.S. counterterrorism campaign beyond Afghanistan, with or without allied support.

In short, they needed each other, and neither let the other down.

The mutual love fest resumed this morning as Bush, in an address to the Japanese parliament, said of Koizumi:

“I value my relationship with the prime minister. . . . I trust him. I enjoy his sense of humor. I consider him a close friend. He reminds me of the new American star, Ichiro [Suzuki of baseball’s Seattle Mariners]: The prime minister can hit anything you throw at him.”

Bush’s speech amounted to a combination pep talk to Japan and affirmation of U.S. military commitments throughout Asia, including in the Philippines and South Korea--even as he spoke of peace.

“We seek a peaceful region where no power, or coalition of powers, endangers the security or freedom of other nations, where military force is not used to resolve political disputes,” the president said.

He also invoked the broad desire on the Korean peninsula for reunification between the North and the South, saying: “We seek a region in which demilitarized zones and missile batteries no longer separate people with a common heritage and a common future.”

Bush urged Japan to “move forward boldly with [economic] reform and restructuring,” and he concluded by expressing his confidence that “Japan’s greatest era lies ahead.”

The assembled lawmakers gave him a rousing welcome.

Shortly afterward, Bush flew to Seoul, where he probably faces a chillier reception because of his recent demonization of North Korea. Some in the South view that as having undermined South Korean President Kim Dae Jung’s “sunshine policy” of rapprochement with the government in Pyongyang.

On Wednesday, Bush is scheduled to confer with Kim and then visit U.S. troops at the demilitarized zone that separates North and South Korea.

In Tokyo, Bush and Koizumi began their quality time together Monday at 9:30 on a brilliant, almost balmy morning, sitting side by side at an archery exhibition performed by mounted horsemen, called yabusame.

Then they commenced a one-on-one discussion. Just before they sat down, Koizumi presented Bush with a large framed print of a mounted archer like those they had just seen--except the face bore a distinct likeness to the leader of the free world.

Chuckling, Bush quipped: “We’re fighting evil.”

He and Koizumi talked for more than half an hour before senior aides joined them. The expanded group worked through lunch, served in red lacquer boxes.

Bush set the tone for the day as he told reporters just before he and Koizumi began their first meeting, “I plan on talking about what a great reformer he is, and how he’s going to be reforming the economy and how we’ve got great confidence in his ability to lead this country.”

With that preview, no one was surprised when Koizumi emerged decidedly upbeat.

“We were able to exchange views on almost everything,” he remarked, adding that the sessions enabled the leaders to “renew our friendship and cement further our relationship of trust and reaffirm the importance of the Japan-U.S. alliance.”

Bush spared Koizumi any public loss of face by offering no suggestions--public or private--on how the prime minister might speed a desperately needed economic recovery here.

“First of all, before I had a chance to bring up the economy, the prime minister brought up the economy,” Bush reported, adding that Koizumi launched into a detailed explanation of his economic revival plan.

While some Bush administration officials have criticized Koizumi’s go-slow approach, Bush himself refrained from doing so, explaining: “I’m not here to give advice. I’m here to lend support.

“I’m confident in this man’s leadership ability. I’m confident in his strategy, and I’m confident in his desire to implement that strategy,” Bush declared.

For his part, Koizumi didn’t stop after complimenting Bush’s “strong leadership” in the war on terrorism.

He also came to Bush’s defense for having characterized Iraq, Iran and North Korea as an “axis of evil.”

“The expression ‘axis of evil,’ I believe, reflects the firm resolve of President Bush and the United States against terrorism,” Koizumi said. “President Bush, I believe, has been very calm and cautious vis-a-vis Iraq, Iran and North Korea.”

Koizumi provided still more cover for the U.S. leader on another hot topic.

Although Bush has rejected the international Kyoto treaty on global warming, which seeks to curb the emission of greenhouse gases--a pact that Japan supports--Koizumi hailed Bush’s recent “very positive proposal” as an alternative to the treaty. The Bush plan emphasizes voluntary efforts, which the president has said would protect American jobs.

At their news conference, Koizumi even echoed Bush’s mantra, noting that “the problems of environment and the problems of economy . . . should proceed hand in hand, and they should not run counter to each other.”

The two men’s relaxed relationship surfaced during their back and forth on global warming.

First, Koizumi observed that he thought voluntary restraints on greenhouse gas emissions might not be enough.

“We appreciate the stance shown by the United States to contribute on that front . . . and we will expect greater efforts in that respect,” he said.

But moments later, when a reporter asked Koizumi a question premised on the United States’ having signed the Kyoto treaty, Bush interjected before Koizumi could reply, saying, “The . . . question is moot.”

After an afternoon respite, Bush and Koizumi got together again at a reception that the prime minister held at his official residence for the president and First Lady Laura Bush.

As the trio--Koizumi is divorced--descended a long staircase, the prime minister finally saw fit to offer Bush some unvarnished advice.

As they stopped midway to pose for photographs, Koizumi turned to Bush and said in English, “Shake hands.”

Bush promptly complied.