KYOTO -- U.S. President George W. Bush, in reaffirming his close personal ties Wednesday with Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, praised the latter's recent election win as a model for democracy and underscored that the close Japan-U.S. relationship is important for all of Asia and beyond.
Bush also upheld Taiwan as a model for democracy, getting China's attention.
Meeting in the ancient capital of Kyoto, the two leaders visited Kinkakuji Temple, the Golden Pavilion, early in the morning before sitting down for about an hour to discuss the U.S. troop realignment in Japan, the dispatch of the Self-Defense Forces to Iraq and the resumption of U.S. beef imports, among other topics.