Koizumi to visit SE Asia next month

Koizumi to visit SE Asia next month

TOKYO (DPA): Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi will visit Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia on a tour lasting about a week from Sept. 16, an unconfirmed report said on Wednesday.

According to the Mainichi Shimbun daily, Koizumi had initially planned to attend the Special Session of the UN General Assembly on Children that opens on Sept. 19.

However, he changed his plans to boost relations with Japan's neighbors in light of his Aug. 13 visit to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, which is dedicated to Japan's war dead.

A Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said on Wednesday the ministry could not yet confirm Koizumi's Southeast Asian tour.