Japanese FM leaves for unannounced visit to Iraq

Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso has left for Iraq by a commercial aircraft on Thursday morning for an unannounced visit, Kyodo News reported.

Aso will meet Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari and other senior officials in Baghdad later in the day to talk about economic aid and other reconstruction support issues following the withdrawal of the Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) troops from the war-torn country in mid July, Kyodo News said, quoting anonymous government officials as saying.

The Japanese Foreign Ministry has refrained from announcing the visit because of security concerns, the sources said, adding that the minister is scheduled to wrap up the trip by the end of the day and head back for Japan via Kuwait.

This will be the first visit to Baghdad by a Japanese minister since March 2003, when the U.S. led coalition army started striking Iraq.

Analysts said Aso is trying to use the trip to show his proficiency in active diplomacy, thus boosting his popularity for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election slated for Sept. 20.

Former Japanese Defense Agency Director General Yoshinori Ono paid a visit to the southern Iraqi city of Samawah, where the GSDF was stationed, in late 2004, and his successor Fukushiro Nukaga visited the city at the end of 2005.

Source: Xinhua