( dpa ) - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Japan Wednesday, seeking to boost bilateral ties and promote cooperation in dealing with North Korea.
Rice was expected to meet with her Japanese counterpart, Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura, for talks centring on the possible realignment of US bases in Japan and on ways to lessen tensions with North Korea.
Also on the agenda were alleged crimes committed by US soldiers at bases in Japan, including the rape of a 14-year-old Japanese school girl on the southern island of Okinawa.
The US diplomat was also scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, Defence Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura.
Rice traveled to Beijing and South Korea before arriving for a day-long visit to Tokyo.