Fukuda, on his first overseas trip since taking office in September, will pledge to resume a naval operation in the Indian Ocean in support of U.S.-led operations in Afghanistan, which was halted due to opposition in the Japanese parliament, according to the prime minister's office. He will also ask Bush not to remove North Korea from the U.S. list of nations that sponsor terrorism, which the Japanese public opposes.

On his side, Bush is likely to ask Fukuda to end his nation's ban on U.S. beef imports.
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"The Japan-U.S. summit meeting will be tough because there's nothing positive to discuss," said Hisahiko Okazaki, head of the Okazaki Institute in Tokyo. "The U.S. is concerned about an overall setback in Japan's cooperation with the U.S. under Fukuda's leadership."

Fukuda succeeded Shinzo Abe, who resigned as prime minister Sept. 12. Abe chose to make his first overseas trip to China and South Korea -- breaking a tradition that new Japanese prime ministers visit Washington first -- to repair relations damaged by his predecessor, Junichiro Koizumi.

In his 12 months in office, though, Abe bolstered Japan-U.S. relations, especially in his attempt to change the constitution to allow the country to exert itself militarily. He resigned four days after meeting with Bush at an Asian-Pacific leader's summit in Sydney, Australia.

Domestic Issues

Fukuda, in contrast, has spent his first two months in office dealing with domestic political problems caused by the opposition's winning control of the upper house of the Japanese Diet in July.

In Washington, Fukuda will reaffirm his determination to regain parliamentary authorization for Japan's naval mission in the Indian Ocean, which expired Nov. 1, forcing navy ships back to Japan. The opposition Democratic Party of Japan objects to renewing the deployment.

Source: Bloomberg