Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi kept his cards close to his vest over the Iraq standoff Thursday, despite opposition leaders' criticism of his support for a U.S.-backed U.N. resolution on the matter.

Koizumi held separate meetings with Naoto Kan of the Democratic Party of Japan, Ichiro Ozawa of the Liberal Party, Tetsuzo Fuwa of the Japanese Communist Party and Takako Doi of the Social Democratic Party at the Prime Minister's Official Residence during the day.

During these talks, he kept his own counsel over whether he would support a military attack on Iraq without U.N. backing.